[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 219 (Monday, November 13, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67755-67756]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-27984]


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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 an extension of an information collection (OMB 
Control Number 1010-0061).

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we are 
soliciting comments on an information collection titled, Oil 
Transportation Allowance. We will submit an information collection 
request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review 
and approval after this comment period closes.

DATES: Submit written comments on or before January 12, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to Connie Bartram, Acting Chief, 
Regulations and FOIA Team, Minerals Management Service, Minerals 
Revenue Management, P.O. Box 25165, MS 320B2, 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 comment; 
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 Ms. Bartram at (303) 231-3410, FAX (303) 231-3385. 
We will post all comments at http://www.rmp.mms.gov for public review.
    Also, contact Ms. Bartram to review paper copies of the comments. 
The comments, including names and addresses of respondents, are 
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 public 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 
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: Dennis C. Jones, Regulations and FOIA 
Team, phone (303) 231-3046, FAX (303) 231-3385, email 
[email protected]. A copy of the ICR will be available to you 
without charge upon request.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:   
    Title: Oil Transportation Allowance.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0061.
    Bureau Form Number: MMS-4110.
    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.
    The Secretary is required by various laws to manage mineral 
resources production on Indian lands, collect the royalties due, and 
distribute the funds

[[Page 67756]]

in accordance with those laws. The product valuation and allowance 
determination process that we conduct on behalf of the Secretary is 
essential to assuring that Indians receive payment on the proper value 
of the minerals being removed. When a company or an individual enters 
into a lease to explore, develop, produce, and dispose of oil from 
Indian lands, that company or individual (the lessee) agrees to pay the 
Indian tribe or allottee a share (royalty) of the value received from 
production from the leased lands.
    Royalty rates are specified in an Indian lease agreement. To 
determine whether the amount of royalty tendered represents the proper 
royalty due, it is first necessary to establish the proper value of the 
oil that is being sold or otherwise disposed of in some other manner, 
as well as the proper costs associated with allowable deductions. The 
lessee is required to report various kinds of information to the lessor 
relative to the processing and business transactions associated with 
the disposition of the leased minerals. In some circumstances, lessees 
are authorized to deduct from royalty payments the reasonable actual 
cost of transporting the royalty portion of the oil from an Indian 
lease to a delivery point remote from the lease. We use transportation 
allowances as part of the product valuation process to determine if the 
lessee is reporting and paying the proper royalty amount.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: 3 companies or 
individuals entering into Indian leases.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: 5 
hours.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-hour Cost'' 
Burden: n/a.
    Comments: The Paperwork Reduction Act at 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A) 
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.
    The Paperwork Reduction Act also requires agencies to estimate the 
total annual reporting ``non-hour cost'' burden to respondents or 
recordkeepers resulting from the collection of information. We have not 
identified non-hour cost burdens and need to know if there are other 
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.
    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.
    The Paperwork Reduction Act 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.

    Dated: October 26, 2000.
Lucy Querques Denett,
Associate Director for Minerals Revenue Management.
[FR Doc. 00-27984 Filed 11-9-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P