[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 133 (Wednesday, July 12, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39339-39343]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-10883]


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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 1010-0139).

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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 parts 210 and 216. This 
notice also provides the public a second opportunity to comment on the 
paperwork burden of these regulatory requirements. The new title for 
this ICR is ``30 CFR Part 210--Forms and Reports and Part 216--
Production Accounting.'' This ICR uses Forms MMS-4054, Oil and Gas 
Operations Report, and MMS-4058, Production Allocation Schedule Report.

DATES: Submit written comments on or before August 11, 2006.

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 1010-0139).
    Please also send a copy of your comments to MMS via e-mail 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. If you do not receive a 
confirmation that we have received your e-mail, contact Ms. Gebhardt at 
(303) 231-3211.
    You may also mail 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 or wish to hand-deliver 
your comments, our courier address is Building 85, Room A-614, Denver 
Federal Center, West 6th Ave. and Kipling Blvd., Denver, Colorado 
80225.

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, at no cost, a copy of the ICR 
and associated forms sent to OMB, or regulations that require the 
subject collection of information.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: 30 CFR Part 210--Forms and Reports and Part 216--Production 
Accounting.
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0139.
    Bureau Form Number: Forms MMS-4054 and MMS-4058.
    Abstract: The Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior is 
responsible for collecting royalties from lessees who produce minerals 
from leased Federal and Indian lands. The Secretary is required by 
various laws to manage mineral resources production on Federal and 
Indian lands, collect the royalties due, and distribute the funds in 
accordance with those laws.
    The Secretary also has a 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 trust responsibility for Indian lands.
    When a company or an individual enters into a lease to explore, 
develop, produce, and dispose of minerals from

[[Page 39340]]

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 ensure that the royalties are 
accurately valued and appropriately paid.
    The MMS financial accounting system is an integrated computer 
system that includes production reports submitted by lease/agreement 
operators and is designed to track minerals produced from Federal and 
Indian lands from the point of production to the point of disposition, 
or royalty determination, and/or point of sale. The financial 
accounting system also includes payment and sales volumes and values, 
as reported by payors. The production and royalty volumes are compared 
to verify that proper royalties are received for the minerals produced.
    The production reports provide MMS with ongoing information on 
lease, unit, or communitization agreement (lease/agreement) and 
facility production, sales volumes, and inventories. The reports 
summarize all operations on a lease/agreement or facility during a 
reporting period. They identify production by the American Petroleum 
Institute well number and sales by product. Data collected are used as 
a method of cross-checking reported production with reported sales. 
Failure to collect this information will prevent MMS from ensuring that 
all royalties owed on lease production are accurately valued and 
appropriately paid. Additionally, the data is shared electronically 
with the Bureau of Land Management, MMS's Offshore Minerals Management, 
Bureau of Indian Affairs, and tribal and state governments so they can 
perform their lease management responsibilities. The requirement to 
report accurately and timely is mandatory.

Form MMS-4054, Oil and Gas Operations Report (OGOR)

    This three-part form, submitted monthly, identifies all oil and gas 
lease production and dispositions. The form is used for all production 
reporting for Outer Continental Shelf, Federal, and Indian lands. 
Monthly production information is compared with monthly sales and 
royalty data submitted on Form MMS-2014, Report of Sales and Royalty 
Remittance (OMB Control Number 1010-0140, expires October 31, 2006), to 
ensure proper royalties are paid on the oil and gas production reported 
to MMS. To modify previously submitted reports, the operator has the 
option of modifying the reporting line (delete/add by detail line) or 
replacing (overlaying) the previous report. The MMS uses the 
information from Parts A, B, and C of the OGOR to track all oil and gas 
from the point of production to the point of first sale or other 
disposition.
    OGOR Part A--Well Production. All operators submit Part A for each 
lease or agreement with active wells until such wells are abandoned and 
inventories are disposed. Each line identifies a well/producing 
interval combination showing well status; days on production; volumes 
of oil, gas, and water produced; and any volumes injected during the 
report month.
    OGOR Part B--Product Disposition. For any month with production 
volumes, operators submit Part B to identify the sales, transfers, and 
lease use of production reported on Part A. A separate line for each 
disposition shows: (1) The volume of oil, gas, or water; (2) the sales 
meter or other meter identifier; (3) the gas plant for instances where 
gas was processed prior to royalty determination; and (4) the quality 
of production sold.
    OGOR Part C--Product Inventory. The lease operators who store their 
production before selling it must submit Part C. Separate lines for 
each product identify the storage facility; sales meter if applicable; 
quality of production sold; beginning and ending storage inventory; 
volume of sales; and volumes of other gains and losses to inventory.

