[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 67 (Friday, April 6, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18297-18298]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-8546]


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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 1010-0090).

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we are 
soliciting comments on an information collection titled, Stripper 
Royalty Rate Reduction Notification. 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 June 5, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to Dennis C. Jones, Regulations and 
FOIA Team, Minerals Revenue Management, Minerals Management Service, 
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 addresses 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 Mr. 
Jones at (303) 231-3046. We will post all comments at http://www.mrm.mms.gov/Laws_R_D/FRNotices/FRInfColl.htm for public review.
    We make copies of the comments available for public review, 
including names and addresses of respondents, 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 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 information collection request 
(ICR) will be available to you without charge upon request. The ICR 
will also be posted to our web site at http://www.mrm.mms.gov/Laws_R_D/FRNotices/FRInfColl.htm when we submit the ICR to OMB for review and 
approval.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Stripper Royalty Rate Reduction Notification.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0090.
    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, collecting 
royalties from lessees who produce minerals, and 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.
    The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) amended 43 CFR 3103.4-1 to 
allow royalty rate reductions to operators of low-producing, stripper 
oil properties. This amendment action encourages continued oil 
production, provides an incentive for enhanced oil recovery projects, 
discourages abandonment of oil properties producing less than 15 
barrels of oil per well-day, and reduces operators' expenses. Operators 
are required to notify MMS of the reduced royalty rate using Form MMS-
4377, Stripper Royalty Rate Reduction Notification. The form requires 
identification of the operator, name of the contact person, lease and 
agreement numbers, calculated royalty rate, current royalty rate and 
period covered.
    We estimate that an operator may require 30 minutes per property to 
research production for one 12-month period, determine average annual 
well production, and calculate and report a new royalty rate. This is 
an annual burden of 2,250 hours (\1/2\ hour  x  4,500 properties). We 
estimate that an operator may require 15 minutes annually to perform 
the necessary recordkeeping responsibilities associated with this 
information collection, or an annual burden of 225 hours (\1/4\ hour 
x  900 operators).
    Responses to this information collection are voluntary and are 
required for respondents to claim a reduced royalty rate. Proprietary 
information is requested and protected, and there are no questions of 
sensitive nature involved in this collection of information.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: 900 operators of 
low-producing, stripper oil properties.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: 2,475 
hours.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-hour Cost'' 
Burden: n/a.
    Comments: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
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 PRA 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

[[Page 18298]]

need to know if there are 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 of 1995 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: March 23, 2001.
Lucy Querques Denett,
Associate Director for Minerals Revenue Management.
[FR Doc. 01-8546 Filed 4-5-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P