[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 38 (Tuesday, February 26, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 13002-13004]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-04373]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
30 CFR Part 938
[PA-162-FOR; Docket ID: OSM-2012-0022]
Pennsylvania Regulatory Program
AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (``OSM''),
Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public
hearing.
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SUMMARY: OSM announces receipt of a proposed amendment to the
Pennsylvania regulatory program under the Surface Mining Control and
Reclamation Act of 1977 (``SMCRA'' or the ``Act''). Pennsylvania's
proposed amendment consists of the addition of new definitions and
revisions to Pennsylvania's regulations on the use of the Coal Refuse
Disposal Control Fund (``CRDCF'') and permit and reclamation fees.
This document provides the times and locations that the
Pennsylvania program and proposed amendment are available for public
inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written
comments, and the public hearing procedures if a hearing is requested.
DATES: We will accept written comments on these amendments until 4:00
p.m., Eastern Standard Time (``EST'') March 28, 2013. If requested, we
will hold a public hearing on the amendment on March 25, 2013. We will
accept requests to speak at a hearing until 4:00 p.m., EST on March 13,
2013.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by SATS No. PA-162-FOR
by any of the following methods:
Mail/Hand Delivery: Mr. Ben Owens, Chief, Pittsburgh Field
Division, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 3
Parkway Center, 3rd Floor, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15220
Fax: (412) 937-2888
Federal eRulemaking Portal: The amendment has been
assigned Docket ID OSM-2012-0022. If you would like to submit comments,
go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the instructions.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name
and docket number for this rulemaking. For detailed instructions on
submitting comments and additional information on the rulemaking
process, see the ``Public Comment Procedures'' heading of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
Docket: For access to the docket to review copies of the
Pennsylvania regulations, this amendment, a listing of any scheduled
public hearings, and all written comments received in response to this
document, you must go to the address listed below during normal
business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. You may
receive one free copy of the amendments by contacting OSM's Pittsburgh
Field Division Office; or you can view the full text of the program
amendment available for you to read at www.regulations.gov.
In addition, you may review a copy of the amendment during regular
business hours at one of the following locations:
Appalachian Regional Coordinating Center, Ben Owens, Chief, Pittsburgh
Field Division, Office of Surface
[[Page 13003]]
Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 3 Parkway Center, 3rd Floor,
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15220, Telephone: (412) 937-2827, Email:
bowens@osmre.gov.
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Thomas Callaghan,
P.G., Director, Bureau of Mining and Reclamation, Rachel Carson State
Office Building, P.O. Box 8461, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17105-8461,
Telephone: (717) 787-5015, Email: tcallaghan@state.pa.us.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ben Owens, Chief, Pittsburgh Field
Division; Telephone: (412) 937-2827. Email: bowens@osmre.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background on the Pennsylvania Program
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
III. Public Comment Procedures
IV. Procedural Determinations
I. Background on the Pennsylvania Program
Section 503(a) of the SMCRA permits a State to assume primacy for
the regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations on
non-Federal and non-Indian lands within its borders by demonstrating
that its program includes, among other things, ``a State law which
provides for the regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation
operations in accordance with the requirements of this Act * * * ; and
rules and regulations consistent with regulations issued by the
Secretary pursuant to this Act.'' 30 U.S.C. 1253(a)(1) and (7). On the
basis of these criteria, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally
approved the Pennsylvania program, effective July 30, 1982. You can
find background information on the Pennsylvania program, including the
Secretary's findings, the disposition of comments, and the conditions
of approval of the Pennsylvania program in the July 30, 1982, Federal
Register (47 FR 33050). You can also find later actions concerning the
Pennsylvania program and program amendments at 30 CFR 938.11, 938.12,
938.13, 938.15, and 938.16.
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
By letter dated December 19, 2012, (Administrative Record Number PA
895.00), Pennsylvania sent OSM a request to approve regulations related
to Pennsylvania coal fees. Pennsylvania is requesting approval of
regulations found at 25 Pa. Code Chapter 86, sections 1, 3, and 17.
Pennsylvania proposes the addition of two terms to the
``Definitions'' section of Chapter 86, of the Pennsylvania regulations
dealing with general aspects of surface and underground coal mining.
Pennsylvania proposes to add the terms ``major permit revision'' and
``permit application fee'' to this section. The definition of ``major
permit revision'' is proposed to be, a revision to a coal mining permit
that requires public notice. The definition of ``permit application
fee'' is proposed to be, a nonrefundable filing fee due at the time of
submission of an application. The permit application fee is required
for an application to be considered complete.
Additionally, Pennsylvania proposes to add a subsection to section
86.3, regarding the use of the CRDCF. The new subsection (b) will, if
approved, require permit application fees submitted under the Coal
Refuse and Disposal Act to be used to finance the costs of review of
the applications.
