[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 33 (Friday, February 17, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 9317-9320]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-4065]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
30 CFR Part 935

[OH-234; Amendment Number 63R]


Ohio Regulatory and AML Programs; Reduction and Reorganization of 
Engineering Staff

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening of public comment period.

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SUMMARY: OSM is reopening the public comment period for a proposed 
amendment to the Ohio regulatory program and AML program (hereinafter 
referred to as the Ohio programs) under the Surface Mining Control and 
Reclamation Act of 1977. This amendment is intended to reduce and 
reorganize the engineering staff of the Ohio programs in response to 
recent drops in Ohio coal production. Ohio has resubmitted this 
amendment in response to OSM's deferral of its decision on the 
engineering portion of Ohio's overall staffing proposal in the previous 
submissions of this program amendment.
    This document sets forth the times and locations that the Ohio 
programs and the proposed amendments to those programs will be 
available for public inspection, the comment period during which 
interested persons may submit written comments on the proposed 
amendments, and the procedures that will be followed regarding the 
public hearing, if one is requested.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before 4:00 p.m., 
e.s.t., on March 20, 1995. If requested, a public hearing on the 
proposed amendments will be held at 1:00 p.m., e.s.t., on March 14, 
1995. Requests to present oral testimony at the hearing must be 
received on or before 4:00 p.m., e.s.t., on March 6, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and requests to testify at the hearing 
should be mailed or hand-delivered to Mr. Robert H. Mooney, Acting 
Director, Columbus Field Office, at the address listed below.

    Copies of the Ohio programs, the proposed amendments, and all 
written comments received in response to this document will be 
available for public review at the addresses listed below during normal 
business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Each 
requester may receive one free copy of the proposed amendments by 
contacting OSM's Columbus Field Office.

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Columbus Field 
Office, 4480 Refugee Road, Suite 201, Columbus, Ohio 43232, Telephone: 
(614) 886-0578
Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Reclamation, 1855 
Fountain Square Court, Building H-3, Columbus, Ohio 43224, Telephone: 
(614) 265-6675.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert H. Mooney, Acting Director, 
Columbus Field Office, (614) 866-0578.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background of the Ohio Program
    On August 16, 1982, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally 
approved the Ohio programs. Information on the general background of 
the Ohio program submissions, including the Secretary's findings, the 
disposition of comments, and a detailed explanation of the conditions 
of approval of the Ohio programs, can be found in the August 10, 1982, 
Federal Register (47 FR 34688). Subsequent actions concerning 
[[Page 9318]] the conditions of approval and program amendments are 
identified at 30 CFR 935.11, 935.12, 935.15, and 935.16.

