[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 151 (Monday, August 6, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41036-41038]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-19612]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


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

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of extension of a currently approved information 
collection (OMB Control Number 1010-0106).

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we 
are submitting to OMB for review and approval an information collection 
request (ICR), titled ``30 CFR Part 253, Oil Spill Financial 
Responsibility.'' We are also soliciting comments from the public on 
this ICR.

DATES: Submit written comments by September 5, 2001.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments directly to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for 
the Department of the Interior (1010-0106), 725 17th Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20503. Mail or hand-carry a copy of your 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-
0106'' 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 Part 253, Oil Spill Financial Responsibility.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0106.
    Abstract: Title I of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA) (33 U.S.C. 
2701 et seq.), as amended by the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1996 
(Pub.L. 104-324), provides at section 1016 that oil spill financial 
responsibility (OSFR) for offshore facilities be established and 
maintained according to methods determined acceptable to the President. 
Section 1016 of OPA supersedes the offshore facility OSFR provisions of 
the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments of 1978. These 
authorities and responsibilities are among those delegated to MMS under 
which we issue regulations governing oil and gas and sulphur operations 
in the OCS. The information collection discussed in this notice that we 
are submitting to OMB addresses the regulations at 30 CFR Part 253, Oil 
Spill Financial Responsibility for Offshore Facilities, forms MMS-1016 
through MMS-1022, and any associated supplementary notices to lessees 
and operators intended to provide clarification, description, or 
explanation of these regulations.
    The MMS uses the information collected under 30 CFR part 253 to 
verify compliance with section 1016 of OPA. The information is 
necessary to confirm that applicants can pay for cleanup and damages 
from oil-spill discharges from covered offshore facilities (COFs). 
Routinely, the information will be used: (a) To establish eligibility 
of applicants for an OSFR Certification; and (b) as a reference source 
for clean-up and damage claims associated with oil-spill discharges 
from COFs; the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of owners, 
operators, and guarantors; designated U.S. agents for service of 
process; and persons to contact. To collect most of the information, 
MMS developed standard forms. The forms and their purposes are:

Form MMS-1016, Designated Applicant Information

    The designated applicant uses this form to provide identifying 
information (company legal name, address, contact name and title, 
telephone numbers) and to summarize the OSFR evidence. This form is 
required for each new OSFR Certification application.

Form MMS-1017, Designation of Applicant

    When there is more than one responsible party for a COF, they must 
select a designated applicant. Each responsible party, as defined in 
the regulations, must use this form to notify MMS of the designated 
applicant. This form is also used to designate the U.S. agent for 
service of process for the responsible party(ies) should claims from an 
oil-spill discharge exceed the amount evidenced by the designated 
applicant; identifies and provides pertinent information about the 
responsible party(ies); and lists the covered offshore facilities for 
which the designated applicant is responsible for OSFR certification. 
The form identifies each COF by State or OCS region; lease, permit, 
right of use and easement, or pipeline number; aliquot section; area 
name; and block number. This form must be submitted with each new OSFRC 
application in which there is at least one responsible party who is not 
the designated applicant for a COF.

Form MMS-1018, Self-Insurance or Indemnity Information

    This form is used if the designated applicant is self-insuring or 
using an indemnity as OSFR evidence. As appropriate, either the 
designated applicant or the designated applicant's indemnitor completes 
the form to indicate the amount of OSFR coverage and effective and 
expiration dates. The form also provides pertinent information about 
the self-insurer or indemnitor and is used to designate a U.S. agent 
for service of process for claims up to the evidenced amount. This form 
must be submitted each time

[[Page 41037]]

new evidence of OSFR is submitted using either self-insurance or an 
indemnity.

Form MMS-1019, Insurance Certificate

    The designated applicant (representing himself as a direct 
purchaser of insurance) or his insurance agent or broker and the named 
insurers complete this form to provide OSFR evidence using insurance. 
The number of forms to be submitted will depend upon the amount of OSFR 
required and the number of layers of insurance to evidence the total 
amount of OSFR required. One form is required for each layer of 
insurance. The form provides pertinent information about the insurer(s) 
and designates a U.S. agent for service of process. This form must be 
submitted at the beginning of the term of the insurance coverage for 
the designated applicant's COFs.

Form MMS-1020, Surety Bond

    Each bonding company that issues a surety bond for the designated 
applicant must complete this form indicating the amount of surety and 
effective dates. The form provides pertinent information about the 
bonding company and designates a U.S. agent for service of process for 
the amount evidenced by the surety bond. This form must be submitted at 
the beginning of the term of the surety bond for the named designated 
applicant.

