[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 150 (Tuesday, August 5, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46216-46218]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-19914]


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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 an extension of a currently approved information 
collection (OMB Control Number 1010-0087).

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we 
are notifying the public that we have submitted to OMB an information 
collection request (ICR) to renew approval of the paperwork 
requirements in the regulations under 30 CFR Part 228--Cooperative 
Activities with States and Indian Tribes. This notice also provides the 
public a second opportunity to comment on the paperwork burden of these 
regulatory requirements. The ICR is titled ``30 CFR Part 228 
Cooperative Activities with States and Indian Tribes.

DATES: Submit written comments on or before September 4, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments either by fax (202) 395-5806 or e-
mail ([email protected]) directly to the Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for the Department 
of the Interior (OMB Control Number 1010-0087). Mail or hand-carry a 
copy of your 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharron L. Gebhardt by telephone (303) 
231-3211 or fax (303) 231-3781. You may also contact Sharron Gebhardt 
to obtain a copy at no cost of the regulations that require the subject 
collection of information.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: 30 CFR Part 228--Cooperative Activities with States and 
Indian Tribes.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0087.
    Bureau Form Number: None.
    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) under the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 1923) and 
the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1353) 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 has an Indian trust responsibility to manage Indian 
lands and seek advice and information from Indian beneficiaries. MMS 
performs the royalty management functions and assists the Secretary in 
carrying out DOI's Indian trust responsibility.
    The Secretary of the Interior is authorized by Public Law 97-451, 
the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act of 1982 (FOGRMA), 30 
U.S.C. 1732, and 30 U.S.C. 1701 et seq. to enter into cooperative 
agreements using the capabilities of tribes to carry out royalty audits 
and related investigation and enforcement activities. The Federal Oil 
and Gas Royalty Simplification and Fairness Act of 1996 (RSFA), Public 
Law 104-185, as corrected by Public Law 104-200, amended FOGRMA and 
essentially limited 30 CFR Part 228 to Indian tribes. As noted under 30 
CFR Part 228.3, this part does not apply to Federal lands. Federal 
lands are audited by States under the provisions of 30 CFR Part 227, 
Delegation to States. Cooperative agreements benefit both MMS and 
Indian tribes by helping to ensure proper product valuation, correct 
and timely production reporting, and correct and timely royalty payment 
through the application of an aggressive and comprehensive audit 
program. To be considered for a cooperative agreement, Indian tribes 
must comply with the regulations at 30 CFR Part 228 by submitting a 
written request to the Director, MMS, and preparing a proposal that 
details the work to be done.
    Currently, eight Indian tribes have cooperative audit agreements to 
perform audits and investigations. When an Indian tribe performs any of 
the

[[Page 46217]]

delegated functions under the 30 CFR Part 228 regulations, the Indian 
tribe also assumes the burden of providing various types of information 
to MMS. This information, provided to MMS in the course of performing 
cooperative agreements, is the focus of this information collection. We 
have changed the title of this ICR from ``Cooperative Agreements'' to 
``30 CFR Part 228, Cooperative Activities with States and Indian 
Tribes'' for consistency with the regulatory language we are covering 
under 30 CFR Part 228.
    We are also revising this ICR to include reporting requirements 
that were inadvertently overlooked when the final rule was published. 
See the chart below for these requirements and associated burden hours.
    MMS is requesting OMB's approval to continue to collect this 
information. Not collecting this information would limit the 
Secretary's ability to discharge his/her duties and may also result in 
loss of royalty payments to the Indian lessor due to royalties not 
being collected. Proprietary information submitted is protected, and 
there are no questions of a sensitive nature included in this 
information collection. The requirement to respond is voluntary.
    Frequency: Quarterly, annually, or when deemed necessary.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: Eight Indian 
tribes currently have cooperative audit agreements.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: 1,912 
hours.
    The following chart details the individual components and estimated 
hour burdens. In calculating the burdens, we assumed that respondents 
perform certain requirements in the normal course of their activities. 
Therefore, we consider these to be usual and customary and took that 
into account in estimating the burden.

                                   Tribal Respondent Annual Burden Hour Chart
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                   Burden  hours  Annual  number  Annual  burden
            30 CFR Section                Reporting requirement    per  response   of  responses      Phours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
228.100 (a) and (b)(1), (2), (3), and   * * * Indian tribe may               200               1             200
 (4); 228.101(a), (c); 228.107(b).       request the Department
                                         to enter into a
                                         cooperative agreement
                                         by sending a letter
                                         from the * * * tribal
                                         chairman * * * to the
                                         Director of MMS. The
                                         request for an
                                         agreement shall be in a
                                         format prescribed by
                                         MMS * * * Agreements *
                                         * * shall be valid for
                                         * * * 3 years and shall
                                         be renewable * * * upon
                                         request of the * * *
                                         Indian tribe * * *
                                         Indian tribe may
                                         unilaterally terminate
                                         an agreement by giving
                                         a 120-day written
                                         notice of intent to
                                         terminate. Each
                                         cooperative agreement
                                         shall contain detailed
                                         schedules identifying
                                         those activities and
                                         costs which qualify for
                                         funding and the
                                         procedures, timing, and
                                         mechanics for
                                         implementing Federal
                                         funding.
228.101(d)............................  * * * Indian tribe will               80               1              80
                                         be given 60-days to
                                         respond to the notice
                                         of deficiencies and to
                                         provide a plan for
                                         correction of those
                                         deficiencies.
228.103 (a) and (b)...................  The * * * Indian tribe               120               8             960
                                         entering into a
                                         cooperative agreement *
                                         * * must retain all
                                         records, reports,
                                         working papers, and any
                                         backup materials * * *
                                         The * * * Indian tribe
                                         shall maintain all
                                         books and records * * *.
228.105(a) (1) and (2)................  The Department may * * *              60               8             480
                                         reimburse the * * *
                                         Indian tribe up to 100
                                         percent of the costs of
                                         eligible activities.
                                         Eligible activities
                                         will be agreed upon
                                         annually upon the
                                         submission and approval
                                         of a workplan and
                                         funding requirement. A
                                         cooperative agreement
                                         may be entered into
                                         with * * * Indian
                                         tribe, upon request,
                                         without a requirement
                                         for reimbursement of
                                         costs by the Department.
228.105(c)............................  The * * * Indian tribe                 4              48             192
                                         shall submit a voucher
                                         for reimbursement of
                                         eligible costs incurred
                                         within 30-days of the
                                         end of each calendar
                                         quarter. The * * *
                                         Indian tribe must
                                         provide the Department
                                         a summary of costs
                                         incurred, for which the
                                         * * * Indian tribe is
                                         seeking reimbursement,
                                         with the voucher.
                                       ---------------------------
    Total.............................  ........................  ..............              66           1,912
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-hour'' Cost 
Burden: We have identified no ``non-hour'' cost burdens.
    Public Disclosure Statement: 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.
    Comments: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA 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

[[Page 46218]]

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, we published a 
notice in the Federal Register on May 5, 2003 (68 FR 23759), announcing 
that we would submit this ICR to OMB for approval. The notice provided 
the required 60-day comment period. We received no comments in response 
to this notice.
    If you wish to comment in response to this notice, you may send 
your comments to the offices listed under the ADDRESSES section of this 
notice. 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 4, 2003.
    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/InfoColl/InfoColCom.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 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.
    MMS Information Collection Clearance Officer: Jo Ann Lauterbach, 
(202) 208-7744.

    Dated: July 25, 2003.
Lucy Querques Denett,
Associate Director for Minerals Revenue Management.
[FR Doc. 03-19914 Filed 8-4-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P