II. Discussion of the Proposed Amendments

    By letter dated March 15, 1993 (Administrative Record No. OH-1845), 
the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Reclamation 
(Ohio) submitted proposed Program Amendment Number 63 (PA 63). In that 
submission, Ohio proposed to reduce the staff of the Ohio programs by 
abolishing 28 existing positions. Ohio also proposed to reorganize the 
remaining staff positions to assume the existing job duties. The 
amendment contained no proposed revisions to Ohio's coal mining law in 
the Ohio Revised Code or coal mining rules in the Ohio Administrative 
Code.
    OSM announced receipt of the proposed amendment in the April 8, 
1993, Federal Register (58 FR 18185, and, in the same document, opened 
the public comment period and provided an opportunity for a public 
hearing on the adequacy of the proposed amendment. The public comment 
period closed on May 10, 1993.
    OSM and Ohio staff met on May 20, 1993, to discuss OSM's 
preliminary concerns and questions about PA 63. By letter dated June 
16, 1993 (Administrative Record No. OH-1890), Ohio submitted additional 
information in response to those OSM concerns and questions. Through an 
oversight, OSM did not reopen the public comment period at that time.
    Subsequently, by letter dated November 2, 1993 (Administrative 
Record No. OH-1948), OSM formally provided Ohio with its questions and 
comments on the March 15 and June 16, 1993, submissions of PA 63. By 
letter dated December 6, 1993 (Administrative Record No. OH-1971), Ohio 
provided its responses to OSM's November 2, 1993, questions and 
comments.
    OSM announced receipt of Ohio's December 6, 1993, response in the 
January 21, 1994, Federal Register (59 FR 3325), and, in the same 
document, opened the public comment period and provided an opportunity 
for a public hearing on the adequacy of the proposed amendment. The 
public comment period closed on February 7, 1994.
    During its review of Ohio's December 6, 1993, response, OSM 
identified two concerns regarding engineering practices and engineering 
wordload which OSM staff communicated to the State during a meeting 
held on April 20, 1994 (Administrative Record No. OH-2012). Ohio 
responded in a letter dated April 21, 1994 (Administrative Record No. 
OH-2014), with additional information on both issues. OSM announced 
receipt of this additional information, along with the explanatory 
information submitted by Ohio on June 16, 1993, and reopened the 
comment period for PA 63 in the June 9, 1994, Federal Register (59 FR 
29748). The public comment period closed on June 24, 1994.
    In the September 1, 1994, Federal Register (59 FR 45206), the 
Director of OSM partially approved PA 63 but deferred his decision on 
the engineering portions of the amendment. The Director based this 
decision on Ohio's April 21, 1994, letter in which Ohio indicated that 
the reorganization of its engineering staff was still underway. Ohio 
stated that the changes to its engineering staff proposed by Ohio in 
the 1993 submissions of PA 63 no longer accurately reflected Ohio's 
proposed engineering structure. Ohio was still analyzing the workload 
and functions of its engineering staff. Ohio stated that when it has 
finalized its proposed engineering staff configuration, Ohio would 
resubmit that staff configuration to OSM for review and approval.
    On November 29, 1994, OSM and Ohio staff met to discuss Ohio's 
progress with reorganizing its engineering staff (Administrative Record 
No. OH-2071). OSM and Ohio staff met again on December 15, 1994 
(Administrative Record No. OH-2074), at which time Ohio provided 
several documents describing Ohio's projection of the engineering 
resources needed to support its regulatory prgram. On December 30, 
1994, Ohio provided a similar analysis of the needs of its AML program 
(Administrative Record No. OH-2089). On January 23, 1995 
(Administrative Record No. OH-2084), OSM provided comments to Ohio on 
these engineering work projections.
    By letter dated February 2, 1995 (Administrative Record No. OH-
2088), Ohio submitted its revised engineering staff configuration as 
Program Amendment Number 63 Revised (PA 63R). In this submission, Ohio 
is proposing to reduce the engineering staff of the Ohio regulatory and 
AML programs down to 10.4 full-time positions by abolishing 3.6 of the 
14 engineering positions which supported those programs prior to PA 63. 
As with the previous submissions of PA 63, PA 63R contains no proposed 
revisions to Ohio's coal mining law in the Ohio Revised Code or coal 
mining rules in the Ohio Administrative Code.
    The five major parts of Ohio's February 2, 1995, submission of PA 
63R are described briefly below:
(1) Description and Justification of Engineering Staff Actions

    Ohio is proposing to have a total of 3.2 full-time engineering 
staff positions dedicated to its regulatory program. These 3.2 
positions will be made up of varying percentages of the work hours of 8 
employees: 25 percent of 1 Central Office Engineer, 50 percent of 2 
Field Engineers, 25 percent of 1 Field Engineer, 20 percent of 1 
Surveyor, and 50 percent of 3 Engineering Specialists. This staffing 
level represents a reduction of 0.8 full-time staff positions from the 
4.0 regulatory engineering positions that existed prior to PA 63.
    Ohio is proposing to have a total of 7.2 full-time engineering 
staff positions dedicated to its AML program. These 7.2 positions will 
be made up of varying percentages of the work hours of 11 employees: 
100, 70, and 50 percents of 3 Central Office Engineers, respectively; 
65 percent of 1 Field Engineer; 45 percent of 2 Field Engineers; 80 
percent of 1 Surveyors; 50 percent of 3 Engineering Specialists; and 
100 percent of 1 Drafting Technician. This staffing level represents a 
reduction of 2.8 full-time staff positions from the 10.0 AML 
engineering positions that existed prior to PA 63.
    As justification for these engineering staff changes, Ohio has 
submitted a narrative explaining its staffing proposal and summarizing 
the results of an engineering workload analysis conducted by Ohio with 
OSM assistance. Ohio has also stated its plans to conduct on-going 
assessment of any additional engineering support needed by its 
regulatory and ALM programs.

(2) Proposed Table of Organization for Engineering Staff

    Ohio has submitted a proposed table of organization dated January 
1995 which shows the proposed 10.4 engineering staff positions.

(3) Proposed Position Descripotion for Engineering Specialists

    Ohio has submitted a proposed Position Description for the three 
Engineering Specialist positions which it plans to create to provide 
technical assistance to its Central Office and Field Engineers. Ohio 
has provided an explanation of the need for and responsibilities of 
these positions in the narrative portion of PA 63R.

