[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 3 (Wednesday, January 5, 1994)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 540-542]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-119]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: January 5, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 904

 

Arkansas' Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Plan

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), 
Interior.

ACTION: Final rule; approval of amendment.

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SUMMARY: OSM is approving an amendment to the Arkansas abandoned mine 
land reclamation plan (hereinafter referred to as the ``Arkansas 
plan'') under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 
(SMCRA). The amendment consists of revisions to the Arkansas statute 
pertaining to the eligibility of project sites for abandoned mined land 
(AML) funds. The amendment is intended to revise the Arkansas plan to 
be in compliance with SMCRA.

EFFECTIVE DATE: January 5, 1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
James H. Moncrief, Telephone: (918) 581-6430.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the Arkansas Plan
II. Submission of Amendment
III. Director's Findings
IV. Summary and Disposition of Comments
V. Director's Decision
VI. Procedural Determinations

I. Background on the Arkansas Plan

    On May 2, 1983, the Secretary of the Interior approved the Arkansas 
plan. General background information on the Arkansas plan, including 
the Secretary's findings, the disposition of comments, and the approval 
of the Arkansas plan can be found in the May 2, 1983, Federal Register 
(48 FR 19710).

II. Submission of Amendment

    By letter dated October 6, 1993 (Administrative Record No. AAML-
18), Arkansas submitted a proposed amendment to its plan pursuant to 
SMCRA. Arkansas submitted the proposed amendment in response to a 
required program amendment at 30 CFR 904.26(a) that was placed on the 
Arkansas plan when OSM approved Arkansas' March 31, 1993, plan 
amendment (58 FR 38532, July 19, 1993; Administrative Record No. AAML-
17). Arkansas intended that this amendment be in compliance with 
section 402 of SMCRA.
    Arkansas proposed to amend Arkansas Code Annotated (ACA) 15-58-
401(b)(2) that provides criteria for the determination of the 
eligibility of certain project sites for AML funding. Specifically, 
Arkansas proposed to require at ACA 15-58-401(b)(2) a finding that the 
surface coal mining operation occurred during the period beginning on 
August 4, 1977, and ending on November 5, 1990.
    OSM announced receipt of the proposed amendment in the November 1, 
1993, Federal Register (58 FR 58313; Administrative Record No. AAML-25) 
and in the same notice opened the public comment period and provided an 
opportunity for a public hearing on the substantive adequacy of the 
proposed amendment. The public comment period closed on December 1, 
1993. No substantive comments were received. The public hearing, 
scheduled for November 26, 1993, was not held because no one requested 
an opportunity to testify.

III. Director's Findings

    After a thorough review pursuant to SMCRA and the Federal 
regulations at 30 CFR 884.14 and 884.15, the Director finds, as 
discussed below, that Arkansas' October 6, 1993, proposed plan 
amendment is in compliance with SMCRA.
    OSM required at 30 CFR 904.26(a) that Arkansas submit a revision to 
ACA 15-58-401(b)(2) to limit operations eligible for AML funds because 
of insolvency of a surety company to those operations whose surety 
became insolvent during the time frame provided by section 
402(g)(4)(B)(ii) of SMCRA. Section 402(g)(4)(B)(ii) of SMCRA, as 
revised by the Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 
101-508), provided that the period of time during which such an 
operation would be eligible for AML funds because of the insolvency of 
the surety company would begin on August 4, 1977, and end on the date 
of enactment of the revision to SMCRA, which was November 5, 1990. 
Because Arkansas revised ACA 15-58-401(b)(2) to specify a period of 
time beginning on August 4, 1977, and ending on November 5, 1990, ACA 
15-58-401(b)(2) is no less stringent than section 402(g)(4)(B)(ii) of 
SMCRA, as revised by the Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Act of 1990.
    Therefore, the Director approves ACA 15-58-401(b)(2) and removes 
the required amendment at 30 CFR 904.26(a).

IV. Summary and Disposition of Comments

1. Public Comments

    The Director solicited public comments and provided an opportunity 
for a public hearing on the proposed amendment. No public comments were 
received, and because no one requested an opportunity to testify at a 
public hearing, no hearing was held.

2. Agency Comments

    Pursuant to 30 CFR 884.14(a)(2) and 884.15(a), the Director 
solicited comments from the heads of various other Federal agencies 
with an actual or potential interest in the Arkansas plan.
    By letter dated October 29, 1993, (Administrative Record No. AAML-
22), the U.S. Bureau of Mines responded that it had no comments.
    By letter dated October 29, 1993 (Administrative Record No. AAML-
23), the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responded that the proposed 
amendment would not impact NPS program responsibilities.
    By letter dated November 8, 1993 (Administrative Record No. AAML-
24), the U.S. Bureau of Land Management responded with a recommendation 
that Arkansas be required to revise ACA 15-58-401(c) so that it would 
read as follows:

    In determining which sites to reclaim pursuant to paragraph (b) 
of this section, the Director shall follow the priorities stated in 
paragraphs (1) and (2) of 15-58-402. The Director shall ensure that 
priority is given to those sites which are in the immediate vicinity 
of a residential area or which have an adverse economic impact upon 
a community [once coal mining sites and toxic mining material sites 
on federal or state surface tracts have been reclaimed].

