[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 133 (Tuesday, July 11, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42721-42722]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-17512]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


Agency Information Collection Activities: Submitted for Office of 
Management and Budget Review (OMB), Comment Request

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of an extension of a currently approved information 
collection (OMB Control Number 1010-0087).

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), we are submitting to OMB for review and approval 
an information collection request (ICR) titled, Cooperative Agreements. 
We are also soliciting comments from the public on this ICR which 
describes the information collection, its expected costs and burden, 
and how the data will be collected.

DATES: Submit written comments on or before August 10, 2000.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments to the Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for the Department 
of the Interior (OMB Control Number 1010-0087), 725 17th Street, NW, 
Washington, D.C. 20503. Also, submit copies of your written comments to 
David S. Guzy, Chief, Rules and Publications Staff, Minerals Management 
Service, Royalty Management Program, P.O. Box 25165, MS 3021, Denver, 
Colorado 80225. If you use an overnight courier service, our courier 
address is Building 85, Room A-613, Denver Federal Center, Denver, 
Colorado 80225.

Public Comment Procedure

    Submit your comments to the offices listed in the ADDRESSES section 
or email your comments to us at [email protected]. Include the title 
of the information collection and the OMB Control Number in the 
``Attention'' line of your comments; also, include your name and return 
address. Submit electronic comments as an ASCII file, avoiding the use 
of special characters and any form of encryption. If you do not receive 
a confirmation that we have received your email, contact David S. Guzy 
at (303) 231-3432. We will post all comments at http://www.rmp.mms.gov 
for public review.
    Paper copies of the comments may be reviewed by contacting David S. 
Guzy, Chief, Rules and Publications Staff, telephone (303) 231-3432, 
FAX (303) 231-3385. Our practice is to make paper copies of these 
comments, including names and addresses of respondents, available for 
public review during regular business hours at our offices in Lakewood, 
Colorado. Individual respondents may request that we withhold their 
home address from the public record, which we will honor to the extent 
allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in which we would 
withhold from the rulemaking record a respondent's identity, as 
allowable by law. If you request that we withhold your name and/or 
address, state this prominently at the beginning of your comments. 
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: Dennis C. Jones, Rules and 
Publications Staff, phone (303) 231-3046, FAX (303) 231-3385, email 
[email protected]. A copy of the ICR is available to you without 
charge upon request.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Cooperative Agreements.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0087.
    Bureau Form Number: N/A.
    Abstract: The Department of the Interior (DOI) is responsible for 
matters relevant to mineral resource development on Federal and Indian 
Lands and the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The Secretary of the 
Interior (Secretary) is responsible for managing the production of 
minerals from Federal and Indian Lands and the OCS; for collecting 
royalties from lessees who produce minerals; and for distributing the 
funds collected in accordance with applicable laws. The Secretary also 
has an Indian trust responsibility to manage Indian lands and seek 
advice and information from Indian beneficiaries. We perform the 
royalty management functions and assist the Secretary in carrying out 
DOI's Indian trust responsibility.
    States and Tribes wishing to do royalty audits in cooperation with 
MMS must submit a written request for consideration and application to 
enter into a cooperative agreement, signed by the governor, Tribal 
chairman, or other appropriate official. The request must outline the 
activities to be undertaken and present evidence that the States and 
Tribes can meet the standards established by the Secretary for the 
activities to be conducted. After the application is accepted and a 
cooperative agreement is in effect, the States and Tribes submit an 
annual work plan and budget, and quarterly reimbursement vouchers.
    No proprietary data will be collected; there are no questions of a 
sensitive nature; and responses to this information collection are 
voluntary.
    Frequency: On occasion, monthly, quarterly, and annually
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: 10 States and 7 
Indian tribes
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: 1,224 
hours.

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                                                                                                         Annual
 Reporting/recordkeeping requirements           Frequency           Number of respondents     Burden     burden
                                                                                              hours      hours
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Annual work plans and budgets, voucher  Monthly, Quarterly,       7 Indian Tribes and 10           72      1.224
 preparation, recordkeeping.             Annually.                 States.
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[[Page 42722]]

    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-Hour Cost'' 
Burden: N/A.
    Comments: Section 3506(c)(2)(A)of the PRA requires each agency ``* 
* * to provide notice * * * and otherwise consult with members of the 
public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of 
information * * *.'' Agencies must specifically solicit comments to: 
(a) evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the agency to perform its duties, including whether the 
information is useful; (b) evaluate the accuracy of the agency's 
estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) 
enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and (d) minimize the burden on the respondents, including 
the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.
    We published a Federal Register Notice on December 3, 1999 (64 FR 
67931), with the required 60-day comment period soliciting public 
comments on renewing OMB's approval to continue to collect this 
information. No comments were received. If you now wish to comment on 
this ICR, please send your comments directly to the offices listed 
under the ADDRESSES section of this Notice. OMB has up to 60 days after 
reviewing an ICR to approve or disapprove the information collection. 
However, OMB may act sooner than that once the 30-day public comment 
period has ended. Therefore, to ensure maximum consideration, you 
should submit your comments on or before August 10, 2000s.
    The PRA provides that an agency shall 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.
    MMS Information Collection Clearance Officer: Jo Ann Lauterbach, 
telephone (202) 208-7744.

    Dated: June 29, 2000.
R. Dale Fazio,
Acting Associate Director for Royalty Management.
[FR Doc. 00-17512 Filed 7-10-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-U