Agency information collection activities: Proposed collection; comment request,

[Federal Register: August 26, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 165)]

[Notices]

[Page 46714-46715]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr26au99-113]

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service

Agency Information Collection Activities: Submitted for Office of Management and Budget Review; Comment Request

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of information collection.

SUMMARY: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we are soliciting comments on an information collection titled Production Accounting and Auditing System Reports on Solid Minerals, OMB Control Number 1010-0063 which expires on December 31, 1999.

Form

Mine Information Form, MMS-4050; Facility and Measurement Information Form, MMS-4051S, Solid Minerals Operations Report, MMS- 4059A&B; Solid Minerals Facility Report, MMS-4060A&B.

DATES: Written comments should be received on or before October 25, 1999.

ADDRESSES: The mailing address for written comments regarding this information collection is David S. Guzy, Chief, Rules and Publications Staff, Minerals Management Service, Royalty Management Program, P.O. Box 25165, MS 3021, Denver, Colorado 80225. Courier address is Building 85, Room A-613, Denver Federal Center, Denver, Colorado 80225. E-mail address is RMP.comments@mms.gov.

Public Comment Procedure

If you wish to comment, you may submit your comments by any one of several methods. You may mail comments to David S. Guzy, Chief, Rules and Publications Staff, Minerals Management Service, Royalty Management Program, P.O. Box 25165, MS 3021, Denver, CO 80225-0165. Courier or overnight delivery address is Building 85, Room A-613, Denver Federal Center, Denver, Colorado 80225. You may also comment via the Internet to RMP.comments@mms.gov. Please submit Internet comments as an ASCII file avoiding the use of special characters and any form of encryption. Please also include ``Attn: Production Accounting and Auditing System Reports on Solid Minerals, OMB Control Number 1010-0063'' and your name and return address in your Internet message. If you do not receive a confirmation from the system that we have received your Internet message, contact David S. Guzy directly at (303) 231-3432.

We will post public comments after the comment period closes on the Internet at http://www.rmp.mms.gov. You may arrange to view paper copies of the comments by contacting David S. Guzy, Chief, Rules and Publications Staff, telephone (303) 231-3432, FAX (303) 231-3385. Our practice is to make comments, including names and addresses of respondents, available for public review on the Internet and during regular business hours at our offices in Lakewood, Colorado. Individual respondents may request that we withhold their home address from the rulemaking record, which we will honor to the extent allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in which we would withhold from the rulemaking record a respondent's identity, as allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name and/or address, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your comment. However, we will not consider anonymous comments. We will make all submissions from

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organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, available for public inspection in their entirety.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis C. Jones, Rules and Publications Staff, telephone (303) 231-3046, FAX (303) 231-3385, e- mail Dennis.C.Jones@mms.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act requires each agency ``* * * to provide notice * * * and otherwise consult with members of the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of information * * *.'' Agencies must specifically solicit comments to: (a) evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the agency to perform its duties, including whether the information is useful; (b) evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) minimize the burden on the respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

The Department of the Interior is responsible for matters relevant to mineral resource development on Federal and Indian Lands and the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The Secretary of the Interior is responsible for managing the production of minerals from Federal and Indian Lands and the OCS; for collecting royalties from lessees who produce minerals; and for distributing the funds collected in accordance with applicable laws. MMS performs the royalty management functions for the Secretary.

We developed the Production Accounting and Auditing System (PAAS), an integrated computer database containing production processing data submitted by Federal and Indian lease operators, including operators of solid mineral leases. The PAAS database is designed to track minerals produced from Federal and Indian lands from the point of production to the point of disposition, or royalty determination, and/or point of sale. The PAAS data is compared with data in our Auditing and Financial System (AFS) database which tracks sales of mineral production from a lease and associated royalty payments as reported by payors. The comparison between production data (PAAS) and sales and royalty data (AFS) enables MMS to verify that the proper amount of royalties are being received for the minerals extracted from a lease.

Lessees file four forms to submit the required solid minerals data. Two forms are used to establish an MMS reference database of relatively static information on mines, facilities, and measurement points; this reference database eliminates the necessity for operators to continually report this static data. To monitor lease production, lessees file two operations reports to provide ongoing information on production, sales volumes, and inventories of mines and processing facilities.

The burden imposed on lessees submitting required information is directly proportional to mine activity and the point of sale, or the royalty determination. The more complicated the operations, the greater the reporting burden on the respondents. Mine/facility operators are required to submit the required production data to allow MMS to accurately and completely determine the correct amount of the royalty due on the minerals removed from Federal and Indian lands.

Currently the PAAS database includes 211 mine operators and 290 mines containing 653 leases. Coal lease operators make up 45 percent of the total respondents. Solid mineral leases also include limestone, molybdenum, potassium, sodium, and sand and gravel operations. The total number of facilities maintained on PAAS includes 27 coal processing plants, 20 refiners, 13 mill and 44 remote storage facilities. It is estimated that there will be a continuing growth of 3 percent per year for the number of new operators, mines, facilities, and leases added to PAAS.

The annual burden for responding to this information collection using the PAAS solid mineral forms, including 1 hour per operator per year to maintain records necessary for completion of PAAS forms, is estimated to be 2,920 hours.

Dated: August 20, 1999. R. Dale Fazio, Acting Associate Director for Royalty Management.

[FR Doc. 99-22096Filed8-25-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P