[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 167 (Thursday, August 28, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51796-51798]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-22060]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[MT-072-1220-HB]


Notice of Proposed Supplementary Rules for Developed Recreation 
Sites Within the area managed by the Butte Field Office, Montana

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Butte Field Office, Montana, 
Interior.

ACTION: Proposed supplementary rules.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Butte Field Office, is 
proposing supplementary rules. These supplementary rules will apply to 
the public lands within developed campgrounds and day-use areas managed 
by the Butte Field Office. BLM has determined these supplementary rules 
necessary to protect natural resources in the areas, to protect public 
health, to enhance the safety of area visitors and neighboring 
residents, and to provide campsites to visitors in a more equitable 
manner at higher use areas.

DATES: You should submit your comments on or before September 29, 2003. 
In developing final supplementary rules, BLM may not consider comments 
postmarked or received in person or by electronic mail after this date.

ADDRESSES: You may hand-deliver comments on the proposed rule to Bureau 
of Land Management, Butte Field Office, 106 N. Parkmont, Butte, Montana 
59701, or mail comments to Bureau of Land Management, Butte Field 
Office, at the same address. You may also comment via the Internet to: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brad Rixford, Outdoor Recreation 
Planner, 106 N. Parkmont, Butte, Montana 59701, 406-533-7600.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Public Comment Procedures.
II. Background.
III. Areas Covered by the Supplementary Rules.
IV. Discussion of the Supplementary Rules.
V. Procedural Matters.

I. Public Comment Procedures

    Please submit your comments on issues related to the proposed 
supplementary rules, in writing, according to the ADDRESSES section 
above. Comments on the proposed rule should be specific, should be 
confined to issues pertinent to the proposed supplementary rules, and 
should explain the reason for any recommended change. Where possible, 
your comments should reference the specific section or paragraph of the 
proposal that you are addressing. BLM may not necessarily consider or 
include in the Administrative Record for the final rule comments that 
BLM receives after the close of the comment period (see DATES) or 
comments delivered to an address other than those listed above (see 
ADDRESSES).
    BLM will make your comments, including your name and address, 
available for public review at the Butte Field Office address listed in 
ADDRESSES above during regular business hours (8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays).
    Under certain conditions, BLM can keep your personal information 
confidential. You must prominently state your request for 
confidentiality at the beginning of your comment. BLM will consider 
withholding your name, street address, and other identifying 
information on a case-by-case basis to the extent allowed by law. BLM 
will make available to the public all submissions from organizations 
and businesses and from individuals identifying themselves as 
representatives or officials of organizations or businesses.

II. Background

    BLM is proposing these supplementary rules under the authority of 
43 CFR 8365.1-6, which allows State Directors to issue such rules for 
the protection of persons, property, and public lands and resources. 
This provision allows BLM to issue rules of less than national effect 
without overloading or expanding the Code of Federal Regulations.
    The overall program authority for the operation of these 
campgrounds is found in Sections 302 and 310 of the Federal Land Policy 
and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1732, 1740).
    The campgrounds for which fees are charged are operated under the 
Fee Demo Project, which allows BLM to collect fees and use the revenues 
for the

[[Page 51797]]

management of recreation sites within the state where the fees are 
collected.

III. Areas Covered by the Supplementary Rules

    The proposed supplementary rules containing rules of conduct would 
apply to the developed campgrounds at Holter Dam, Holter Lake, Log 
Gulch, Departure Point, Devil's Elbow, Clark's Bay, Divide Bridge 
Campground, Upper Divide Bridge, Upper and Lower Toston Dam, Beartooth 
Landing, Carbella, Galena, Crow Creek, East Bank, Bryant Creek, Jerry 
Creek, and Dickie Bridge campgrpounds, except as otherwise noted in the 
specific supplementary rules. All of these campgrounds are on public 
lands managed by the Butte Field Office, BLM.
    A second set of the supplementary rules relating to permits and 
campsite administration apply at Holter Dam, Holter Lake, Log Gulch, 
Departure Point, Devil's Elbow, Clark's Bay, Divide Bridge Campgrounds.

IV. Discussion of the Supplementary Rules

    The rules of conduct in section 1 of the supplementary rules are 
self-explanatory and do not require any commentary here. However, the 
administrative rules in section 2 may need a bit of background 
explanation.
    a. We would require that you pay for boat ramp and other day-use 
facilities before you launch or otherwise use them, rather than waiting 
for the end of the day when you may be in a hurry to return home. At 
campgrounds, the BLM personnel will advise you what campsites are 
available. Once you select a site, you must return to the entrance 
station to make payment and complete your registration.
    b. Each campsite has a wooden post to which you must attach your 
payment receipt. This way, we can see that you are properly registered 
without searching around your vehicle or otherwise bothering you during 
your visit.
    c. We have had problems with people claiming or holding campsites 
for friends arriving later by placing coolers, deck chairs, vehicles, 
or other equipment on the sites. This is unfair to other visitors. Our 
campsites are available first come, first served.
    d. Because of increasing demand for recreational sites, and because 
some of BLM's sites have been closed for maintenance and road 
construction, we propose to reduce the length-of-stay rule from 14 to 7 
days for some campgrounds, as listed. We may restore the longer term at 
a later date if it turns out that demand does not increase as we 
expect.
    f. The same reasoning applies to claiming extra boat dock slips as 
to claiming extra campsites in paragraph c., discussed above.
    h. We have had problems with vandalism and after-dark keg parties 
getting out of hand at the Clark's Bay day-use area, so we propose to 
close the area temporarily each day after dark to 9 a.m. from May 
through September and for the entire day during the off-season from 
October through April.
    i. Although the Clark's Bay day-use area would be closed to 
vehicles and social gatherings during the periods identified in the 
preceding paragraph, individuals wishing to hike, jog, walk their dogs, 
or otherwise make pedestrian use of the area during the closure periods 
are welcome.

