[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 36 (Wednesday, February 23, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8984-8985]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-4175]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of revision of a currently approved information 
collection (OMB Control Number 1010-0049).

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SUMMARY: As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and 
respondent burden, MMS invites the public and other Federal agencies to 
comment on a proposal to extend the currently approved collection of 
information discussed below. We intend to submit this collection of 
information to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval. 
The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) provides that an agency may 
not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a 
collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB 
control number.

DATES: Submit written comments by April 24, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Mail or hand carry comments to the Department of the 
Interior; Minerals Management Service; Attention: Rules Processing 
Team; Mail Stop 4024; 381 Elden Street; Herndon, Virginia 20170-4817. 
Our practice is to make comments, including names and home addresses of 
respondents, available for public review during regular business hours. 
Individual respondents may request that we withhold their home address 
from the rulemaking record, which we will honor to the extent allowable 
by law. There may be circumstances in which we would withhold from the 
record a respondent's identity, as allowable by the law. If you wish us 
to withhold your name and/or address, you must state this prominently 
at the beginning of your comment. However, we will not consider 
anonymous comments. We will make all submissions from organizations or 
businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as 
representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, available 
for public inspection in their entirety.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alexis London, Rules Processing Team, 
telephone (703) 787-1600. You may also contact Alexis London to obtain 
a copy of the collection of information at no cost.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: 30 CFR 250, Subpart B, Exploration 
and Development and Production Plans (1010-0049).
    Abstract: The Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. 
1331 et seq., gives the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) the 
responsibility to preserve, protect, and develop oil and gas resources 
in the OCS, consistent with the need to make such resources available 
to meet the Nation's energy needs as rapidly as possible; balance 
orderly energy resource development with protection of the human, 
marine, and coastal environments; ensure the public a fair and 
equitable return on the resources of the OCS; and preserve and maintain 
free enterprise competition.
    Sections 11 and 25 of the amended OCS Lands Act require the holders 
of OCS oil and gas and sulphur leases to submit exploration plans (EPs) 
and development and production plans (DPPs) for approval prior to 
commencing these activities. The implementing regulations and 
associated information collection

[[Page 8985]]

requirements are contained in 30 CFR 250, subpart B, Exploration and 
Development and Production Plans (subpart B). In addition, MMS has 
issued Notices to Lessees and Operators (NTLs) that provide 
supplementary guidance and procedures as applicable to each Region or 
nationally. These NTLs address the various surveys, reports, plans 
(including deep water operations plans and conservation information), 
etc., that are necessary for MMS to approve the exploration or 
development and production activities.
    The MMS engineers, geologists, geophysicists, and environmental 
scientists use the information collected under subpart B, and related 
NTLs, to analyze and evaluate the planned operations to ensure that 
they will not adversely affect the marine, coastal, or human 
environment and that they conserve the resources of the OCS. It would 
be impossible for the Regional Supervisor to make an informed decision 
on whether to approve the proposed plans, or whether modifications are 
necessary, without the analysis and evaluation of the required 
information. The affected States also review the information collected 
for consistency with approved Coastal Zone Management plans.
    We are resubmitting this collection of information to OMB to obtain 
official approval of several aspects of the plan submissions that have 
developed over time. In addition to the currently approved 
requirements, we will seek OMB approval of the number of copies 
respondents submit; a new ``OCS Plan Information Form'' (form MMS-137) 
for use in the GOM Region; and two air emissions spreadsheets (forms 
MMS-138 and MMS-139) currently used in the GOM Region. Except for form 
MMS-137, these are not new requirements. We consider the burdens for 
these are already included in the burdens currently approved for 
developing and submitting EPs or DPPs (development operations 
coordination documents (DOCDs)) in the western GOM.
    We will protect information respondents submit that is considered 
proprietary under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and its 
implementing regulations (43 CFR 2) and 30 CFR 250.196. No items of a 
sensitive nature are collected. Responses are mandatory.
    Frequency: The frequency of reporting is on occasion.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: Approximately 130 
Federal OCS oil, gas, and sulphur lessees.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: The 
currently approved burden for this collection is 269,438 reporting and 
260 recordkeeping hours, based on:
    (1) Preliminary activities: 1 hour per notice.
    (2) Initial EP or DPP (DOCD in western GOM): 580 hours per plan, 
including forms.
    (3) Deepwater Operations Plans: 580 hours per plan.
    (4) Revised EPs: 80 hours per revision, including forms.
    (5) Revised DPPs (DOCSs in western GOM): 82 hours per revision, 
including forms.
    (6) Recordkeeping: 2 hours per respondent.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-Hour Cost'' 
Burden: We have identified no non-hour cost burdens for this 
collection.

Comments

    We will summarize written responses to this notice and address them 
in our submission for OMB approval. As a result of your comments, we 
will make any necessary adjustments to the burden in our submission to 
OMB. In calculating the burden, we assumed that respondents perform 
many of the requirements in the normal course of their activities. We 
consider these to be usual and customary and took that into account in 
estimating the burden.
    (1) We specifically solicit your comments on the following 
questions:
    (a) Is the proposed collection of information necessary for us to 
properly perform our functions, and will it be useful?
    (b) Are the estimates of the burden hours of the proposed 
collection reasonable?
    (c) Do you have any suggestions that would enhance the quality, 
clarity, or usefulness of the information to be collected?
    (d) Is there a way to minimize the information collection burden on 
respondents, including through the use of appropriate automated 
electronic, mechanical, or other forms of information technology?
    (2) In addition, the PRA requires agencies to estimate the total 
annual reporting ``non-hour cost'' burden to respondents or 
recordkeepers resulting from the collection of information. We need to 
know if you have costs associated with the collection of this 
information for either total capital and startup cost components or 
annual operation, maintenance, and purchase of service components. Your 
estimates should consider the costs to generate, maintain, and disclose 
or provide the information. You should describe the methods you use to 
estimate major cost factors, including system and technology 
acquisition, expected useful life of capital equipment, discount 
rate(s), and the period over which you incur costs. Capital and startup 
costs include, among other items, computers and software you purchase 
to prepare for collecting information; monitoring, sampling, drilling, 
and testing equipment; and record storage facilities. Generally, your 
estimates should not include equipment or services purchased: (i) 
before October 1, 1995; (ii) to comply with requirements not associated 
with the information collection; (iii) for reasons other than to 
provide information or keep records for the Government; or (iv) as part 
of customary and usual business or private practices.
    MMS Information Collection Clearance Officer: Jo Ann Lauterbach, 
(202) 208-7744.

    Dated: February 14, 2000.
E. P. Danenberger,
Chief, Engineering and Operations Division.
[FR Doc. 00-4175 Filed 2-22-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-U