[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 201 (Wednesday, October 19, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63519-63522]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-22678]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-HQ-NWRS-2022-N051; FXRS12610900000-223-FF09R24000; OMB Control 
Number 1018-0162]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Non-Federal 
Oil and Gas Operations on National Wildlife Refuge System Lands

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, 
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing to revise 
an existing collection of information.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
November 18, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments on the information collection request 
(ICR) before the close of the comment period listed under DATES to 
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under Review--Open for 
Public Comments'' or by using the search function. Please provide a 
copy of your comments to the Service Information Collection Clearance 
Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 5275 Leesburg Pike, MS: PRB 
(JAO/3W), Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 (mail); or by email to 
[email protected]. Please reference OMB Control Number 1018-0162 in the 
subject line of your comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information 
about this ICR, contact Madonna L. Baucum, Service Information 
Collection Clearance Officer, by email at [email protected], or by 
telephone at (703) 358-2503. Individuals in the United States who are 
deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 
711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay 
services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay 
services offered within their country to make international calls to 
the point-of-contact in the United States. You may also view the ICR at 
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act (PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and its implementing regulations at 5 
CFR 1320.8(d)(1), all information collections require approval under 
the PRA. We may not conduct or sponsor and you are not required to 
respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently 
valid OMB control number.
    On January 27, 2022, we published in the Federal Register (87 FR 
4275) a notice of our intent to request that OMB approve our proposed 
revision to this information collection. In that notice, we solicited 
comments for 60 days, ending on March 28, 2022. In an effort to 
increase public awareness of, and participation in, our public 
commenting processes associated with information collection requests, 
the Service also published the Federal Register notice on https://www.regulations.gov (Docket FWS-HQ-NWRS-2021-0155) to provide the 
public with an additional method to submit comments (in addition to the 
typical [email protected] email and U.S. mail submission methods). We 
received the following four comments in response to this notice:
    Comment 1: Email from Jean Public, received 01/30/2022:
    The commenter states it is unnecessary to lease oil and gas 
resources on public lands.
    Agency Response to Comment 1: The commenter did not address the 
information collection requirements. No response required.
    Comment 2: Anonymous electronic comment via https://www.regulations.gov (FWS-HQ-NWRS-2021-0155-0002), received on 02/02/
2022:
    The commenter recommends that no permits be issued.
    Agency Response to Comment 2: The commenter did not address the 
information collection requirements. No response required.
    Comment 3: Anonymous electronic comment via https://www.regulations.gov (FWS-HQ-NWRS-2021-0155-0003), received on 03/01/
2022:
    The commenter recommends stopping all oil and gas production on 
public lands.
    Agency Response to Comment 3: The commenter did not address the 
information collection requirements. No response required.
    Comment 4: Anonymous electronic comment via https://www.regulations.gov (FWS-HQ-NWRS-2021-0155-0004), received on 03/23/
2022:
    The commenter recommends banning fossil fuel production on public 
lands.
    Agency Response to Comment 4: The commenter did not address the 
information collection requirements. No response required.
    On June 1, 2022, we published a second Federal Register notice (87 
FR 33200), notifying the public of our intent to request that OMB 
approve this information collection. This notice solicited comments for 
an additional 60 days, ending on August 1, 2022. We also described 
additional revisions identified since the publication of the January 
27, 2022. The Service also published this Federal Register notice on 
https://www.regulations.gov (Docket FWS-HQ-NWRS-2022-0063), to provide 
the public with an additional method to submit comments (in addition to 
the typical [email protected] email and U.S. mail submission methods). 
We received the following four comments in response to this notice:
    Comment 5: Anonymous electronic comment via https://www.regulations.gov (FWS-HQ-NWRS-2022-0063-0002), received on 05/31/
2022:

[[Page 63520]]

