[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 34 (Tuesday, February 22, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8614-8617]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-3239]


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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 a revision of a currently approved information 
collection (OMB Control Number 1010-0095).

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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 206. This notice also 
provides the public a second opportunity to comment on the paperwork 
burden of these regulatory requirements. We changed the title of this 
ICR to clarify the regulatory language we are covering under 30 CFR 
206. The previous title of this ICR was ``Request to Exceed Regulatory 
Allowance Limitation.'' The new title of this ICR is ``30 CFR 206--
Product Valuation, Subpart B--Indian Oil, Sec.  206.54; Subpart C--
Federal Oil, Sec.  206.109; Subpart D--Federal Gas, Sec. Sec.  206.156 
and 206.158; and Subpart E--Indian Gas, Sec.  206.177 (Form MMS-4393, 
Request to Exceed Regulatory Allowance Limitation).''

DATES: Submit written comments on or before March 24, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments by either FAX (202) 395-6566 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 1010-0095). Mail or hand-carry a 
copy of your comments to Sharron L. Gebhardt, Lead Regulatory 
Specialist, Minerals Management Service, Minerals Revenue Management, 
P.O. Box 25165, MS 302B2, 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 that

[[Page 8615]]

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) 231-3781, e-mail [email protected]. You may 
also contact Sharron Gebhardt to obtain a copy at no cost of the form 
and regulations that require the subject collection of information.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: 30 CFR 206--Product Valuation, Subpart B--Indian Oil, Sec.  
206.54; Subpart C--Federal Oil, Sec.  206.109; Subpart D--Federal Gas, 
Sec. Sec.  206.156 and 206.158; and Subpart E--Indian Gas, Sec.  
206.177 (Form MMS-4393, Request to Exceed Regulatory Allowance 
Limitation).
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0095.
    Bureau Form Number: Form MMS-4393, Request to Exceed Regulatory 
Allowance Limitation.
    Abstract: The Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior is 
responsible for matters relevant to mineral resource development on 
Federal and Indian lands and the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The 
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. The 
MMS performs the royalty management functions and assists the Secretary 
in carrying out the Department's Indian trust responsibility. 
Applicable citations of the laws pertaining to mineral leases include 5 
U.S.C. 301 et seq.; 25 U.S.C. 396a et seq. and 2101 et seq.; 30 U.S.C. 
185, 351 et seq., 1001 et seq., and 1701 et seq.; 31 U.S.C. 9701; and 
43 U.S.C. 1301 et seq., 1331 et seq., and 1801 et seq.
    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 such minerals. The information collected includes data 
necessary to ensure that the royalties are paid appropriately.
    Proprietary information submitted to MMS under this collection is 
protected, and no items of a sensitive nature are collected. A response 
is required to obtain the benefit of exceeding a regulatory allowance 
limitation.
    Under certain circumstances, lessees are authorized to claim a 
transportation allowance for the reasonable actual costs of 
transporting the royalty portion of produced oil and gas from the lease 
to a processing or sales point not in the immediate lease area. In 
addition, when gas is processed for the recovery of gas plant products, 
lessees may claim a processing allowance. Transportation and processing 
allowances are a part of the product valuation process that MMS uses to 
determine if the lessee is reporting and paying the proper royalty 
amount.
    The regulations establish a limit on transportation allowance 
deductions for oil and gas at 50 percent of the value of the oil and 
gas at the point of sale. The MMS may approve a transportation 
allowance in excess of 50 percent upon proper application from the 
lessee. Similarly, the regulations establish a limit of 66\2/3\ percent 
of the value of each gas plant product as an allowable gas processing 
deduction. The MMS may also approve a processing allowance in excess of 
66\2/3\ percent upon proper application from the lessee.
    To request permission to exceed a regulatory allowance limit, 
lessees must write a letter to MMS explaining why a higher allowance 
limit is necessary and provide supporting documentation. The MMS 
developed Form MMS-4393, Request to Exceed Regulatory Allowance 
Limitation, to accompany the lessee's letter requesting approval to 
exceed the regulatory allowance limit. This form provides MMS with the 
data necessary to make a decision and track deductions on royalty 
reports. Data reported on the form is also subject to subsequent audit 
and adjustment.
    The 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.
    Frequency: Annually.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: 26 lessees.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: 121 
hours.
    Through customer contact and analysis of historical data, we 
obtained more accurate estimates of the number of respondents and the 
time required to provide the information requested, and we adjusted the 
burden hours accordingly. We also included 30 CFR 206.158 (d)(2)(i) and 
206.177 (c)(2), which were not included in the previous renewal. We do 
not include in our estimates certain requirements performed in the 
normal course of business and considered usual and customary. The 
following chart shows the estimated burden hours by CFR section and 
paragraph:

