[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 11 (Thursday, January 16, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 2263-2265]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-975]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 901

[AL-072-FOR]


Alabama Regulatory Program

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public 
hearing on proposed amendment.

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SUMMARY: We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement 
(OSM), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Alabama 
regulatory program (Alabama program) under the Surface Mining Control 
and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Alabama proposes 
revisions to its rules about forms and license applications. Alabama 
intends to revise its program to improve operational efficiency.
    This document gives the times and locations that the Alabama 
program and proposed amendment to that program are available for your 
inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written 
comments on the amendment, and the procedures that we will follow for 
the public hearing, if one is requested.

DATES: We will accept written comments on this amendment until 4 p.m., 
c.s.t., February 18, 2003. If requested, we will hold a public hearing 
on the amendment on February 10, 2003. We will accept requests to speak 
at a hearing until 4 p.m., c.s.t. on January 31, 2003.

ADDRESSES: You should mail or hand deliver written comments and 
requests to speak at the hearing to Arthur W. Abbs, Director, 
Birmingham Field Office, at the address listed below.
    You may review copies of the Alabama program, this amendment, a 
listing of any scheduled public hearings, and all written comments 
received in response to this document at the addresses listed below 
during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding 
holidays. You may receive one free copy of the amendment by contacting 
OSM's Birmingham Field Office.
    Arthur W. Abbs, Director, Birmingham Field Office, Office of 
Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 135 Gemini Circle, Suite 
215, Homewood, Alabama 35209. Telephone: (205) 290-7282. Internet: 
[email protected].
    Alabama Surface Mining Commission, 1811 Second Avenue, P.O. Box 
2390, Jasper, Alabama 35502-2390. Telephone: (205) 221-4130.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arthur W. Abbs, Director, Birmingham 
Field Office. Telephone: (205) 290-7282. Internet: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the Alabama Program
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
III. Public Comment Procedures
IV. Procedural Determinations

I. Background on the Alabama Program

    Section 503(a) of the Act permits a State to assume primacy for the 
regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations on non-
Federal and non-Indian lands within its borders by demonstrating that 
its program includes, among other things, ``a State law which provides 
for the regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations in 
accordance with the requirements of the Act * * and rules and 
regulations consistent with regulations issued by the Secretary 
pursuant to the Act.'' See 30 U.S.C. 1253(a)(1) and (7). On the basis 
of these criteria, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally approved 
the Alabama program on May 20, 1982. You can find background 
information on the Alabama program, including the Secretary's findings, 
the disposition of comments, and the conditions of approval in the May 
20, 1982, Federal Register (47 FR 22030). You can also find later 
actions concerning the Alabama program and program amendments at 30 CFR 
901.10, 901.15, and 901.16.

II. Description of the Proposed Amendment

    By letter dated October 17, 2002 (Administrative Record No. AL-
0654),

[[Page 2264]]

Alabama sent us an amendment to its program under SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1201 
et seq.). Alabama sent the amendment at its own initiative. Below is a 
summary of the changes proposed by Alabama. The full text of the 
program amendment is available for you to read at the locations listed 
above under ADDRESSES.

A. 880-X-1B Forms

    Subchapter 880-X-1B lists the forms used in the operations and 
organization of the Alabama Surface Mining Commission.
    1. Alabama proposes to delete the following forms:

Form ASMC-3 Request for Inspection & Bond Release.
Form ASMC-17 Permit Application for Underground Mining.
Form ASMC-98 Application for Coal Exploration Permit to Remove More 
Than 250 Tons of Coal or Disturb More Than One-Half Acre.
Form ASMC-137 Permit Application for Coal Processing Plants.

    2. Alabama proposes to change the existing descriptions of Forms 
ASMC-6, ASMC-16, ASMC-176, and ASMC-232 to the descriptions shown 
below:

Form ASMC-6 Application for Coal Mining License/Application for Annual 
Update of Coal Mining License/Notification of Change in Ownership or 
Control.
Form ASMC-16 Permit Application for a Surface Coal Mine/Permit 
Application for an Underground Coal Mine/Permit Application for a 
Preparation Facility.
Form ASMC-176 Renewal Application for a Surface Coal Mine/Renewal 
Application for an Underground Coal Mine/Renewal Application for a 
Preparation Facility.
Form ASMC-232 Transfer Application for a Surface Coal Mine/Transfer 
Application for an Underground Coal Mine/Transfer Application for a 
Preparation Facility.

