[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 194 (Tuesday, October 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63144-63145]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-22013]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Mine Safety and Health Administration

[OMB Control No. 1219-0015]


Proposed Extension of Information Collection; Refuse Piles and 
Impoundment Structures, Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements

AGENCY: Mine Safety and Health Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Request for public comments.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to 
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance 
consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies 
with an opportunity to comment on proposed collections of information 
in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This program 
helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired 
format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, 
collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of 
collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. 
Currently, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is 
soliciting comments on the information collection for Refuse Piles and 
Impoundment Structures, Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements.

DATES: All comments must be received on or before December 7, 2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comment as follows. Please note that late, 
untimely filed comments will not be considered.
    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments in the following 
way:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments for docket number MSHA-
2020-0027.

[[Page 63145]]

Comments submitted electronically, including attachments, to https://www.regulations.gov will be posted to the docket, with no changes. 
Because your comment will be made public, you are responsible for 
ensuring that your comment does not include any confidential 
information that you or a third party may not wish to be posted, such 
as your or anyone else's Social Security number or confidential 
business information.
     If you want to submit a comment with confidential 
information that you do not wish to be made available to the public, 
submit the comment as a written/paper submission.
    Written/Paper Submissions: Submit written/paper submissions in the 
following way:
     Mail/Hand Delivery: Mail or visit DOL-MSHA, Office of 
Standards, Regulations, and Variances, 201 12th Street South, Suite 
4E401, Arlington, VA 22202-5452.
     MSHA will post your comment as well as any attachments, 
except for information submitted and marked as confidential, in the 
docket at https://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Roslyn Fontaine, Deputy Director, 
Office of Standards, Regulations, and Variances, MSHA, at 
[email protected] (email); (202) 693-9440 (voice); 
or (202) 693-9441 (facsimile).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    Section 103(h) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 
(Mine Act), 30 U.S.C. 813(h), authorizes MSHA to collect information 
necessary to carry out its duty in protecting the safety and health of 
miners. Further, section 101(a) of the Mine Act, 30 U.S.C. 811, 
authorizes the Secretary of Labor to develop, promulgate, and revise as 
may be appropriate, improved mandatory health or safety standards for 
the protection of life and prevention of injuries in coal or other 
mines.
    Title 30 CFR part 77, subpart C, sets forth standards for surface 
installations to prevent accidents and injuries to miners. More 
specifically, section 77.215 addresses refuse piles and section 77.216 
addresses impoundments. Refuse piles are deposits of coal mine waste 
(other than overburden or spoil) that are removed during mining 
operations or separated from mined coal and deposited on the surface. 
Impoundments are structures that can impound water, sediment, or slurry 
or any combination of materials. The failure of these structures can 
have a devastating effect on mine employees, communities, and nearby 
areas. To avoid or minimize such failures, MSHA has promulgated 
standards for the design, construction, and maintenance of these 
structures; for annual certifications; for certification for hazardous 
refuse piles; for the frequency of inspections; and the methods of 
abandonment for impoundments and impounding structures.

II. Desired Focus of Comments

    MSHA is soliciting comments concerning the proposed information 
collection related to Refuse Piles and Impoundment Structures, 
Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements. MSHA is particularly 
interested in comments that:
     Evaluate whether the collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, 
including whether the information has practical utility;
     Evaluate the accuracy of MSHA's estimate of the burden of 
the collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
     Suggest methods to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and
     Minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses.
    Background documents related to this information collection request 
are available at https://regulations.gov and in DOL-MSHA located at 201 
12th Street South, Suite 4E401, Arlington, VA 22202-5452. Questions 
about the information collection requirements may be directed to the 
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 
notice from the previous collection of information.

III. Current Actions

    This information collection request concerns provisions for Refuse 
Piles and Impoundment Structures, Recordkeeping and Reporting 
Requirements. MSHA has updated the data with respect to the number of 
respondents, responses, burden hours, and burden costs supporting this 
information collection request from the previous information collection 
request.
    Type of Review: Extension, without change, of a currently approved 
collection.
    Agency: Mine Safety and Health Administration.
    OMB Number: 1219-0015.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 548.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Number of Responses: 28,047.
    Annual Burden Hours: 68,692 hours.
    Annual Respondent or Recordkeeper Cost: $1,449,204.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized in 
the request for Office of Management and Budget approval of the 
proposed information collection request; they will become a matter of 
public record and will be available at https://www.reginfo.gov.

Roslyn B. Fontaine,
Certifying Officer.
[FR Doc. 2020-22013 Filed 10-5-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-43-P