[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 142 (Monday, July 26, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 40326-40328]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-18947]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 924

[SPATS No. MS-015-FOR]


Mississippi Regulatory Program

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public 
hearing.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) 
is announcing receipt of an amendment to the Mississippi regulatory 
program (Mississippi program) under the Surface Mining Control and 
Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). Mississippi proposes revisions to 
regulations concerning formal hearings; bond release; hydrologic 
balance; cessation orders; formal review of citations; definitions; 
areas where mining is prohibited or limited; performance bonds; pre-
blasting surveys; permitting; inspections; coal exploration; qualified 
laboratories; disposal of excess spoil; coal mine waste impounding 
structures; backfilling and grading; roads; and coal preparation plant 
performance standards. The State also proposes to correct typographical 
errors and make other non-substantive revisions. Mississippi intends to 
revise its program to be consistent with the corresponding Federal 
regulations.
    This document gives the times and locations that the Mississippi 
program and the amendment to that program are available for your 
inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written 
comments on the amendment, and the procedures that will be followed for 
the public hearing, if one is requested.

DATES: We will accept written comments until 4:00 p.m., c.d.t., August 
25, 1999. If requested, we will hold a public hearing on the amendment 
on August 20, 1999. We will accept requests to speak at the hearing 
until 4:00 p.m., c.d.t. on August 10, 1999.

ADDRESSES: You should mail or hand deliver written comments and 
requests to speak at the hearing to Arthur W. Abbs, Director, 
Birmingham Field Office, at the address listed below.
    You may review copies of the Mississippi program, the amendment, a 
listing of any scheduled public hearings, and all written comments 
received in response to this document at the addresses listed below 
during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding 
holidays. You may receive one free copy of the amendment by contacting 
OSM's Birmingham Field Office.
    Arthur W. Abbs, Director, Birmingham Field Office, Office of 
Surface Mining, 135 Gemini Circle, Suite 215, Homewood, Alabama 35209, 
Telephone: (205) 290-7282.
    Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Geology, 2380 
Highway 80 West, P.O. Box 20307, Jackson, Mississippi 39289-1307, 
Telephone: (601) 961-5500.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arthur W. Abbs, Director, Birmingham 
Field Office. Telephone: (205) 290-7282. Internet: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the Mississippi Program

    On September 4, 1980, the Secretary of the Interior approved the 
Mississippi program. You can find background information on the 
Mississippi program, including the Secretary's findings and the 
disposition of comments, in the September 4, 1980, Federal Register (45 
FR 58520). You can find later actions on the program at 30 CFR 924.10, 
924.15, 924.16, and 924.17.

II. Description of the Proposed Amendment

    By letter dated July 1, 1999 (Administrative Record No. MS-0373), 
Mississippi sent us an amendment to its program pursuant to SMCRA. 
Mississippi sent the amendment in response to required program 
amendments at 30 CFR 924.16(f)-(h), (j), (k), (m), and (n). The 
amendment also includes changes made at Mississippi's own initiative. 
Mississippi proposes to amend the Mississippi Surface Coal Mining 
Regulations. Below is a summary of the changes proposed by Mississippi. 
The full text of the program amendment is available for your inspection 
at the locations listed above under ADDRESSES.

A. Revisions required by 30 CFR 924.16(f)-(n)

1. Section 3301. Formal Hearing
    Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (b) to read as follows:

    Any party may file a petition for temporary relief from the 
Permit Board's action in conjunction with the filing of the request 
for a formal hearing or at any time before a final decision is 
issued by the Permit Board after a formal hearing.
2. Section 4501. Procedures for Seeking Release of Performance Bond
    Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (c) to clarify that 
Federal, State, and local governmental agencies which have special 
expertise with respect to any environmental, social, or economic impact 
involved in the coal mining operation are allowed to file written 
objections to the proposed bond release and to request public hearings.
3. Section 5333. Hydrologic Balance: Surface- and Ground-Water 
Monitoring
    Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (b)(3)(A) to require the 
operator to demonstrate that the coal mining operation has minimized

[[Page 40327]]

disturbance to the hydrologic balance in the permit and adjacent areas.
4. Section 6501. Cessation Orders
    Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (c)(4) to replace a 
reference to Sec. 53-9-69 with a reference to Sec. 6509.
5. Section 6511. Formal Review of Citations
    a. Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (a) to require 
interested parties to request formal reviews within 30 days of the date 
the Commission, the Executive Director, or the Executive Director's 
authorized representative took the action that is being contested 
during the formal review. Mississippi also proposes to add a 
requirement that the Commission notify parties in writing of the time 
and place of the hearing at least five working days before the hearing 
date.
    b. Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (l)(1) by changing the 
reference from Sec. 6511(e) to Sec. 6511(a).
    c. Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (n)(9) to read as 
follows:

    (9) Any party desiring to appeal a decision of the Commission 
granting or denying an application for expedited review may appeal 
to and seek relief from the appropriate chancery court pursuant to 
Sec. 53-9-77.