Form MMS-4058, Production Allocation Schedule Report (PASR)

    This form is submitted monthly by operators of the facilities and 
measurement points where production from an offshore lease or metering 
point is commingled with production from other sources before it is 
measured for royalty determination.
    Each line identifies a lease or metering point and allocated sales 
or transferred volumes. Space is provided on each detail line for the 
operator's property name (area/block), and a column is provided to 
identify the product that was injected into the pipeline system. To 
modify previously submitted reports, the operator has the option of 
modifying (delete/add by detail line) or replacing (overlaying) the 
previous report. The MMS uses the data to determine whether sales 
reported by the lessee are reasonable.

Applicable Citations

    Applicable citations of the laws pertaining to mineral leases on 
Federal and Indian lands include:
    1. 25 U.S.C. 396d (Chapter 12--Lease, Sale or Surrender of Allotted 
or Unallotted Lands);
    2. 25 U.S.C. 2103 (Indian Mineral Development Act of 1982);
    3. Public Law 97-451--Jan. 12, 1983 (Federal Oil and Gas Royalty 
Management Act of 1982 [FOGRMA]);
    4. Public Law 104-185--Aug. 13, 1996 (Federal Oil and Gas Royalty 
Simplification and Fairness Act of 1996 [RSFA]), as corrected by Public 
Law 104--200-Sept. 22, 1996);
    5. The Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 1923); and
    6. The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1353).
    Public laws pertaining to mineral royalties are located on our Web 
site at http://www.mrm.mms.gov/Laws_R_D/PublicLawsAMR.htm. 
    The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) citations we are covering in 
this ICR are 30 CFR parts 210 and 216.

OMB Approval

    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. Proprietary information submitted is 
protected, and there are no questions of a sensitive nature included in 
this information collection.
    Frequency: Monthly and on occasion.
    Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: 2,500 oil and gas 
operators.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: 
76,631 hours.
    We are revising this ICR to include reporting requirements that 
were overlooked in the previous renewal (Sec. Sec.  216.2 and 216.30), 
and we have adjusted the burden hours accordingly. These reporting 
requirements are considered rare and/or unusual circumstances.
    The following chart details the estimated burden hours by CFR 
section and paragraph. In calculating the burden, we assume that 
respondents perform certain requirements in the normal course of their 
business activities. Therefore, we consider these usual and customary, 
and took that into account in estimating the burden.

[[Page 39341]]



