[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 46 (Thursday, March 8, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13959-13960]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-5697]


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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 extension of a currently approved information 
collection (OMB Control Number 1010-0058).

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we 
are inviting comments on a collection of information that we will 
submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and 
approval. The information collection request (ICR) is titled ``30 CFR 
250, Subpart I, Platforms and Structures.''

DATES: Submit written comments by May 7, 2001.

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. 
If you wish to e-mail comments, the e-mail address is: 
[email protected]. Reference ``Information Collection 1010-0058'' 
in your e-mail subject line. Include your name and return address in 
your e-mail message and mark your message for return receipt.
    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 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 at no cost of the regulations that require the subject 
collection of information.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: 30 CFR 250, Subpart I, Platforms and Structures.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0058.
    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 in a manner that is 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 human, marine, and coastal environments; ensure the public a fair 
and equitable return on offshore resources in the OCS; and preserve and 
maintain free enterprise competition. Specifically, the OCS Lands Act 
(43 U.S.C. 1356) requires the issuance of 
`` * * * regulations which require that any vessel, rig, platform, or 
other vehicle or structure-- * * * (2) which is used for activities 
pursuant to this subchapter, comply, * * * with such minimum standards 
of design, construction, alteration, and repair as the Secretary * * * 
establishes; * * *.'' The OCS Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1332(6)) also 
states, ``operations in the [O]uter Continental Shelf should be 
conducted in a safe manner * * * to prevent or minimize the likelihood 
of * * * physical obstruction to other users of the water or subsoil 
and seabed, or other occurrences which may cause damage to the 
environment or to property, or endanger life or health.'' These 
authorities and responsibilities are among those delegated to MMS under 
which we issue regulations to ensure that operations in the OCS will 
meet statutory requirements; provide for safety and protection of the 
environment; and result in diligent exploration, development, and 
production of OCS leases. This information collection request addresses 
the regulations at 30 CFR 250, subpart I, Platforms and Structures, and 
the associated supplementary notices to lessees and operators intended 
to provide clarification, description, or explanation of these 
regulations.
    The MMS OCS Regions use the information submitted under subpart I 
to determine the structural integrity of all offshore structures and 
ensure that such integrity will be maintained throughout the useful 
life of these structures. We use the information to ascertain, on a 
case-by-case basis, that the platforms and structures are structurally 
sound and safe for their intended use to ensure safety of personnel and 
pollution prevention. The information is also necessary to assure that 
abandonment and site clearance are properly performed. More 
specifically, we use the information to:
     Review information concerning damage to a platform to 
assess the adequacy of proposed repairs.
     Review plans for platform construction (construction is 
divided into three phases--design, fabrication, and installation) to 
ensure the structural integrity of the platform.
     Review verification plans and reports for unique platforms 
to ensure that all nonstandard situations are given proper 
consideration during the design, fabrication, and installation phases 
of platform construction.
     Review platform design, fabrication, and installation 
records to ensure that the platform is constructed according to 
approved plans.
     Review inspection reports to ensure that platform 
integrity is maintained for the life of the platform.
     Ensure that any object (wellheads, platforms, etc.) 
installed on the OCS is properly removed and the site cleared so as not 
to conflict with or harm other users of the OCS.
    Responses are mandatory. No questions of a ``sensitive'' nature are 
asked. MMS will protect proprietary information according to the 
Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and its implementing 
regulations (43 CFR 2), 30 CFR 250.196 (Data and information to be made 
available to the public) and 30 CFR part 252 (OCS Oil and Gas 
Information Program).
    Frequency: The frequency varies by section, but is generally ``on 
occasion'' or annual.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: Approximately 130 
Federal OCS oil and gas or sulphur lessees.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: The 
currently approved ``hour'' burden for this information collection is a 
total of 31,893 hours. The following chart details the individual 
components of this burden and estimated burden per response or record. 
In calculating the burden, we assumed that respondents perform certain 
requirements in the normal course of their activities. We consider 
these to be usual and

[[Page 13960]]

customary and took that into account in estimating the burden.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                     Reporting or
 Citation 30 CFR 250 Subpart I       recordkeeping       Hour burden per
                                      requirement        response/record
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                         Reporting Requirements
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900(b), (g); 901; 902;          Submit application and  24 hours.
 909(b)(4)(iii).                 plans for new
                                 platform or major
                                 modifications and
                                 notice to MMS.
900(e)........................  Request approval for    12 hours.
                                 major repairs of
                                 damage to platform
                                 and notice to MMS.
900(f)........................  Request approval for    18.5 hours.
                                 reuse or conversion
                                 of use of existing
                                 fixed or mobile
                                 platforms.
903(a), (b)...................  Submit nominations for  5 hours.
                                 Certified
                                 Verification Agent
                                 (CVA).
903(a)(1), (2), (3)...........  Submit interim and      200 hours.
                                 final CVA reports.
912(a)........................  Request inspection      20 hours.
                                 interval that exceeds
                                 5 years.
912(b)........................  Submit annual report    45 hours.
                                 of platforms
                                 inspected and summary
                                 of testing results.
913(a), (b) Related NTLs......  Submit plan for         6 hours.
                                 platform and
                                 structure removal and
                                 site clearance and
                                 exception requests.
913(c) Related NTLs...........  Submit results of       12 hours.
                                 location clearance
                                 survey.
900-914.......................  General departure and   2 hours.
                                 alternative
                                 compliance requests
                                 not specifically
                                 covered elsewhere in
                                 subpart I regulations.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                       Recordkeeping requirements
------------------------------------------------------------------------
909, 911, 912, 914............  Maintain records on as- 50 hours.
                                 built structural
                                 drawings, design
                                 assumptions and
                                 analyses, summary of
                                 nondestructive
                                 examination records,
                                 inspection results,
                                 etc., for the
                                 functional life of
                                 the platform.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-Hour Cost'' 
Burden: We have identified no ``non-hour cost'' burdens.
    Comments: The PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq.) 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. Before submitting an ICR to OMB, PRA section 
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. We will 
summarize written responses to this notice and address them in our 
submission for OMB approval, including any appropriate adjustments to 
the estimated burden.
    Agencies must estimate both the ``hour'' and ``non-hour cost'' 
burdens to respondents or recordkeepers resulting from the collection 
of information. We have not identified any non-hour cost burdens for 
the information collection aspects of 30 CFR 250, subpart I. Therefore, 
if you have costs to generate, maintain, and disclose this information, 
you should comment and provide your total capital and startup cost 
components or annual operation, maintenance, and purchase of service 
components. 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, 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 26, 2001.
E. P. Danenberger,
Chief, Engineering and Operations Division.
[FR Doc. 01-5697 Filed 3-7-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-U