    The commenter states that it is unnecessary to develop oil and gas 
resources on public lands.
    Agency Response to Comment 5: The commenter did not address the 
information collection requirements. No response required.
    Comment 6: Electronic comment via https://www.regulations.gov (FWS-
HQ-NWRS-2022-0063-0003) from Jean Public, received on 06/01/2022:
    The commenter opposes developing oil and gas resources on public 
lands.
    Agency Response to Comment 6: The commenter did not address the 
information collection requirements. No response required.
    Comment 7: Anonymous electronic comment via https://www.regulations.gov (FWS-HQ-NWRS-2022-0063-0004), received on 06/23/
2022.
    The commenter supports moving the information collection to an 
electronic format.
    Agency Response to Comment 7: With this submission, we are moving 
toward a format that allows users to submit information collection 
requirements via an electronic format (automation of FWS Form 3-2469 on 
the Service's ePermits platform).
    Comment 8: Anonymous electronic comment via https://www.regulations.gov (FWS-HQ-NWRS-2022-0063-0005), received on 06/27/
2022:
    The commenter recommends nationalizing the oil and gas industry.
    Agency Response to Comment 8: The commenter did not address the 
information collection requirements. No response required.
    As part of our continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent 
burdens, we are again inviting the public and other Federal agencies to 
comment on new, proposed, revised, and continuing collections of 
information. This helps us assess the impact of our information 
collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. It 
also helps the public understand our information collection 
requirements and provide the requested data in the desired format.
    We are especially interested in public comment addressing the 
following:
    (1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether or not the information will have practical utility;
    (2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection 
of information, including the validity of the methodology and 
assumptions used;
    (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    (4) How might the agency 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 response.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. 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 publicly available at any time. 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.
    Abstract: The authority of the Service to regulate non-Federal oil 
and gas operations on National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) lands is 
broadly derived from the Property Clause of the U.S. Constitution (art. 
IV, sec. 3), in carrying out the statutory mandates of the Secretary of 
the Interior, as delegated to the Service, to manage Federal lands and 
resources under the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act 
(NWRSAA), as amended by the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement 
Act (NWRSIA; 16 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.), and to specifically manage 
species within the NWRS under the provisions of numerous statutes, the 
most notable of which are the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA; 16 
U.S.C. 715 et seq.), the Endangered Species Act (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
seq.), and the Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956 (FWA; 15 U.S.C. 742f).
    The Service's regulations at 50 CFR part 29, subpart D provide for 
the continued exercise of non-Federal oil and gas rights while avoiding 
or minimizing unnecessary impacts to national wildlife refuge resources 
and uses. Other land management agencies have regulations that address 
oil and gas development, including the Department of the Interior's 
National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture's Forest Service. These agencies all require 
the submission of information similar to the information requested by 
the Service.
    The collection of information is necessary for the Service to 
properly balance the exercise of non-Federal oil and gas rights within 
national wildlife refuge boundaries with the Service's responsibility 
to protect wildlife and habitat, water quality and quantity, wildlife-
dependent recreational opportunities, and the health and safety of 
employees and visitors on NWRS lands.
    The information collected under 50 CFR part 29, subpart D 
identifies the owner and operator (the owner and operator can be the 
same) and details how the operator may access and develop oil and gas 
resources. It also identifies the steps the operator intends to take to 
minimize any adverse impacts of operations on refuge resources and 
uses. No information is submitted unless the operator wishes to conduct 
oil and gas operations.
    We use the information collected to (1) evaluate proposed 
operations; (2) ensure that all necessary mitigation measures are 
employed to protect national wildlife refuge resources and values; and 
(3) ensure compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, 
including the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.) and its regulations (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), and the NWRSAA, as 
amended by the NWRSIA, and to specifically manage species within the 
NWRS under the provisions of numerous statutes, the most notable of 
which are the MBTA, the ESA, the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (16 
U.S.C. 661 et seq.), and the FWA.

Proposed Revisions

Automation of Application Form via ePermits

    With this submission, we are proposing to automate FWS Form 3-2469 
in the Service's ePermits system, an automated permit application 
system that allows the agency to move towards a streamlined permitting 
process to reduce public burden. Public burden reduction is a priority 
for the Service; the Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife, and Parks; 
and senior leadership at the Department of the Interior. The intent of 
ePermits is to fully automate the permitting process to improve the 
customer experience and to reduce time burden on respondents. This 
system enhances the user experience by allowing users to enter data 
from any device that has internet access, including personal computers 
(PCs), tablets, and smartphones. It also provides the permit applicant 
with a link to pay associated permit application fees via the Pay.gov 
system.

[[Page 63521]]

Financial Assurances Costs

    With this submission, we will seek OMB approval of the costs 
associated with the financial assurances requirements as they are 
required per regulations contained in 50 CFR 29.103(b) and 50 CFR 
29.150. These costs were inadvertently overlooked with previous 
submissions for this collection of information, so at this time we are 
bringing this requirement into compliance with the PRA as an annual 
non-hour burden cost. The estimated annual non-hour cost burden 
associated with the required financial assurances is captured below 
under ``Total Estimated Annual Non-Hour Burden Cost.''