                                                       Respondents' Estimated Annual Burden Hours
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                                                                                                                         Annual number    Annual burden
         30 CFR parts 210 and 216                Reporting requirement              Burden hours per  response            of responses        hours
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                                                             30 CFR--210--Forms and Reports
                                                              Subpart A--General Provisions
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210.20(a).................................  Sec.   210.20 When is           .25 hour (Electronic).....................          294,000           73,500
                                             electronic reporting           .25 hour (Manual).........................            6,000            1,500
                                             required?
                                            (a) You must submit Forms * *
                                             * and MMS-4054 to MMS
                                             electronically..
                                            You must begin reporting
                                             electronically according to
                                             the following timetable * * *.
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210.21(c)(1)..............................  Sec.   210.21 How do you        Burden covered under Sec.   210.20(a).
                                             report electronically?.
                                            (c) Before you may begin
                                             reporting electronically: (1)
                                             You must submit an electronic
                                             sample of your report for MMS
                                             approval * * *.
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                                                              30 CFR 210--Forms and Reports
                                                      Subpart B--Oil, Gas, and OCS Sulfur--General
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210.50....................................  Sec.   210.50 Required          Burden covered under Sec.   210.20(a).
                                             recordkeeping.
                                            Information required by the
                                             MMS shall be filed using the
                                             forms prescribed in this
                                             subpart * * * Records may be
                                             maintained in * * * or other
                                             recorded media that is easily
                                             reproducible and readable.
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                                                            30 CFR 216--Production Accounting
                                                              Subpart A--General Provisions
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216.2.....................................  Sec.   216.2 Scope............  Burden covered under Sec.  Sec.   210.20(a); 216.56(a), (b), and (c); and
                                            * * * Reporters are required     216.57.
                                             to submit certain production
                                             reports to MMS as set forth
                                             in this part.
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216.11....................................  Sec.   216.11 Electronic        Burden covered under Sec.   210.20(a).
                                             reporting.
                                            You must submit your Oil and
                                             Gas Operations Report, Form
                                             MMS-4054, in accordance with
                                             electronic reporting
                                             requirements in 30 CFR part
                                             210.
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216.16(a).................................  Sec.   216.16 Where to report
                                            (a) All reporting forms * * *
                                             should be mailed to the
                                             Minerals Management Service,
                                             Minerals Revenue Management *
                                             * *.
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216.21....................................  Sec.   216.21 General
                                             obligations of the reporter
                                            The reporter shall submit
                                             accurately, completely, and
                                             timely * * * all information
                                             forms and other information
                                             required by MMS * * *.
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216.40(d).................................  Sec.   216.40 Assessments for
                                             incorrect or late reports and
                                             failure to report
                                            (d) * * * The reporter shall
                                             have the burden of proving
                                             that a reporting problem was
                                             unavoidable.
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216.30....................................  Sec.   216.30 Special forms     1.........................................                1                1
                                             and reports.
                                            When special forms and reports
                                             * * * are necessary * * *
                                             Such requests will be made in
                                             conformity with the
                                             requirements of the Paperwork
                                             Reduction Act of 1995, and
                                             are expected to involve less
                                             than 10 respondents annually.
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[[Page 39342]]

 
                                                            30 CFR 216--Production Accounting
                                                             Subpart B--Oil and Gas, General
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
216.53(a), (b), and (c)...................  Sec.   216.53 Oil and Gas       Burden covered under Sec.   210.20(a).
                                             Operations Report
                                            (a) You must file an Oil and
                                             Gas Operations Report, Form
                                             MMS-4054 * * *..
                                            (b) You must submit a Form MMS-
                                             4054 for each well for each
                                             calendar month * * *..
                                            (c) MMS must receive your
                                             completed Form MMS-4054 * *
                                             *..
                                            (1) Electronically * * *......
                                            (2) Other than electronically
                                             * * *..
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216.56(a), (b), and (c)...................  Sec.   216.56 Production        .1167 hour (Electronic)...................            7,280              850
                                             Allocation Schedule Report.    .25 hour (Manual).........................            3,120              780
                                            (a) Any operator of an
                                             offshore Facility Measurement
                                             Point * * * must file a
                                             Production Allocation
                                             Schedule Report (Form MMS-
                                             4058)* * *.
                                            (b) You must submit a
                                             Production Allocation
                                             Schedule Report, Form MMS-
                                             4058, for each calendar month
                                             * * *.
                                            (c) MMS must receive your Form
                                             MMS-4058 * * *..
                                            (1) Electronically * * *......
                                            (2) Other than electronically
                                             * * *..
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
216.57....................................  216.57 Stripper royalty rate    Burden covered under OMB Control Number 1010-0090 (expires October 31,
                                             reduction notification.         2007).
                                            * * * Operators who have been
                                             granted a reduced royalty
                                             rate(s) * * * must submit a
                                             Stripper Royalty Rate
                                             Reduction Notification (Form
                                             MMS-4377) to MMS * * *.
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    Total.................................  ..............................  ..........................................          310,401           76,631
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-hour'' Cost 
Burden: Reporters require access to the Internet through a subscription 
to an Internet provider service. The annual subscription is estimated 
at $240 per reporter. For 2,500 reporters, the annual aggregate total 
is $600,000 (2,500 x $240).
    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 September 14, 2005 (70 FR 54403), 
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. The 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 
August 11, 2006.
    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: Arlene Bajusz, (202) 
208-7744.


[[Page 39343]]


    Dated: March 15, 2006.
Richard Adamski,
Acting Associate Director for Minerals Revenue Management.
[FR Doc. E6-10883 Filed 7-11-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P