[California Energy Commission Letterhead]



STATE OF CALIFORNIA

Energy Resources
Conservation and Development Commission



In the Matter of: ) Docket No. 98-AFC-2
)
Application for Certification for the ) NOTICE OF PREHEARING
La Paloma Generating Project ) CONFERENCE and
__________________________ ) SCHEDULING ORDER

I. NOTICE OF PREHEARING CONFERENCE

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Committee will conduct a public Prehearing Conference as follows:

THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 1999
Beginning at 1:30 p.m.
California Energy Commission
First Floor Hearing Room A
1516 Ninth Street
Sacramento, California
[Wheelchair Accessible]

At this event, all parties shall present their respective opinions concerning: which substantive topic areas are ready for evidentiary hearings; which require further analysis, including the nature of, and timeframe for, any such analysis; which topic areas the parties have reached agreement upon; and which remain subject to disagreement and require adjudication.

Interested agencies and members of the public are encouraged to attend and may comment at this Conference.

Purposes and Procedures

The basic purposes of the Prehearing Conference are to assess the parties' readiness for evidentiary hearings, to identify areas of agreement or dispute, and to discuss procedures which will assist the Committee in concluding this licensing process according to the attached schedule. In this regard, the parties shall be prepared to discuss the matters mentioned above as well as future filing dates for testimony and other evidentiary documents, briefing and comment periods, and other related items reflected on the attached schedule.

Each party shall serve and file a Prehearing Conference Statement. These Statements must be received at the Commission Docket Unit, 1516 Ninth Street, MS-4, Sacramento, California 95814, no later than 5:00 p.m., on Tuesday, March 9, 1999. Identify these Statements with "Docket No. 98-AFC-2."

Each Statement shall specify:

Interested members of the public or governmental agencies may comment at the Prehearing Conference.

Anyone with a legitimate interest relevant to the siting of the proposed project may file a Petition to Intervene and become a formal party to the proceeding. Party status provides the rights to present independent evidence, receive pertinent documents, and cross-examine witnesses; it also imposes the duties to comply with various orders, procedures, and filing requirements, as well as be subject to cross-examination by other parties.

The Public Adviser's Office will assist anyone interested in preparing a Petition to Intervene. Commission regulations provide that a Petition to Intervene should be filed at least 30 days prior to the beginning of evidentiary hearings. [20 Cal. Code of Regs., sec. 1207(b)]. In this instance the Committee directs that any Petition to Intervene should be filed prior to the March 16, 1999, Prehearing Conference. Typically, by the time the Committee schedules a Prehearing Conference, intervenors are not granted time extensions to review existing case materials since to do so could delay the proceeding.

Those desiring information or assistance concerning participation in these proceedings should contact Roberta Mendonca, the Public Adviser, at (916) 654-4489 or, toll free, (800) 822-6228,or at mendonc@energy.state.ca.us. Rick Buell, the Staff Project Manager, will respond to technical inquiries and may be reached at (916) 653-1614. Questions of a legal or procedural nature should be addressed to Stanley W. Valkosky, the Hearing Officer, at (916) 654-3893. Please contact Robert Sifuentes at (916) 654-5005 if you require special accommodation to participate at this meeting. Media inquiries should be directed to Claudia Chandler, Assistant Executive Director, at (916) 654-4989.

II. SCHEDULING ORDER

Public Resources Code sections 25522(a) and 25540.6(a) provide, in part, that the Commission shall issue a final decision on an Application for Certification (AFC) within twelve months of its filing, or at a later time as is mutually agreed by the Commission and the Applicant. The Commission accepted the AFC for the La Paloma Generating Project on August 26, 1998.

We will therefore adhere to the attached schedule which provides for a final Commission decision on August 25, 1999. Information concerning the status of the project, as well as notices and other relevant documents, is also available on the Energy Commission's Internet home page at:

Dated: ENERGY RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
   
   
   
_____//signed//_____ ___//signed//_____
ROBERT A. LAURIE, Commissioner DAVID A. ROHY, Ph.D., Vice Chair
Presiding Committee Member Associate Committee Member



LA PALOMA SCHEDULE

Applicant provides final determination from California Independent System Operator March 1, 1999
Parties file Prehearing Conference Statements March 9
Prehearing Conference March 16
Applicant provides Air District Determination of Compliance and Biological Opinion(s), if required, as well as required analysis from Federal authorities, if any March 19
Committee issues Hearing Order and Notice of Evidentiary Hearings March 23
Staff releases final testimony in form of Staff Assessment April 7
Parties file Rebuttal Testimony April 14
Evidentiary Hearings on all topics April 19 — April 27
Parties file Opening Briefs May 13
Parties file Reply Briefs May 25
Presiding Member’s Proposed Decision (PMPD) and Notice of Conference issued June 25
Parties file comments on PMPD July 19
Conference on PMPD July 23
Close of comment period on PMPD July 28
Committee issues revised PMPD and Notice of Conference August 9
Conference on revised PMPD August 18
Commission consideration of revised PMPD August 25, 1999


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