06-9296. Notice of Proposed Information Collection for 1029-0094, 1029-0098 and 1029-0119

AGENCY:

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement.

ACTION:

Notice and request for comments.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is announcing that the information collection requests for the titles described below have been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The information collection requests describe the nature of the information collections and their expected burden and cost.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before December 22, 2006, to be assured of consideration.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request a copy of either information collection request, explanatory information and related form, contact John A. Trelease at [phone]. You may also contact Mr. Trelease at [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at 5 CFR 1320, which implement provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13), require that interested members of the public and affected agencies have an opportunity to comment on information collection and recordkeeping activities [see 5 CFR 1320.8(d)]. OSM has submitted three requests to OMB to renew its approval for the collections of information found at 30 CFR Part 700, General; 30 CFR Part 769, Petition process for designation of Federal lands as unsuitable for all or certain types of surface coal mining operations and for termination of previous designations, and the AML Contractor Information Form which is found in the Applicant/Violator System (AVS) handbook and is prepared by AML contractors to ensure compliance with 30 CFR 874.16. OSM is requesting a 3-year term of approval of these collections.

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 OMB control number for these collections of information are 1029-0094 for Part 700, 1029-0098 for Part 769, and 1029-0119 for the AML Contractor Information Form.

As required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d), a Federal Register notice soliciting comments on these collections of information was published on August 11, 2006 (71 FR 46240). No comments were received. This notice provides the public with an additional 30 days in which to comment on the following information collection activities:

Title: 30 CFR Part 700, General.

OMB Control Number: 1029-0094.

Summary: This Part establishes procedures and requirements for terminating jurisdiction of surface coal mining and reclamation operations, petitions for rulemaking, and citizen suits filed under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977.

Bureau Form Number: None.

Frequency of Collection: Once.

Description of Respondents: State and tribal regulatory authorities, private citizens and citizen groups, and surface coal mining companies.

Total Annual Responses: 6.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 84.

Title: 30 CFR Part 769, Petition process for designation of Federal lands as unsuitable for all or certain types of surface coal mining operations and for termination of previous designations.

OMB Control Number: 1029-0098.

Summary: This Part establishes the minimum procedures and standards for designating Federal lands unsuitable for certain types of surface mining operations and for terminating designations pursuant to a petition. The information requested will aid the regulatory authority in the decision making process to approve a disapprove a request.

Bureau Form Number: None.

Frequency of Collection: Once.

Description of Respondents: People who may be adversely affected by surface mining of Federal lands.

Total Annual Responses: 1.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,067.

Title: AML Contractor Information Form.

OMB Control Number: 1029-0119.

Summary: 30 CFR 874.16 requires that every successful bidder for an AML contract must be eligible under 30 CFR 773.15(b)(1) at the time of contract award to receive a permit or conditional permit to conduct surface coal mining operations. Further, the regulation requires the eligibility to be confirmed by OSM's automated Applicant/Violator System (AVS) and the contractor must be eligible under the regulations implementing Section 510(c) of the Surface Mining Act to receive permits to conduct mining operations. This form provides a tool for OSM and the States/Indian tribes to help them prevent persons with outstanding violations from conducting further mining or AML reclamation activities in the State.

Bureau Form Number: None.

Frequency of Collection: Once per contract.

Description of Respondents: AML contract applicants and State and tribal regulatory authorities.

Total Annual Responses: 428.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 161.

Send comments on the need for the collection of information for the performance of the functions of the agency; the accuracy of the agency's burden estimates; ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information collection; and ways to minimize the information collection burden on respondents, such as use of automated means of collection of the information, to the following address. Please refer to the appropriate OMB control number in all correspondence.

ADDRESSES:

Submit comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Attention: Department of Interior Desk Officer, by telefax at [phone] or via e-mail to [e-mail]. Also, please send a copy of your comments to John A. Trelease, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 1951 Constitution Ave., NW., Room 210-SIB, Washington, DC 20240, or electronically to [e-mail].

Dated: October 11, 2006.

John R. Craynon,

Chief, Division of Regulatory Support.