[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 102 (Friday, May 25, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31377-31378]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-12827]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of the Secretary

[Docket No. ONRR-2012-0003]


U.S. Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative Tribal 
Consultation

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Interior (Interior) announces a tribal 
consultation meeting regarding the United States Extractive Industries 
Transparency Initiative, to be held at the National Congress of 
American Indians mid-year Conference June 17-20, 2012, in Lincoln, 
Nebraska. In addition to this meeting, Interior officials welcome the 
opportunity to speak and meet in person with interested tribes in the 
months of June and July regarding this initiative. Interior also 
invites tribes to participate in upcoming USEITI public listening 
sessions and workshops in May and June.

DATES: Submit comments on the stakeholder assessment by June 29, 2012. 
We will hold listening sessions and workshops on the following dates:
     Anchorage, Alaska Public Listening Session, 6 p.m.-8 p.m. 
ADT, May 30, 2012
     Public Webinar, 1 p.m.-3 p.m. EDT, June 1, 2012
     Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Public Listening Session, 1 p.m.-
3 p.m. EDT, June 11, 2012

[[Page 31378]]

     New Orleans, Louisiana Public Listening Session, 1 p.m.-3 
p.m. CDT, June 12, 2012
     Washington, DC Public Workshop, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. EDT, June 
22, 2012

ADDRESSES: Submit comments to: Saman Hussain at telephone number 
202.254.5508, or by email at [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Saman Hussain at telephone number 
202.254.5508, or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 2011, President Obama announced the 
United States' commitment to the global Extractive Industries 
Transparency Initiative (EITI). Given the significant role that the 
Department of the Interior plays in collecting revenue for resource 
extraction on federal lands, the President named Secretary Ken Salazar 
as the senior U.S. official responsible for implementing of the United 
States Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (USEITI). 
Currently, the Federal Government collects revenues on behalf of some 
tribes and individual allottees (amounting to $538 million in the 
Federal Fiscal Year (ending on September 30, 2011) and then distributes 
the revenues through others.
    In February, we sent a Dear Tribal Leader letter, inviting tribes 
to provide initial comment on USEITI and formation of the Multi-
Stakeholder Group responsible for overseeing its implementation. Later 
that month, we also published a notice in the Federal Register seeking 
public comment on formation of a multi-stakeholder group to implement 
USEITI (74 FR 11151). In that notice, we stated that we would hold a 
series of public listening sessions to provide additional opportunities 
for public comment. In March, we held listening sessions in St. Louis, 
Missouri; Denver, Colorado; Houston, Texas; and Washington, DC. The 
Consensus Building Institute (CBI), an independent third-party 
facilitator, analyzed the input from these four public listening 
sessions, interviews with potential stakeholders, and written comments 
that we received. This input has formed the basis of CBI's independent 
stakeholder assessment and findings regarding options for establishing 
the U.S. Multi-Stakeholder Group, which will be responsible for 
implementing USEITI.
    The CBI stakeholder assessment is available online at www.doi.gov/EITI. Alternatively, you may request a copy of the assessment from 
Saman Hussain whose contact information is listed above in this Notice. 
We encourage tribes to participate in the public comment period through 
June 29, 2012, to provide feedback on the stakeholder assessment and 
recommended options for establishing the U.S. Multi-Stakeholder Group. 
During the public comment period, five public listening sessions, a 
public webinar, a public workshop, and a tribal consultation session 
will be held. Details on participating in the webinar will be available 
from Saman Hussain and online at www.doi.gov/EITI.
    For further information on EITI, please visit the USEITI Web page 
at http://www.doi.gov/EITI.

    Dated: May 21, 2012.
Amy Holley,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Policy, Management and Budget.
[FR Doc. 2012-12827 Filed 5-24-12; 8:45 am]
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