B. Revisions Made at Mississippi's Own Initiative

1. Section 105. Definitions
    Mississippi proposes to revise the definition for performance bond 
to read as follows:

    Performance Bond--a surety bond, collateral bond, letter or 
letters of credit, or self-bond, or a combination thereof, by which 
a permittee assures faithful performance of all the requirements of 
the act, these regulations, this program and the requirements of the 
permit and reclamation plan.
2. Section 1105. Areas Where Mining is Prohibited or Limited
    Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (c) to read as follows:

    (c) on any lands which will adversely affect any publicly owned 
park or any place included on the National Register of Historic 
Places, unless approved jointly by the Permit Board and the federal, 
state or local agency with jurisdiction over the park or place;
3. Section 4301. Form of the Performance Bond
    Mississippi proposes to add ``a letter or letters of credit'' to 
the list of acceptable forms of performance bond.
4. Section 4303. Terms and Conditions of the Bond
    Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (g)(6) by placing the term 
``indemnity agreement'' with the term ``letter of credit.''
5. Section 4701. General
    Mississippi proposes to revise paragraph (a) to read as follows:

    (a) Except as in compliance with Sec. 4701(b), the Commission 
shall proceed to cause the forfeiture of all or part of a bond or 
other collateral accepted pursuant to Chapter 43 for any permit 
where required or authorized by Sec. 4705.
6. Correction of Typographical Errors
    a. Mississippi assigned an incorrect section number (Section 5343) 
to its regulatory provisions for ``Use of Explosives: Pre-blasting 
Survey.'' Mississippi proposes to change this incorrect section number 
to Section 5349.
    b. Mississippi proposes to correct typographical errors and other 
non-substantive revisions in the following sections: Section 105. 
Definitions; Section 407. Contents of Application for Exemption; 
Section 413. Conditions of Exemption and Right of Inspection and Entry; 
Section 1105. Areas Where Mining is Prohibited or Limited; Section 
2103. Permit Requirements for Exploration Removing More Than 250 Tons 
of Coal, or Occurring on Lands Designated as Unsuitable for Surface 
Coal Mining Operations; Section 2105. Coal Exploration Compliance 
Duties; Section 2313. Permit Term Information; 3113. Review of Permit 
Applications; Section 3119. Permit Approval or Denial Actions; Section 
3121. Permit Terms; Section 3509. Permit Renewals: Completed 
Applications; Section 3713. Qualified Laboratories; Section 5359. 
Disposal of Excess Spoil: General Requirements; Section 5377. Coal mine 
waste: Impounding structures; Section 5391. Backfilling and Grading: 
General Grading Requirements; Section 5393. Backfilling and grading: 
Thin Overburden; Section 53111. Roads: General; Section 5703. Steep 
Slopes: Backfilling and grading: Steep slopes; and Section 5903.
    Coal Preparation Plants: Performance Standards.

III. Public Comment Procedures

    Under the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), we are requesting 
comments on whether the amendment satisfies the applicable program 
approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If we approve the amendment, it 
will become part of the Mississippi program.

Written Comments

    Your written comments should be specific and pertain only to the 
issues proposed in this rulemaking. You should explain the reason for 
any recommended change. In the final rulemaking, we will not 
necessarily consider or include in the Administrative Record any 
comments received after the time indicated under DATES or at locations 
other than the Birmingham Field Office.

Public Hearing

    If you wish to speak at the public hearing, contact the person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m., c.d.t. on 
August 10, 1999. We will arrange the location and time of the hearing 
with those persons requesting the hearing. If you are disabled and need 
special accommodations to attend a public hearing, contact the 
individual listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. The hearing 
will not be held if no one requests an opportunity to speak at the 
public hearing.
    You should file a written statement at the time you request the 
hearing. This will allow us to prepare adequate responses and 
appropriate questions. The public hearing will continue on the 
specified date until all persons scheduled to speak have been heard. If 
you are in the audience and have not been scheduled to speak and wish 
to do so, you will be allowed to speak after those who have been 
scheduled. We will end the hearing after all persons scheduled to speak 
and persons present in the audience who wish to speak have been heard.

Public Meeting

    If only one person requests an opportunity to speak at a hearing, a 
public meeting, rather than a public hearing, may be held. If you wish 
to meet with us to discuss the amendment, request a meeting by 
contacting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All 
such meetings are open to the public and, if possible, we will post 
notices of meetings at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. We also 
make a written summary of each meeting a part of the Administrative 
Record.

IV. Procedural Determinations

Executive Order 12866

    The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) exempts this rule from 
review under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review).

Executive Order 12988

    The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required 
by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice Reform) and has 
determined that, to the extent allowed by law, this rule meets the 
applicable

[[Page 40328]]

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 State regulatory programs and program 
amendments 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

    This rule does not require an environmental impact statement since 
section 702(d) of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1292(d)) provides that agency 
decisions on 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. Therefore, this rule will ensure that existing requirements 
previously published 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.

Unfunded Mandates

    OSM has determined and certifies under the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act (2 U.S.C. 1502 et seq.) that this rule will not impose a cost of 
$100 million or more in any given year on local, state, or tribal 
governments or private entities.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 924

    Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

    Dated: July 15, 1999.
Brent Wahlquist,
Regional Director, Mid-Continent Regional Coordinating Center.
[FR Doc. 99-18947 Filed 7-23-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-P