[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 196 (Wednesday, October 9, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62985-62987]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-25705]


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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 a currently approved information 
collection (OMB Control Number 1010-0136).

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, 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 
part 206, Subpart C, Federal Oil Valuation'.

[[Page 62986]]


DATES: Submit written comments on or before December 9, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to Sharron L. Gebhardt, Regulatory 
Specialist, 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-
614, Denver Federal Center, Denver, Colorado 80225. You may also e-mail 
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 we have received your e-mail, contact Ms. Gebhardt at 
(303) 231-3211.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharron L. Gebhardt, telephone (303) 
231-3211, FAX (303) 231-3385 or e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: 30 CFR Part 206, Subpart C, Federal Oil Valuation.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0136.
    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 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. MMS assists the Secretary in 
performing the royalty management functions.
    Section 101(a) of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act of 
1982 (FOGRMA), as amended, requires that the Secretary ``establish a 
comprehensive inspection, collection, and fiscal and production 
accounting and auditing system to provide the capability to accurately 
determine oil and gas royalties, interest, fines, penalties, fees, 
deposits, and other payments owed, and collect and account for such 
amounts in a timely manner.'' In order to accomplish these tasks, MMS 
developed valuation regulations for Federal leases at 30 CFR part 206, 
subpart C. Market value is a basic principle underlying royalty 
valuation. Consequently, these regulations include methods to capture 
the true market value of crude oil produced from Federal leases, both 
onshore and offshore.
    When a company or an individual enters into a lease to explore, 
develop, produce, and dispose of minerals from Federal or Indian lands, 
that company or individual agrees to pay the lessor a share (royalty) 
of the value received from production from the leased lands. The lease 
creates a business relationship between the lessor and the lessee. The 
lessee is required to report various kinds of information to the lessor 
relative to the disposition of the leased minerals. Such information is 
similar to data reported to private and public mineral interest owners 
and is generally available within the records of the lessee or others 
involved in developing, transporting, processing, purchasing, or 
selling of such minerals. The information collected includes data 
necessary to assure that the royalties are paid appropriately. The 
valuation regulations at 30 CFR part 206, subpart C, require companies 
to collect and/or submit information used to value their Federal oil.
    Frequency: Annually.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: 61 Federal 
lessees.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: The 
annual reporting burden for this information collection is 12,431 
hours. At an hourly rate of $50, we estimate the total annual cost to 
industry is $621,550. See the table below for a breakdown of the burden 
by CFR section and paragraph.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                                   Annual       Annual
              30 CFR 206 section                    Reporting requirements                 Burden hours per response             number of      burden
                                                                                                                                 responses      hours
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
206.103(a), (b), (c) & (e)...................  Calculate value of oil not solid  Category 1 = 222.50 \1\......................           13        2,892
                                                at arm's-length.                 Category 2 = 116.00 \2\......................            4          464
                                                                                 Category 3 = 31.25 \3\.......................           28          875
                                               Obtain MMS approval for           400..........................................            2          800
                                                tendering program.
                                               Obtain MMS approval for           400..........................................            2          800
                                                alternative valuation
                                                methodology.
                                               Obtain MMS approval to use value  330..........................................            1          330
                                                determined at refinery.
206.107(a)...................................  Request a value determination     330..........................................            8        2,640
                                                from MMS.
206.110(b), (c) and (e)......................  Propose transportation cost       330..........................................            1          330
                                                allocation method to MMS when
                                                transporting more than one
                                                liquid product under an arm's-
                                                length contract.
                                               Propose transportation cost       330..........................................            1          330
                                                allocation method to MMS when
                                                transporting gaseous and liquid
                                                products under an arm's-length
                                                contract.
                                               You must obtain MMS approval      330..........................................            1          330
                                                before claiming a
                                                transportation factor in excess
                                                of 50 percent of the base price
                                                of the product.
206.111(g), (k) and (l)......................  Propose change of depreciation    330..........................................            1          330
                                                method for non-arm's-length
                                                transportation allowances to
                                                MMS.
                                               Propose transportation cost       330..........................................            1          330
                                                allocation method to MMS when
                                                transporting more than one
                                                liquid product under a non-
                                                arm's-length contract.
                                               Propose transportation cost       330..........................................            1          330
                                                allocation method to MMS when
                                                transporting gaeous and liquid
                                                product under a non-arm's-
                                                length contract.
206.112(b) and (f)...........................  Request MMS approval for          330..........................................            1          330
                                                location/quality adjustment
                                                under non-arm's-length exchange
                                                agreements.
                                               Request MMS for location/quality  330..........................................            4        1,320
                                                adjustment when information is
                                                not available.
                                                                                ------------------------------------------------

[[Page 62987]]

 
      Total..................................  ................................  .............................................           61      12,431
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Category 1 lessees are companies with over 30 million barrels of domestice production.
\2\ Category 2 lessees are companies with between 10 and 30 million barrels of annual domestic production.
\3\ Category 3 lessees are companies with less than 10 million barrels of annual domestic production.

    MMS is requesting OMB's approval to continue to collect this 
information. Not collecting the information would limit the Secretary's 
ability to discharge his/her duties and may also result in loss of 
royalty payments. Proprietary information submitted is protected, and 
there are no questions of a sensitive nature included in this 
information collection.
    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 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.
    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 for this information collection. 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, sampling, testing equipment; 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.
    We will summarize written responses to this notice and address them 
in our ICR submission for OMB approval, including appropriate 
adjustments to the estimated burden. We will provide a copy of the ICR 
to you without charge upon request and the ICR will also be posted on 
our Web site at http://www.mrm.mms.gov/Laws_R_D/FRNotices/FRInfColl.htm.
    Public Comment Policy: We will post all comments in response to 
this notice on our Web site at http://www.mrm.mms.gov/Laws_R_D/FRNotices/FRInfColl.htm. We will also 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 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.
    MMS Information Collection Clearance Officer: Jo Ann Lauterbach, 
(202) 208-7744.

    Dated: October 2, 2002.
Lucy Querques Denett,
Associate Director for Minerals Revenue Management.
[FR Doc. 02-25705 Filed 10-8-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P