    BLM proposed the addition of the bracketed language and stated that 
its intent was to protect the public interest as a whole, particularly 
in the Ouachita National Forest, prior to focusing in on individual 
communities.
    Referenced ``paragraph (b) of this section'' in ACA 15-58-401, as 
revised by the amendment that is the subject of this notice, allows the 
reclamation under Arkansas' plan of certain surface coal mining 
operations that operated on or after August 7, 1977, and were abandoned 
or left in an inadequate reclamation status.
    Referenced ``paragraphs (1) and (2) of 15-58-402'' require that the 
expenditure of AML funds reflect the priorities of (1) the protection 
of public health, safety, general welfare, and property from extreme 
danger of adverse effects of coal mining practices and (2) the 
protection of public health, safety, and general welfare from adverse 
effects of coal mining practices. These State provisions are 
substantively identical to sections 403(a) (1) and (2) of SMCRA.
    ACA 15-58-401(c) is substantively identical to section 402(g)(4)(C) 
of SMCRA. In addition, section 411 of SMCRA provides for the use of AML 
funds for lands affected by noncoal mining only after a State has 
certified that all abandoned coal mines have been reclaimed. Arkansas 
has not yet made this certification.
    OSM cannot, as requested by BLM, require that Arkansas give higher 
priority to the reclamation of coal mining sites and toxic mining 
material sites on federal or state surface tracts because sections 
403(a), 402(g)(4)(C), and 411 of SMCRA do not do so.

V. Director's Decision

    Based on the above finding, the Director approves Arkansas' 
proposed plan amendment, as submitted on October 6, 1993.
    The Federal regulations at 30 CFR part 904, codifying decisions 
concerning the Arkansas plan, are being amended to implement this 
decision. This final rule is being made effective immediately to 
expedite the State plan amendment process and to encourage States to 
bring their plans into conformity with the Federal standards without 
undue delay. Consistency of State and Federal standards is required by 
SMCRA.

VI. Procedural Determinations

1. Executive Order 12866

    This final rule is exempted from review by the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and 
Review).

2. Executive Order 12778

    The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required 
by section 2 of Executive Order 12778 (Civil Justice Reform) and has 
determined that this rule meets the applicable standards of subsections 
(a) and (b) of that section. However, these standards are not 
applicable to the actual language of State abandoned mine land 
reclamation plans and revisions thereof since each such plan is drafted 
and promulgated by a specific State, not by OSM. Decisions on proposed 
State AML reclamation plans and revisions thereof submitted by a State 
are based on a determination of whether the submittal meets the 
requirements of Title IV of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1231-1243) and the 
applicable Federal regulations at 30 CFR parts 884 and 888.

3. National Environmental Policy Act

    No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since 
agency decisions on proposed State abandoned mine land reclamation 
plans and revisions thereof are categorically excluded from compliance 
with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332) by 
the Manual of the Department of the Interior (516 DM 6, appendix 8, 
paragraph 8.4B(29)).

4. Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule does not contain information collection requirements that 
require approval by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 
3507 et seq.).

5. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Department of the Interior has determined that this rule will 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). 
The State submittal which is the subject of this rule is based upon 
Federal regulations for which an economic analysis was prepared and 
certification made that such regulations would not have a significant 
economic effect upon a substantial number of small entities. 
Accordingly, this rule will ensure that existing requirements 
established by SMCRA or previously promulgated by OSM will be 
implemented by the State. In making the determination as to whether 
this rule would have a significant economic impact, the Department 
relied upon the data and assumptions in the analyses for the 
corresponding Federal regulations.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 904

    Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

    Dated: December 28, 1993.
Raymond L. Lowrie,
Assistant Director, Western Support Center.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, title 30, chapter VII, 
subchapter T of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as set forth 
below:

PART 904--ARKANSAS

    1. The authority citation for part 904 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.

    2. Section 904.25 is amended by adding paragraph (b) to read as 
follows:


Sec. 904.25  Approval of abandoned mine land reclamation plan 
amendments.

* * * * *
    (b) The following section of the Arkansas Code Annotated, title 15, 
pertaining to the Arkansas abandoned mine land reclamation plan, as 
submitted to OSM on October 6, 1993, is approved effective January 5, 
1994.

    Section 15-58-401(b)(2) of Arkansas Code Annotated--Lands 
Eligible.

    3. Section 904.26 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 904.26  Required plan amendments.

    Pursuant to 30 CFR 884.15, Arkansas is required to submit for OSM's 
approval the following proposed plan amendment by the date specified.
    (a) [Reserved]
    (b) [Reserved]

[FR Doc. 94-119 Filed 1-4-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-M