                                   Respondents' Estimated Annual Burden Hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                              Burden       Annual       Annual
                30 CFR section                    Reporting requirement     hours per    number of      burden
                                                                             response    responses      hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                              Subpart B--Indian Oil
                                Sec.   206.54 Transportation allowances--general.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
206.54(b)(2)..................................  Upon request of a lessee,         4.25            1         4.25
                                                 MMS may approve a
                                                 transportation allowance
                                                 deduction in excess of
                                                 the limitation
                                                 prescribed by paragraph
                                                 (b)(1) of this section.
                                                 * * * An application for
                                                 exception (using Form
                                                 MMS-4393, Request to
                                                 Exceed Regulatory
                                                 Allowance Limitation)
                                                 shall contain all
                                                 relevant and supporting
                                                 documentation necessary
                                                 for MMS to make a
                                                 determination. * * *
-----------------------------------------------

[[Page 8616]]

 
                                             Subpart C--Federal Oil
                 Sec.   206.109 When may I take a transportation allowance in determining value?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
206.109(c)(2).................................  (c) Limits on                     4.25            1         4.25
                                                 transportation
                                                 allowances. * * *.
                                                (2) You may ask MMS to
                                                 approve a transportation
                                                 allowance in excess of
                                                 the limitation in
                                                 paragraph (c)(1) of this
                                                 section. * * * Your
                                                 application for
                                                 exception (using Form
                                                 MMS-4393, Request to
                                                 Exceed Regulatory
                                                 Allowance Limitation)
                                                 must contain all
                                                 relevant and supporting
                                                 documentation for MMS to
                                                 make a determination. *
                                                 * *.
-----------------------------------------------
                                             Subpart D--Federal Gas
                               Sec.   206.156 Transportation allowances--general.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
206.156(c)(3).................................  Upon request of a lessee,         4.25            2          8.5
                                                 MMS may approve a
                                                 transportation allowance
                                                 deduction in excess of
                                                 the limitation
                                                 prescribed by paragraphs
                                                 (c)(1) and (c)(2) of
                                                 this section. * * * An
                                                 application for
                                                 exception (using Form
                                                 MMS-4393, Request to
                                                 Exceed Regulatory
                                                 Allowance Limitation)
                                                 shall contain all
                                                 relevant and supporting
                                                 documentation necessary
                                                 for MMS to make a
                                                 determination. * * *
-----------------------------------------------
                                             Subpart D--Federal Gas
                                 Sec.   206.158 Processing allowances--general.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
206.158(c)(3).................................  Upon request of a lessee,         4.25           19        80.75
                                                 MMS may approve a
                                                 processing allowance in
                                                 excess of the limitation
                                                 prescribed by paragraph
                                                 (c)(2) of this section.
                                                 * * * An application for
                                                 exception (using Form
                                                 MMS-4393, Request to
                                                 Exceed Regulatory
                                                 Allowance Limitation)
                                                 shall contain all
                                                 relevant and supporting
                                                 documentation for MMS to
                                                 make a determination. *
                                                 * *
-----------------------------------------------
206.158(d)(2)(i)..............................  If the lessee incurs               9.5            2           19
                                                 extraordinary costs for
                                                 processing gas
                                                 production from a gas
                                                 production operation, it
                                                 may apply to MMS for an
                                                 allowance for those
                                                 costs which shall be in
                                                 addition to any other
                                                 processing allowance. *
                                                 * *.
-----------------------------------------------
                                              Subpart E--Indian Gas
            Sec.   206.177 What general requirements regarding transportation allowances apply to me?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
206.177(c)(2) and (c)(3)......................  (c)(2)If you ask MMS, MMS         4.25            1         4.25
                                                 may approve a
                                                 transportation allowance
                                                 deduction in excess of
                                                 the limitations in
                                                 paragraph (c)(1) of this
                                                 section. * * *
                                                (c)(3) Your application
                                                 for exception (using
                                                 Form MMS-4393, Request
                                                 to Exceed Regulatory
                                                 Allowance Limitation)
                                                 must contain all
                                                 relevant and supporting
                                                 documentation necessary
                                                 for MMS to make a
                                                 determination.
-----------------------------------------------
    Total Burden..............................  .........................  ...........           26          121
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 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 August 18, 2004 (69 FR 51321), 
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 the 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 March 24, 2005.

[[Page 8617]]

    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. Upon request, we will withhold an individual respondent's 
home address from the public record, as 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 your request 
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: Arlene Bajusz (202) 
208-7744.

    Dated: December 9, 2004.
Janice Bigelow,
Acting Associate Director for Minerals Revenue Management.
[FR Doc. 05-3239 Filed 2-18-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P