Form MMS-1021, Covered Offshore Facilities

    The designated applicant submits this form to identify the COFs to 
which the OSFR evidence applies. The form identifies each COF by State 
or OCS region; lease, permit, right of use and easement, or pipeline 
number; aliquot section; area name; block number; and potential worst 
case oil-spill discharge. This form is required to be submitted with 
each new OSFR Certification application which includes COFs.

Form MMS-1022, Covered Offshore Facility Changes

    During the term of the issued OSFR Certification, the designated 
applicant submits changes to the current COF listings on this form, 
including changes to the worst case oil-spill discharge for a COF. This 
form must be submitted when identified changes occur during the term of 
an OSFR Certification.
    Responses are mandatory. No questions of a ``sensitive'' nature are 
asked. Respondents are not required to submit confidential or 
proprietary information. All public requests for information about an 
applicant's OSFR Certification will be processed according to the 
Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) procedures.
    Frequency: The frequency of submission will vary, but most will 
respond at least once per year.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: We estimate there 
are approximately 600 respondents. Some will be holders of leases, 
permits, and rights of use and easement in the OCS and in State coastal 
waters who will appoint approximately 200 designated applicants. Other 
respondents will be the designated applicants' insurance agents and 
brokers, bonding companies, and indemnitors. There are no recordkeeping 
requirements associated with this collection.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: The 
following chart details the components of the hour burden for the 
information collection requirements in Part 253 -- an estimated annual 
total of 19,504 burden hours. In estimating the burdens, we assumed 
that respondents perform certain 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.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                            Hour burden
      Citation 30 CFR 253         Reporting requirement    per response
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subpart B: 11(a)(1); Subpart D:  Form MMS-1016,                        1
 40; 41.                          Designated Applicant
                                  Information.
Subpart B: 11(a)(1); Subpart D:  Form MMS-1017,                        9
 40; 41.                          Designation of
                                  Applicant.
Subpart C: 21, 22, 23, 24, 26,   Form MMS-1018, Self-                  1
 27, 30; Subpart D: 40, 41.       insurance or Indemnity
                                  Information.
Subpart C: 29; Subpart D: 40,    Form MMS-1019,                      120
 41.                              Insurance Certificate.
Subpart C: 31; Subpart D: 40,    Form MMS-1020, Surety                24
 41.                              Bond.
Subpart D: 40, 41..............  Form MMS-1021, Covered                3
                                  Offshore Facilities.
Subpart D: 40, 41, 42..........  Form MMS-1022, Covered                1
                                  Offshore Facilities
                                  Changes.
Subpart B: 12..................  Request for                           2
                                  determination of OSFR
                                  applicability.
Subpart B: 15(e)...............  Notify MMS of change in               1
                                  ability to comply.
Subpart B: 15(f)...............  Provide claimant                      1
                                  written explanation of
                                  denial.
Subpart C: 32..................  Proposal for                        120
                                  alternative method to
                                  evidence OSFR. No
                                  proposals anticipated,
                                  but regs provide the
                                  opportunity.
                                ----------------------------------------
Subpart F......................  Claims: MMS will not be involved in the
                                     claims process; assessment of the
                                    burden is the responsibility of the
                                      U.S. Coast Guard as part of its
                                   rulemaking on claims against the Oil
                                    Spill Liability Trust Fund (30 CFR
                                           parts 135, 136, 137).
                                ----------------------------------------
Subpart F: 60..................  Claimant request to                   2
                                  determine whether a
                                  guarantor may be
                                  liable for a claim.
                                ----------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-Hour Cost'' 
Burden: We have identified no ``non-hour cost'' burdens.
    Comments: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et 
seq.) 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.
    To comply with the public consultation process, on March 8, 2001, 
we published a Federal Register notice (66 FR 13953) announcing that we 
would submit this ICR to OMB for approval. The notice provided the 
required 60-day comment period. In

[[Page 41038]]

addition, Sec. 253.5 displays the OMB control number for the 
information collection requirements imposed by the 30 CFR part 253 
regulations and forms; specifies that the public may comment at anytime 
on the collection of information; and provides the address to which 
they should send comments. We have received no comments in response to 
these efforts.
    If you wish to comment in response to this notice, send your 
comments directly to the offices listed under the ADDRESSES section of 
this notice. The OMB has up to 60 days to approve or disapprove the 
information collection but may respond after 30 days. Therefore, to 
ensure maximum consideration, OMB should receive public comments by 
September 5, 2001. The 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.
    MMS Information Collection Clearance Officer: Jo Ann Lauterbach, 
(202) 208-7744.

    Dated: May 31, 2001.
E.P. Danenberger,
Chief, Engineering and Operations Division.
[FR Doc. 01-19612 Filed 8-3-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P