[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 83 (Thursday, April 30, 1998)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 23680-23682]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-11499]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
43 CFR Part 2200
[WO-420-1050-00-24 1A]
RIN 1004-AC97
National Forest Exchanges
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is removing 43 CFR subpart
2202 in its entirety, and revising section 2201.1-2(a) to include a
statement about segregative effect. Subpart 2202 contains material that
is substantially covered by BLM's general Exchange regulations at 43
CFR 2201. The new 43 CFR 2201.1-2(a), as revised by this final rule,
will cover any additional material from the existing subpart 2202. As a
result, this removal and revision action will have no impact on BLM
customers or the public at large.
EFFECTIVE DATE: June 1, 1998.
ADDRESSES: You may send inquiries or suggestions to: Administrative
Record (630), Bureau of Land Management, 1849 C Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20240.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ted Milesnick, Lands and Realty Group,
Bureau of Land Management, at (202) 452-7727.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
II. Final Rule as Adopted
III. Responses to Comments
IV. Procedural Matters
I. Background
BLM is removing 43 CFR subpart 2202 because it duplicates sections
contained elsewhere in BLM's regulations, at 43 CFR 2201.1-2. Subpart
2202 requires that exchange proposals for the consolidation or
extension of national forests be filed with the appropriate officer of
the Forest Service. It says that a request may be made to the BLM to
segregate the National Forest System lands involved in the exchange
from appropriation under the public land laws and the mineral laws and
also that any interests of the United States in the non-Federal lands
to be acquired may be segregated from the mineral laws. The period of
these segregations would not exceed 5 years from the date of notation.
Similar language can be found at section 2201.1-2 (as well as in
the Forest Service regulations at 36 CFR Part 254, Subpart A); with
only two differences. First, section 2201.1-2 does not include the
authorities section found at 2202.1(a), or the statement that proposals
for exchange of National Forest System lands must be filed with the
Forest Service in accordance with 36 CFR 254. However, regulations
which direct people to comply with other valid regulations are
redundant and unnecessary, and the authorities will be added to section
2201.1-2.
Second, section 2201.1-2 exists in a CFR part that defines Federal
lands as those lands administered by BLM, not National Forest System
lands. However, amending this section to apply its provisions to
National Forest System lands as well (as the Forest Service's
regulations already do) will insure that the removal of 43 CFR 2202
cannot alter any existing rights or obligations. This rule accomplishes
that amendment by adding 43 CFR 2201.1-2(e) below, renders subpart 2202
completely redundant and unnecessary, and removes subpart 2202 from the
Code of Federal Regulations.
The final rule published today is a stage of a rulemaking process
that will complete the removal of 43 CFR subpart 2202 and the revision
of 43 CFR 2201.1-2. This rule was preceded by a proposed rule which
introduced this action and BLM's purpose and need. The proposed rule
was published in the Federal Register on September 11, 1996 (61 FR
47855). This proposed rule was intended to give anyone who would be
adversely affected by this action an opportunity to call their concerns
to our attention. The BLM invited public comments for 30 days and
received no comments.
II. Final Rule as Adopted
This rule will remove all of 43 CFR subpart 2202--Exchanges:
National Forest Exchanges. In addition, it will amend 43 CFR 2201.1-2
to enable this section to perform all of the functions currently
accomplished by 43 CFR subpart 2202. Therefore, this removal will not
affect existing laws or the rights of the United States, BLM, or the
public at large.
The new section is designed to extend the coverage of the general
exchange provisions in 43 CFR section 2201.1-2 to include the National
Forest exchanges conducted in nearly identical fashion by 43 CFR
subpart 2202. Very few differences exist between the two sets of
regulations, but some of those differences are substantive in nature
and require the amendment that this rule promulgates. Therefore, a new
subsection will be added at 43 CFR 2201.1-2(e) which will accomplish
three important tasks. First, it will say that this section also
applies to proposals to exchange lands under the National Forest
System; until now this section only applied to exchanges of BLM lands.
Secondly, it will direct that exchanges of National Forest System lands
be conducted in accordance with the Forest Service regulations at 36
CFR part 254. Finally, it will permit the authorized Forest Service
officer to request the appropriate BLM State Office to segregate the
land at issue by making a notation on the public land records. Since
amended 43 CFR 2201.1-2(e) will accomplish these tasks, all of subpart
2202 will be expendable, and may be removed at this same time without
any substantive impact on the United States, BLM, or the public at
large.
43 CFR 2202.1(a) contains the authorities' cites for the remainder
of the subpart. This includes statutory citations and a reference to
the regulations of the U.S. Forest Service which govern exchanges of
National Forest lands. These citations, as well as the requirement that
proposals shall be filed in accordance with Forest Service regulations,
will be relocated to 43 CFR 2201.1-2(e) by the amendment contained in
this rule. Therefore, elimination of this section will have no
substantive effect.