(4) Personnel Table

    Ohio has submitted a table showing how the work percentages of its 
10.4 engineering staff positions will be distributed between Ohio's 
regulatory and AML programs. [[Page 9319]] 

(5) Documents Included by Reference

    Following the narrative portion of PA 63R, Ohio has listed eight 
documents which it considers to be attachments to PA 63R and which 
include the table of organization, position description, and personnel 
table listed above. Ohio provided the other five documents to OSM on 
December 15, 1994 (Administrative Record No. OH-2074); Regulatory 
Workload Assessment, Regulatory Workload: Geographic Distribution-1993, 
Regulatory Work Logs-1993, Regulatory ARP Logs-1993) and on December 
30, 1994 (Administrative Record No. OH-2089; AML Workload Analysis). 
Ohio is including these Administrative Record documents in PA 63R by 
reference.

III. Public Comment Procedures

    In accordance with the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), OSM is now 
seeking comment on whether the amendments proposed by Ohio satisfy the 
applicable program approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If the 
amendments are deemed adequate, they will become part of the Ohio 
programs.
Written Comments

    Written comments should be specific, pertain only to the issues 
proposed in this rulemaking, and include explanations in support of the 
commenter's recommendations. Comments received after the time indicated 
under DATES or at locations other than the Columbus Field Office will 
not necessarily be considered in the final rulemaking or included in 
the Administrative Record.

Public Hearing

    Persons wishing to comment at the public hearing should contact the 
person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m., 
E.S.T., on March 6, 1995. If no one requests an opportunity to comment 
at a public hearing, the hearing will not be held. Any disabled 
individual who has need for a special accommodation to attend a public 
hearing should contact the individual listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Filing of a written statement at the time of the hearing is 
requested as it will greatly assist the transcriber. Submission of 
written statements in advance of the hearing will allow OSM officials 
to prepare adequate responses and appropriate questions.
    The public hearing will continue on the specified date until all 
persons scheduled to comment have been heard. Persons in the audience 
who have not been scheduled to comment and who wish to do so will be 
heard following those scheduled. The hearing will end after all persons 
scheduled to comment and persons present in the audience who wish to 
comment have been heard.

Public Meeting

    If only one person requests an opportunity to comment at a hearing, 
a public meeting, rather than a public hearing, may be held. Persons 
wishing to meet with OSM representatives to discuss the proposed 
amendments may request a meeting at the Columbus Field Office by 
contracting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. 
All such meetings shall be open to the public and, if possible, notices 
of the meetings will be posted at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. 
A written summary of each public meeting will be made a part of the 
Administrative Record.

IV. Procedural Determinations

Executive Order 12866

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

A. Ohio Regulatory Program

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, to the extent allowed by law, 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 regulatory programs and program amendments since each such 
program is drafted and promulgated by a specific State, not by OSM. 
Under sections 503 and 505 of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1253 and 1255) and 30 
CFR 730.11, 732.15 and 732.17(h)(10), decisions on proposed State 
regulatory programs and program amendments submitted by the States must 
be based solely on a determination of whether the submittal is 
consistent with SMCRA and its implementing Federal regulations and 
whether the other requirements of 30 CFR parts 730, 731, and 732 have 
been met.
National Environmental Policy Act
    No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since 
section 702(d) of SMCRA [30 U.S.C. 1292(d)] provides that agency 
decisions on proposed State regulatory program provisions do not 
constitute major Federal actions within the meaning of section 
102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 
4332(2)(C)).
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.).
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 
corresponding 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 
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 for the corresponding Federal regulations.

B. Ohio AML Program

Executive Order 12778
    The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required 
by section 2 of Executive Order 12778 and has determined that, to the 
extent allowed by law, 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 and Tribal abandoned 
mine land reclamation plans and revisions thereof since each such plan 
is drafted and adopted by a specific State or Tribe, not by OSM. 
Decisions on proposed State and Tribal abandoned mine land reclamation 
plans and revisions thereof submitted by a State or Tribe 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 Federal regulations at 
30 CFR parts 884 and 888.
National Environmental Policy Act
    No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since 
agency decisions on proposed State and Tribal abandoned mine land 
reclamation plans and revisions thereof are categorically excluded from 
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4332) 
by the Manual of the Department of the Interior [516 DM 6, appendix 8, 
paragraph 8.4B(29)]. [[Page 9320]] 
Paperwork Reduction Act
    This rule does not contain information collection requirements that 
require approval by the Office of Management and Budget under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3507 et seq.
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 submittal which is the subject of this rule is based upon 
corresponding 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 
previously promulgated by OSM will be implemented. 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 935

    Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

    Dated: February 9, 1995.
Tim L. Dieringer,
Acting Assistant Director, Eastern Support Center.
[FR Doc. 95-4065 Filed 2-16-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-M