    3. Alabama proposes to add the following new forms to its list at 
880-X-1B:

Form ASMC 254 Notice of the Filing of a Renewal Application for Surface 
Coal Mining Permit (To Agencies).
Form ASMC 255 Notice of the Filing of a Revision Application for 
Surface Coal Mining Permit (To Agencies).
Form ASMC 256 Notice of the Filing of a Revision Application for 
Surface Coal Mining Operations (Landowner Notice).
Form ASMC 257 Notice of Filing of a Renewal Application for Surface 
Coal Mining Operations (Landowner Notice).
Form ASMC 258 Statement as to Negotiability of Certificate of Deposit 
and Assignment (Subsidence Impacts).
Form ASMC 259 Surety Bond (Subsidence).

B. 880-X-6A-.06 License Application Requirements

    Alabama is proposing to revise 880-X-6A-.06(g)2(ii) to allow public 
accountants to certify and sign current statements of the net worth of 
applicants for licenses to conduct surface coal mining operations. 
Currently Alabama only allows certified public accountants to certify 
and sign these statements. The revised provision reads as follows:

    A current statement in letter form, certified by a certified 
public accountant or public accountant licensed to do business in 
the State of Alabama that the applicant has a net worth of not less 
than $100,000. The statement must not be ambiguous, qualified, or 
otherwise vague. It must state the Alabama certificate or 
registration number of, and be signed by the certified public 
accountant or public accountant.

III. Public Comment Procedures

    Under the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), we are seeking your 
comments on whether the amendment satisfies the applicable program 
approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If we approve the amendment, it 
will become part of the State program.

Written Comments

    Send your written or electronic comments to OSM at the address 
given above. Your written comments should be specific, pertain only to 
the issues proposed in this rulemaking, and include explanations in 
support of your recommendations. We will not consider or respond to 
your comments when developing the final rule if they are received after 
the close of the comment period (see DATES). We will make every attempt 
to log all comments into the administrative record, but comments 
delivered to an address other than the Birmingham Field Office may not 
be logged in.

Electronic Comments

    Please submit Internet comments as an ASCII or Word file avoiding 
the use of special characters and any form of encryption. Please also 
include ``Attn: [AL-072-FOR]'' and your name and return address in your 
Internet message. If you do not receive a confirmation that we have 
received your Internet message, contact the Birmingham Field Office at 
(205) 290-7282.

Availability of Comments

    We will make comments, including names and addresses of 
respondents, available for public review during normal business hours. 
We will not consider anonymous comments. If individual respondents 
request confidentiality, we will honor their request to the extent 
allowable by law. Individual respondents who wish to withhold their 
name or address from public review, except for the city or town, must 
state this prominently at the beginning of their 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 review in their entirety.

Public Hearing

    If you wish to speak at the public hearing, contact the person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4 p.m., c.s.t. on 
January 31, 2003. If you are disabled and need special accommodations 
to attend a public hearing, contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT. We will arrange the location and time of the 
hearing with those persons requesting the hearing. If no one requests 
an opportunity to speak, we will not hold a hearing.
    To assist the transcriber and ensure an accurate record, we 
request, if possible, that each person who speaks at the public hearing 
provide us with a written copy of his or her comments. The public 
hearing will continue on the specified date until everyone scheduled to 
speak has been given an opportunity to be heard. If you are in the 
audience and have not been scheduled to speak and wish to do so, you 
will be allowed to speak after those who have been scheduled. We will 
end the hearing after everyone scheduled to speak and others present in 
the audience who wish to speak, have been heard.

Public Meeting

    If only one person requests an opportunity to speak, we may hold a 
public meeting rather than a public hearing. If you wish to meet with 
us to discuss the amendment, please request a meeting by contacting the 
person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All such meetings 
are open to the public and, if possible, we will post notices of 
meetings at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. We will make a 
written summary of each meeting a part of the administrative record.