Subsection (b) of 43 CFR 2202.1 largely duplicates the general
exchange provisions found at 43 CFR 2201.1-2(a). The only substantive
difference is that Sec. 2201.1-2 applies to segregations of
[[Page 23681]]
``Federal lands,'' which part 2200 defines as lands administered by BLM
(and therefore excluding National Forest System lands); while
Sec. 2202.1 applies to ``lands reserved * * * for National Forest
System purposes.'' Again, the amendment contained in this rule will
render 43 CFR section 2201.1-2 applicable to National Forest System
lands as well as BLM-administered Federal lands, and ensure that
removing this section will have no substantive effect.
Subsections (c) and (d) of 43 CFR 2202.1 duplicate the existing
regulations at 43 CFR 2201.1-2(b) and (c), with the exception of one
difference in word order. Therefore, removing 43 CFR subsections
2202.1(c) and (d) will have no substantive effect, since the
corresponding sections in 43 CFR 2201.1-2 already accomplish exactly
the same functions.
III. Responses to Comments
As mentioned above, BLM received no comments on this proposed rule.
IV. Procedural Matters
National Environmental Policy Act
BLM has determined that this proposed rule makes no substantive
changes to the Code of Federal Regulations, because it is limited to
removing provisions which are found in their entirety elsewhere in
Title 43 of the CFR and are therefore wholly unnecessary. Therefore,
this change is purely technical in nature and is categorically excluded
from environmental review under section 102(2)(C) of the National
Environmental Policy Act, pursuant to 516 Departmental Manual (DM),
Chapter 2, Appendix I, Item 1.10. Furthermore, the rule does not meet
any of the 10 criteria for exceptions to categorical exclusion listed
in 516 DM, Chapter 2, Appendix 2. Pursuant to Council on Environmental
Quality regulations (40 CFR 1508.4) and the environmental policies and
procedures of the Department of the Interior, the term ``categorical
exclusions'' means a category of actions that do not individually or
cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment and
that have been found to have no such effect in procedures adopted by a
Federal agency and for which neither an environmental assessment nor an
environmental impact statement is required.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule does not contain information collection requirements that
the Office of Management and Budget must approve under the Paperwork
Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
Congress enacted the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) of 1980, 5
U.S.C. 601 et seq., to ensure that Government regulations do not
unnecessarily or disproportionately burden small entities. The RFA
requires a regulatory flexibility analysis if a rule would have a
significant economic impact, either detrimental or beneficial, on a
substantial number of small entities. Based on the discussion contained
in the preamble above, this action will not have significant impact on
small entities. BLM anticipates that this final rule will not
substantially burden any member of the public at large. Therefore, BLM
has determined under the RFA that this final rule would not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
Removal of 43 CFR subpart 2202 and amendment of 43 CFR section
2201.1-2 will not result in any unfunded mandate to State, local, or
tribal governments in the aggregate, or to the private sector, of $100
million or more in any one year.
Executive Order 12612
The final rule will not have a substantial direct effect on the
States, on the relationship between the national government and the
States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the
various levels of government. Therefore, in accordance with Executive
Order 12612, BLM has determined that this final rule does not have
sufficient federalism implications to warrant preparation of a
Federalism Assessment.
Executive Order 12630
The final rule does not represent a government action capable of
interfering with constitutionally protected property rights. Section
2(a)(1) of Executive Order 12630 specifically exempts actions
abolishing regulations or modifying regulations in a way that lessens
interference with private property use from the definition of
``policies that have takings implications.'' Since the primary function
of the final rule is to abolish unnecessary regulations, there will be
no private property rights impaired as a result. Therefore, the
Department of the Interior has determined that the rule would not cause
a taking of private property or require further discussion of takings
implications under this Executive Order.
Executive Order 12866
According to the criteria listed in section 3(f) of Executive Order
12866, BLM has determined that the final rule is not a significant
regulatory action. As such, the final rule is not subject to Office of
Management and Budget review under section 6(a)(3) of the order.
Executive Order 12988
The Department of the Interior has determined that this rule meets
the applicable standards provided in sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) of
Executive Order 12988.
Author
The principal author of this rule is Ted Milesnick, Bureau of Land
Management, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC 20240; Telephone: 202-
452-7727 (Commercial or FTS).
List of Subjects in 43 CFR Part 2200
National forests, Public lands.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, and under the authority of
43 U.S.C. 1740, part 2200, Group 2200, Subchapter B, Chapter II of
Title 43 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as set forth
below:
Dated: April 17, 1998.
Bob Armstrong,
Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals Management.
PART 2200--[AMENDED]
1. The authority citation for part 2200 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 43 U.S.C. 1716, 1740.
2. Section 2201.1-2 is amended by adding paragraph (e) to read as
follows:
Sec. 2201.1-2 Segregative effect.
* * * * *
(e) The provisions of this section apply equally to proposals to
exchange National Forest System lands under the authority and
provisions of the Act of March 20, 1922, 42 Stat. 465, as amended, 16
U.S.C. 485, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, 43
U.S.C. 1701 et seq., except that if a proposal is made to exchange
National Forest System lands, which proposal shall be filed in
compliance with 36 CFR part 254, the authorized officer may request
that the appropriate BLM State Office segregate such lands by a
notation on the public land records.
[[Page 23682]]
Subpart 2202--[Removed]
3. Subpart 2202 is removed in its entirety.
[FR Doc. 98-11499 Filed 4-29-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-84-P