Further, Pennsylvania proposes to increase the permit application
fees. Currently, a permit application for coal mining activities or an
application for a coal preparation plant is required to be submitted
with an application fee of $250. Currently, coal refuse disposal
activities require a fee of $500 plus an additional $10 per acre for
acreage in excess of 50 acres. The proposed amendment increases the
fees and creates new categories of permits with differing fees. Surface
mining and coal refuse disposal permits will be assessed a fee of
$3,250; coal refuse reprocessing permits will be assessed a fee of
$1,900; coal preparation plant, anthracite underground mining, and
incidental extraction permits will be assessed a fee of $1,650;
bituminous underground mining permits will be assessed a fee of $5,750;
and post-mining activity permits will be assessed a fee of $300. Under
subsection (b)(2) of the proposed amendment, a new fee is imposed for
major permit revisions. This fee is either $300 or $1,250, dependent
upon the permit type. The proposed subsection (b)(3) introduces a new
fee of $250 for permit transfers. The renewal fee assessed under the
current regulation still exists at the rate of $250. The details of
this fee are detailed in proposed subsection (b)(4). Additionally, a
new fee for auger safety and bond liability revisions is proposed to be
assessed in the amount of $200 and $100, respectively.
The proposed subsection (c) describes how the collected fees will
be allocated. Permit application fees collected for surface coal mine
facilities, coal refuse reprocessing facilities, and coal mining
activity facilities will be deposited in the Surface Mining
Conservation and Reclamation Fund. Permit application fees for
bituminous underground mines will be deposited in the Bituminous Mine
Subsidence and Land Reclamation Fund. The fees collected for coal
refuse disposal facilities are to be deposited in the CRDCF. The
proposed amendment also proposes adding a new component at subsection
(d). This subsection requires the Department of Environmental
Protection to review the adequacy of the permit application fees at
least once every three years. The results of this review must be
submitted in writing to the Environmental Quality Board. Specifically,
the proposed report will identify and reconcile any disparity between
the amount of income generated by the fees and the costs to administer
these programs as well as recommend a fee increase, if necessary.
Subsection (e) of the current regulation will remain unaltered.
III. Public Comment Procedures
Under the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), we are seeking your
comments on whether Pennsylvania's proposed amendment satisfies the
applicable program approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If we approve
the amendment, it will become part of Pennsylvania's State Program.
Electronic or Written Comments
If you submit written comments, they should be specific, confined
to issues pertinent to the proposed regulations, and explain the reason
for any recommended change(s). We appreciate any and all comments, but
those most useful and likely to influence decisions on the final
regulations will be those that either involve personal experience or
include citations to and analysis of SMCRA, its legislative history,
its implementing regulations, case law, other pertinent State or
Federal laws or regulations, technical literature, or other relevant
publications.
We cannot ensure that comments received after the close of the
comment period (see DATES) or sent to an address other than those
listed (see ADDRESSES) will be included in the docket for this
rulemaking and considered.
Public Availability of Comments
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 made 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.
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Public Hearing
If you wish to speak at the public hearing, contact the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m., EST, on
March 13, 2013. If you are disabled and need reasonable accommodations
to attend a public hearing, contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT. We will arrange the location and time of the
hearing with those persons requesting the hearing. If no one requests
an opportunity to speak, we will not hold a hearing.
To assist the transcriber and ensure an accurate record, we
request, if possible, that each person who speaks at the public hearing
provide us with a written copy of his or her comments. The public
hearing will continue on the specified date until everyone scheduled to
speak has been given an opportunity to be heard. If you are in the
audience and have not been scheduled to speak and wish to do so, you
will be allowed to speak after those who have been scheduled. We will
end the hearing after everyone scheduled to speak and others present in
the audience who wish to speak, have been heard.
Public Meeting
If only one person requests an opportunity to speak, we may hold a
public meeting rather than a public hearing. If you wish to meet with
us to discuss the amendment, please request a meeting by contacting the
person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All such meetings
are open to the public; if possible, we will post notices of meetings
at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. We will make a written summary
of each meeting a part of the administrative record.
IV. Procedural Determinations
Executive Order 12866--Regulatory Planning and Review
This rule is exempted from review by the Office of Management and
Budget (``OMB'') under Executive Order 12866.
Other Laws and Executive Orders Affecting Rulemaking
When a State submits a program amendment to OSM for review, our
regulations at 30 CFR 732.17(h) require us to publish a notice in the
Federal Register indicating receipt of the proposed amendment, its text
or a summary of its terms, and an opportunity for public comment. We
conclude our review of the proposed amendment after the close of the
public comment period and determine whether the amendment should be
approved, approved in part, or not approved. At that time, we will also
make the determinations and certifications required by the various laws
and executive orders governing the rulemaking process and include them
in the final rule.
List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 938
Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.
Dated: January 29, 2013.
Thomas Shope,
Regional Director, Appalachian Region.
[FR Doc. 2013-04373 Filed 2-25-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-P