Proposed Changes to Application Form (FWS Form 3-2469)

    We propose several changes to the existing FWS Form 3-2469 to 
improve the user collection experience and our internal processing 
requirements:
    (1) Under the ``Type of Permit'' on page 1, we are adding these 
categories:
    a. ``New''--Used by operators applying for a new permit to operate 
where no existing Form 3-2469 permit exists;
    b. ``Renewal''--Used by operators with a currently approved permit 
to renew the operation without any substantial changes;
    c. ``Amendment''--Used by an operator with an existing Form 3-2469 
approved permit to amend their operations; and
    d. ``Extension''--Used by an operator with an existing Form 3-2469 
approved permit to request an extension to one of its conditions (e.g., 
extend the shut-in status of a well).
    (2) Under the ``Production Operations'' on page 1, we are adding 
these subcategories:
    a. ``Maintenance''--Used for maintenance actions (e.g., need to 
bring in a workover rig);
    b. ``Plugging''--Used with plugging and abandoning of a well; and
    c. ``Reclamation''--Used with all activities remove contaminated 
soils, equipment, pipe, etc., and restore the site to its original 
contours and vegetation.
    (3) Under the ``Contact Information'' in part 1 (on page 2), we 
propose to add two new questions:
    a. ``Tax Identification Number''; and
    b. ``Do you have operations on other refuges? If so, provide the 
names of those refuges.''
    (4) Administrative corrections:
    a. We corrected the control number in the ``Paperwork Reduction Act 
Statement''; and
    b. We updated the mail stop in the ``Estimated Burden Statement.''
    Title of Collection: Non-Federal Oil and Gas Operations on National 
Wildlife Refuge System Lands, 50 CFR 29, Subpart D.
    OMB Control Number: 1018-0162.
    Form Number: FWS Form 3-2469.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Businesses that conduct oil and gas 
exploration on national wildlife refuges.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion.
    Total Estimated Annual Non-hour Burden Cost: $2,250,000 (associated 
with the new information collection for financial assurances).

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                                                                     Estimated      Completion
                                                                     number of       time per        Estimated
                      Activity/requirement                            annual         response      total annual
                                                                     responses        (hours)      burden hours
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Preexisting Operations (Sec.   29.61)...........................              40              50           2,000
Temporary Access Permit Application (Sec.   29.71) Hard Copy....              18              17             306
Temporary Access Permit Application (Sec.   29.71) ePermits.....              18           12.75             230
Accessing Oil and Gas Rights from Non-Federal Surface Location                 5               1               5
 (Sec.   29.80).................................................
Pre-application Meeting for Operations Permit (Sec.   29.91)....              45               2              90
Operations Permit Application (Sec.  Sec.   29.94-29.97) Hard                 23             140           3,220
 Copy...........................................................
Operations Permit Application (Sec.  Sec.   29.94-29.97)                      23             105           2,415
 ePermits.......................................................
Financial Assurance (Sec.  Sec.   29.103(b), 29.150)............              45               1              45
Identification of Wells and Related Facilities (Sec.                          45               2              90
 29.119(b)).....................................................
Reporting (Sec.   29.121):
    Third-Party Monitor Report (Sec.   29.121(b))...............             300              17           5,100
    Notification--Injuries/Mortality to Fish and Wildlife and                 20               1              20
     Threatened/Endangered Plants (Sec.   29.121(c))............
    Notification--Accidents involving Serious Injuries/Death and              20               1              20
     Fires/Spills (Sec.   29.121(d))............................
    Written Report--Accidents Involving Serious Injuries/Deaths               20              16             320
     and Fires/Spills (Sec.   29.121(d))........................
    Report--Verify Compliance with Permits (Sec.   29.121(e))...             240               4             960
Permit Modifications (Sec.   29.160(a)).........................              10              16             160
Notification--Chemical Disclosure of Hydraulic Fracturing Fluids               5               1               5
 uploaded to FracFocus (Sec.   29.121(f)).......................
Change of Operator Sec.   29.170:
    Transferring Operator Notification..........................              20               8             160
    (Sec.   29.170).............................................
    Extension to Well Plugging (Sec.   29.181(a))...............
    Application for Permit Hard Copy............................               5             140             700
    Application for Permit ePermits.............................               5             105             525
    Modification Hard Copy......................................               3              16              48
    Modification ePermits.......................................               3              12              36
    Acquiring Operator's Requirements for Wells Not Under a                   10              40             400
     Service Permit (Sec.   29.171(a)) Hard Copy................
    Acquiring Operator's Requirements for Wells Not Under a                   10              30             300
     Service Permit (Sec.   29.171(a)) ePermits.................
    Acquiring Operator's Acceptance of an Existing Permit (Sec.                1               8               8
      29.171(b))................................................
Public Information (Sec.   29.210):
    Affidavit in Support of Claim of Confidentiality (Sec.                     1               1               1
     29.210(c) and (d)).........................................
    Confidential Information (Sec.   29.210(e) and (f)).........               1               1               1
    Maintenance of Confidential Information (Sec.   29.210(h))..               1               1               1

[[Page 63522]]

 
    Generic Chemical Name Disclosure (Sec.   29.210(i)).........               1               1               1
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
        Totals..................................................             938  ..............          17,167
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    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.
    The authority for this action is the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Madonna Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-22678 Filed 10-18-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P