[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 172 (Wednesday, September 5, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 54491-54493]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-21857]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 944

[SATS No. UT-049-FOR; Docket ID OSM-2012-0015]


Utah Regulatory Program

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public 
hearing on proposed amendment.

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SUMMARY: We are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Utah 
regulatory program (hereinafter, the ``Utah program'') under the 
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (``SMCRA'' or ``the 
Act''). Utah proposes revisions and additions of rules pertaining to 
ownership and control. Utah intends to revise its program to be 
consistent with the corresponding Federal regulations.
    This document gives the times and locations that the Utah program 
and proposed amendment to that program are available for your 
inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written 
comments on the amendment, and the procedures that we will follow for 
the public hearing, if one is requested.

DATES: We will accept written comments on this amendment until 4 p.m., 
m.d.t. October 5, 2012. If requested, we will hold a public hearing on 
the amendment on October 1, 2012. We will accept requests to speak 
until 4 p.m., m.d.t. on September 20, 2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following two 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. This 
proposed rule has been assigned Docket ID: OSM-2012-0015. If you would 
like to submit comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal, go to 
www.regulations.gov and do the following. Click in the SEARCH box and 
type in Docket ID ``OSM-2012-0015'' then click the ``Search'' button. 
The next screen will display the Docket Search Results for the 
rulemaking. You may comment from this screen by clicking the ``Comment 
Now!'' button. If you click on ``OSM-2012-0015,'' you can view the 
proposed rule as well as supporting material and any comments submitted 
by others.
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Kenneth Walker, Chief, Denver 
Field Division, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 
1999 Broadway, Suite 3320, Denver, CO 80202.
    For detailed instructions on submitting comments and additional 
information on the rulemaking process, see the ``III. Public Comment 
Procedures'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
    In addition to viewing the docket and obtaining copies of documents 
at www.regulations.gov, you may review copies of the Utah program, this 
amendment, a listing of any public hearings, and all written comments 
received in response to this document at the addresses listed below 
during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding 
holidays. You may also receive one free copy of the amendment by 
contacting OSM's Denver Office.

Kenneth Walker, Chief, Denver Field Division, Office of Surface Mining 
Reclamation and Enforcement, 1999 Broadway, Suite 3320, Denver, CO 
80202, (303) 293-5012, [email protected].
John R. Baza, Director, Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining, 1594 West 
North Temple, Suite 1210, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 538-5334, 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth Walker, Telephone: (303) 293-
5012, Internet: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

[[Page 54492]]

Table of Contents

I. Background on the Utah Program
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
III. Public Comment Procedures
IV. Procedural Determinations

I. Background on the Utah Program

    Section 503(a) of the Act permits a State to assume primacy for the 
regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations on non-
Federal and non-Indian lands within its borders by demonstrating that 
its State program includes, among other things, ``a State law which 
provides for the regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation 
operations in accordance with the requirements of this Act * * *; and 
rules and regulations consistent with regulations issued by the 
Secretary pursuant to this Act.'' See 30 U.S.C. 1253(a)(1) and (7). On 
the basis of these criteria, the Secretary of the Interior 
conditionally approved the Utah program on January 21, 1981. You can 
find background information on the Utah program, including the 
Secretary's findings, the disposition of comments, and the conditions 
of approval of the Utah program in the January 21, 1981, Federal 
Register (46 FR 5899). You can also find later actions concerning 
Utah's program and program amendments at 30 CFR 944.15 and 944.30.