[[Page 2265]]

IV. Procedural Determinations

Executive Order 12630--Takings

    The revisions made at the initiative of the State have been 
reviewed and a determination made that they do not have takings 
implications. This determination is based on the fact that the 
deletions, revisions, and additions by the Alabama Surface Mining 
Commission to the forms listed in 880-X-1B are administrative and 
procedural in nature and are not expected to have a substantive effect 
on the regulated industry. The same is true for the revisions to 880-X-
6A-.06.

Executive Order 12866--Regulatory Planning and Review

    This rule is exempted from review by the Office of Management and 
Budget under Executive Order 12866.

Executive Order 12988--Civil Justice Reform

    The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required 
by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 and has determined that this rule 
meets the applicable standards of subsections (a) and (b) of that 
section. However, these standards are not applicable to the actual 
language of State regulatory programs and program amendments because 
each program is drafted and promulgated by a specific State, not by 
OSM. Under sections 503 and 505 of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1253 and 1255) and 
the Federal regulations at 30 CFR 730.11, 732.15, and 732.17(h)(10), 
decisions on proposed State regulatory programs and program amendments 
submitted by the States must be based solely on a determination of 
whether the submittal is consistent with SMCRA and its implementing 
Federal regulations and whether the other requirements of 30 CFR parts 
730, 731, and 732 have been met.

Executive Order 13132--Federalism

    This rule does not have Federalism implications. SMCRA delineates 
the roles of the Federal and State governments with regard to the 
regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations. One of 
the purposes of SMCRA is to ``establish a nationwide program to protect 
society and the environment from the adverse effects of surface coal 
mining operations.'' Section 503(a)(1) of SMCRA requires that State 
laws regulating surface coal mining and reclamation operations be ``in 
accordance with'' the requirements of SMCRA. Section 503(a)(7) requires 
that State programs contain rules and regulations ``consistent with'' 
regulations issued by the Secretary pursuant to SMCRA.

Executive Order 13211--Regulations That Significantly Affect the 
Supply, Distribution, or Use of Energy

    On May 18, 2001, the President issued Executive Order 13211 which 
requires agencies to prepare a Statement of Energy Effects for a rule 
that is (1) considered significant under Executive Order 12866, and (2) 
likely to have a significant adverse effect on the supply, 
distribution, or use of energy. Because this rule is exempt from review 
under Executive Order 12866 and is not expected to have a significant 
adverse effect on the supply, distribution, or use of energy, a 
Statement of Energy Effects is not required.

National Environmental Policy Act

    This rule does not require an environmental impact statement 
because section 702(d) of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1292(d)) provides that 
agency decisions on proposed State regulatory program provisions do not 
constitute major Federal actions within the meaning of section 
102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 
4332(2)(C).

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule does not contain information collection requirements that 
require approval by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 
3507 et seq.).

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Department of the Interior certifies that this rule will not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). 
This determination is based on the fact that the deletions, revisions, 
and additions by the Alabama Surface Mining Commission to the forms 
listed in 880-X-1B are administrative and procedural in nature and are 
not expected to have a substantive effect on the regulated industry. 
The same is true for the revisions to 880-X-6A-.06.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act

    This rule is not a major rule under 5 U.S.C. 804(2), the Small 
Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act. This rule: (a) Does not 
have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million; (b) will not 
cause a major increase in costs or prices for consumers, individual 
industries, Federal, State, or local governmental agencies or 
geographic regions; and (c) does not have significant adverse effects 
on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, or 
the ability of U.S.-based enterprises to compete with foreign-based 
enterprises. This determination is based on the fact that the 
deletions, revisions, and additions by the Alabama Surface Mining 
Commission to the forms listed in 880-X-1B are administrative and 
procedural in nature and are not expected to have a substantive effect 
on the regulated industry. The same is true for the revisions to 880-X-
6A-.06.

Unfunded Mandates

    This rule will not impose an unfunded mandate on State, local, or 
tribal governments or the private sector of $100 million or more in any 
given year. This determination is based on the fact that the deletions, 
revisions, and additions by the Alabama Surface Mining Commission to 
the forms listed in 880-X-1B are administrative and procedural in 
nature and are not expected to have a substantive effect on the 
regulated industry. The same is true for the revisions to 880-X-6A-.06.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 901

    Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

    Dated: November 7, 2002.
Charles E. Sandberg,
Acting Regional Director, Mid-Continent Regional Coordinating Center.
[FR Doc. 03-975 Filed 1-15-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-P