V. Procedural Matters

Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review

    These supplementary rules are not a significant regulatory action 
and are not subject to review by Office of Management and Budget under 
Executive Order 12866. These supplementary rules will not have an 
effect of $100 million or more on the economy. They are not intended to 
affect commercial activity, but contain rules of conduct for public use 
of certain recreational areas. They will not adversely affect, in a 
material way, the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the 
environment, public health or safety, or State, local, or tribal 
governments or communities. These proposed supplementary rules will not 
create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an action 
taken or planned by another agency. The supplementary rules do not 
alter the budgetary effects of entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan 
programs or the right or obligations of their recipients; nor do they 
raise novel legal or policy issues.

Clarity of the Supplementary Rules

    Executive Order 12866 requires each agency to write regulations 
that are simple and easy to understand. We invite your comments on how 
to make these proposed supplementary rules easier to understand, 
including answers to questions such as the following:
    (1) Are the requirements in the proposed supplementary rules 
clearly stated?
    (2) Do the proposed supplementary rules contain technical language 
or jargon that interferes with their clarity?
    (3) Does the format of the proposed supplementary rules (grouping 
and order of sections, use of headings, paragraphing, etc.) aid or 
reduce their clarity?
    (4) Would the supplementary rules be easier to understand if they 
were divided into more (but shorter) sections?
    (5) Is the description of the proposed supplementary rules in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this preamble helpful in 
understanding the proposed supplementary rules? How could this 
description be more helpful in making the supplementary rules easier to 
understand?
    Please send any comments you have on the clarity of the 
supplementary rules to the address specified in the ADDRESSES section.

National Environmental Policy Act

    BLM has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) or management 
agreement and has found that the proposed supplementary rules would not 
constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality 
of the human environment under section 102(2)(C) of the Environmental 
Protection Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C). The supplementary 
rules merely contain rules of conduct for certain recreational lands in 
Montana. These rules are designed to protect the environment and the 
public health and safety. A detailed statement under NEPA is not 
required. BLM has placed the EA and the Finding of No Significant 
Impact (FONSI) on file in the BLM Administrative Record at the address 
specified in the ADDRESSES section. The BLM invites the public to 
review these documents and suggests that anyone wishing to submit 
comments in response to the EA and FONSI do so in accordance with the 
``Public comment procedure'' section above.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Congress enacted the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) of 1980, as 
amended, 5 U.S.C. 601-612, to ensure that Government regulations do not 
unnecessarily or disproportionately burden small entities. The RFA 
requires a regulatory flexibility analysis if a rule would have a 
significant economic impact, either detrimental or beneficial, on a 
substantial number of small entities. The supplementary rules do not 
pertain specifically to commercial or governmental entities of any 
size, but to public recreational use of specific public lands. 
Therefore, BLM has determined under the RFA that these proposed 
supplementary rules would not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities.

[[Page 51798]]

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA)

    These supplementary rules do not constitute a ``major rule'' as 
defined at 5 U.S.C. 804(2). Again, the supplementary rules merely 
contain rules of conduct for recreational use of certain public lands. 
The supplementary rules have no effect on business, commercial or 
industrial use of the public lands.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

    These supplementary rules do not impose an unfunded mandate on 
State, local or tribal governments or the private sector of more than 
$100 million per year; nor do these proposed supplementary rules have a 
significant or unique effect on State, local, or tribal governments or 
the private sector. The supplementary rules do not require anything of 
State, local, or tribal governments. Therefore, BLM is not required to 
prepare a statement containing the information required by the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act (2 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)

Executive Order 12630, Governmental Actions and Interference With 
Constitutionally Protected Property Rights (Takings)

    The supplementary rules do not represent a government action 
capable of interfering with constitutionally protected property rights. 
The supplementary rules do not address property rights in any form, and 
do not cause the impairment of anybody's property rights. Therefore, 
the Department of the Interior has determined that the supplementary 
rules would not cause a taking of private property or require further 
discussion of takings implications under this Executive Order.

Executive Order 13132, Federalism

    The supplementary rules will not have a substantial direct effect 
on the States, on the relationship between the national government and 
the States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among 
the various levels of government. The supplementary rules affect land 
in only one state, Montana, and do not address jurisdictional issues 
involving the State government. Therefore, in accordance with Executive 
Order 13132, BLM has determined that these proposed supplementary rules 
do not have sufficient Federalism implications to warrant preparation 
of a Federalism Assessment.

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice Reform

    Under Executive Order 12988, the Office of the Solicitor has 
determined that these proposed supplementary rules would not unduly 
burden the judicial system and that they meet the requirements of 
sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) of the Order.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    These proposed supplementary rules do not contain information 
collection requirements that the Office of Management and Budget must 
approve under the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et. seq.

    Dated: May 7, 2003.
A. Jerry Meredith,
State Director, Acting, Bureau of Land Management, Montana State 
Office.
[FR Doc. 03-22060 Filed 8-27-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-DN-P