II. Description of the Proposed Amendment

    By letter dated June 25, 2012, Utah sent us a proposed amendment to 
its program (Administrative Record Document ID No. OSM-2012-0015-0002) 
under SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.). Utah sent the amendment in 
response to our October 2, 2009, letter (Administrative Record Document 
ID No. OSM-2012-0015-0003) sent in accordance with 30 CFR 732.17(c). 
The full text of the program amendment is available for you to read at 
the locations listed above under ADDRESSES.
    The provisions of the Utah Administrative Code that Utah proposes 
to revise, delete and/or add are: R645-100-200, Definitions of 
Applicant/Violator System (AVS); Control or Controller; Knowingly; 
Knowing or Knowingly; Owned or Controlled; Own, Owner, or Ownership; 
Transfer, Assignment, or Sale of Permit Rights; Violation; Violation 
Notice; Willful or Willfully; Willful Violation; R645-300-132 through -
132.520.3, Review of compliance and entry of information into the AVS; 
R645-300-148.100, Updating personnel info; R645-300-161, Review 
procedures and preliminary findings on improvidently issued permits; 
R645-300-162 and -162.300 through -162.320, Review criteria for 
improvidently issued permits; R645-300-164 through -164.200, Rescission 
procedures for improvidently issued permits; R645-300-171 through -173, 
Certifying and updating existing permit application information; R645-
300-180 through -185, Post permit issuance requirements for the 
Division and other actions based on ownership, control, and violation 
information; R645-301-111.400, Applicant submittal requirements; R645-
301-111.500 Division AVS data entry requirements; R645-301-112 through 
-112.420, Identification of interests; R645-301-113.100, -113.120, -
113.300, and -113.340 through -113.360, Violation information required 
in a permit application; R645-302-240 through -242, -245.210, and -
245.300, Permit application requirements for auger mining and remining 
operations; R645-301-245.410 through -245.420, auger mining and 
remining backfilling and grading requirements; R645-303-310, Transfer, 
assignment, or sale of permit rights; R645-400-319, Cessation order 
notification procedures; R645-403-100 through -133, Criminal penalties 
and civil actions.

III. Public Comment Procedures

    Under the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), we are seeking your 
comments on whether the amendment satisfies the applicable program 
approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If we approve the amendment, it 
will become part of the Utah program.

Electronic or Written Comments

    If you submit written comments, they should be specific, confined 
to issues pertinent to the proposed regulations, and explain the reason 
for any recommended change(s). We appreciate any and all comments, but 
those most useful and likely to influence decisions on the final 
regulations will be those that either involve personal experience or 
include citations to and analyses of SMCRA, its legislative history, 
its implementing regulations, case law, other pertinent Tribal or 
Federal laws or regulations, technical literature, or other relevant 
publications.
    We cannot ensure that comments received after the close of the 
comment period (see DATES) or sent to an address other than those 
listed above (see ADDRESSES) will be included in the docket for this 
rulemaking and considered.

Public Availability of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at anytime. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

Public Hearing

    If you wish to speak at the public hearing, contact the person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4 p.m., m.d.t. on 
September 20, 2012. If you are disabled and need reasonable 
accommodations to attend a public hearing, contact the person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. We will arrange the location and 
time of the hearing with those persons requesting the hearing. If no 
one requests an opportunity to speak, we will not hold the hearing.
    To assist the transcriber and ensure an accurate record, we 
request, if possible, that each person who speaks at a public hearing 
provide us with a written copy of his or her comments. The public 
hearing will continue on the specified date until everyone scheduled to 
speak has been given an opportunity to be heard. If you are in the 
audience and have not been scheduled to speak and wish to do so, you 
will be allowed to speak after those who have been scheduled. We will 
end the hearing after everyone scheduled to speak and others present in 
the audience who wish to speak, have been heard.

Public Meeting

    If only one person requests an opportunity to speak, we may hold a 
public meeting rather than a public hearing. If you wish to meet with 
us to discuss the amendment, please request a meeting by contacting the 
person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All such meetings 
are open to the public and, if possible, we will post notices of 
meetings at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. We will make a 
written summary of each meeting a part of the administrative record.

IV. Procedural Determinations

Executive Order 12866--Regulatory Planning and Review

    This rule is exempted from review by the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and 
Review).

Other Laws and Executive Orders Affecting Rulemaking

    When a State submits a program amendment to OSM for review, our 
regulations at 30 CFR 732.17(h) require

[[Page 54493]]

us to publish a notice in the Federal Register indicating receipt of 
the proposed amendment, its text or a summary of its terms, and an 
opportunity for public comment. We conclude our review of the proposed 
amendment after the close of the public comment period and determine 
whether the amendment should be approved, approved in part, or not 
approved. At that time, we will also make the determinations and 
certifications required by the various laws and executive orders 
governing the rulemaking process and include them in the final rule.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 944

    Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

    Dated: July 2, 2012.
Billie E. Clark,
Acting Director, Western Region.
[FR Doc. 2012-21857 Filed 9-4-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-P