The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a notice about the handling of off-the-record communications related to contested proceedings. According to Order No. 607, any FERC employee receiving such communications must submit them or a summary to the Commission's Secretary. Prohibited communications, which are not used in decision-making, can be included in the decision record if fairness requires. Exempt communications are usually part of the decision record unless involving specific agencies. A recent list of such communications is available on FERC's website.
Simple Explanation
FERC wants to make sure all secret chats that might affect big decisions are shared with everyone to keep things fair, and they have rules about how this needs to happen.