[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 197 (Friday, October 15, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57451-57452]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-22488]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request; Mine Mapping and Records of Opening, Closing, 
and Reopening of Mines

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting this Mine Safety 
and Health Administration (MSHA)-sponsored information collection 
request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review 
and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(PRA). Public comments on the ICR are invited.

DATES: The OMB will consider all written comments that agency receives 
on or before November 15, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
    Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collection of information 
is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the 
Department, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) if the information will be processed and used in a timely 
manner; (3) the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the burden and 
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (4) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (5) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Crystal Rennie by telephone at 202-
693-0456 or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This information collection protects miners 
by assuring that up-to-date, accurate mine maps contain the information 
needed to clarify the best alternatives for action during an emergency 
operation. Also, coal mine operators routinely use maps to create safe 
and effective development plans.
    Mine maps are schematic depictions of critical mine infrastructure, 
such as water, power, transportation, ventilation, and communication 
systems. Using accurate, up-to-date maps during a disaster, mine 
emergency personnel can locate refuges for miners and identify sites of 
explosion potential; they can know where stationary equipment was 
placed, where ground was secured, and where they can best begin a 
rescue operation. During a disaster, maps can be crucial to the safety 
of the emergency personnel who must enter a mine to begin a search for 
survivors. Mine maps may describe the current status of an operating 
mine or provide crucial information about a long-closed mine that is 
being reopened.
    Coal mine operators use map information to develop safe and 
effective plans and to help determine hazards before beginning work in 
areas, such as abandoned underground mines or the worked-out and 
inaccessible areas of an active underground or surface mine. Abandoned 
mines or inaccessible areas of active mines may have water inundation 
potentials and explosive levels of methane or lethal gases. If an 
operator, unaware of the hazards, were to mine into such an area, 
miners could be killed or seriously injured. For additional substantive 
information about this ICR, see the related notice published in the 
Federal Register on July 21, 2021 (86 FR 38504).
    This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency 
generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and 
the public is generally not required to respond to an information 
collection, unless the OMB approves it and displays a currently valid 
OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any other provisions 
of law, no person shall generally be subject to penalty for failing to 
comply with a collection of information that does not display a valid 
OMB Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 1320.6.
    DOL seeks PRA authorization for this information collection for 
three (3) years. OMB authorization for an ICR cannot be for more than 
three (3) years without renewal. The DOL notes that information 
collection requirements submitted to the OMB for existing ICRs receive 
a month-to-month extension while they undergo review.
    Agency: DOL-MSHA.
    Title of Collection: Mine Mapping and Records of Opening, Closing, 
and Reopening of Mines.
    OMB Control Number: 1219-0120.
    Affected Public: Private Sector: Businesses or other for-profits.
    Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 580.
    Total Estimated Number of Responses: 1,191.

[[Page 57452]]

    Total Estimated Annual Time Burden: 6,274 hours.
    Total Estimated Annual Other Costs Burden: $3,204,898.
    Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D).

Crystal Rennie,
Senior PRA Analyst.
[FR Doc. 2021-22488 Filed 10-14-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-43-P