[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 97 (Tuesday, May 20, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28945-28948]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-11559]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of Natural Resources Revenue
[Docket No. ONRR-2011-0006; DS63610000 DR2PS0000.CH7000 145D0102R2]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection,
Comment Request
AGENCY: Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR), Interior.
ACTION: Notice of extension, OMB Control Number 1012-0009.
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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), ONRR
is inviting comments on a collection of information requests that we
will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and
approval. This Information Collection Request (ICR) covers the
paperwork requirements in the regulations under title 30, Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR), part 1220. Also, this ICR pertains to
royalties or net profit share payments from oil and gas leases on
submerged Federal lands on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).
DATES: Submit written comments on or before July 21, 2014.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this ICR to ONRR by using one of
the following three methods:
[[Page 28946]]
1. Electronically go to http://www.regulations.gov. In the entry
titled ``Enter Keyword or ID,'' enter ONRR-2011-0006 and then click
``Search.'' Follow the instructions to submit public comments. ONRR
will post all comments.
2. Mail comments to Mr. Luis Aguilar, Regulatory Specialist, ONRR,
P.O. Box 25165, MS 61030A, Denver, Colorado 80225-0165. Please
reference ``ICR 1012-0009'' in your comments.
3. Hand-carry or mail comments, using an overnight courier service,
to ONRR. Our courier address is Building 85, Room A-614, Denver Federal
Center, West 6th Ave. and Kipling St., Denver, Colorado 80225. Please
reference ``ICR 1012-0009'' in your comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions on technical issues,
contact Ms. Suzanne Wolter, Audit and Compliance Management (ACM),
ONRR, telephone (303) 231-3405 or email at [email protected]. For
other questions, contact Mr. Luis Aguilar, telephone (303) 231-3418, or
email at [email protected]. You may also contact Mr. Aguilar to
obtain copies, at no cost, of (1) the ICR, (2) any associated form, and
(3) the regulations that require us to collect the information.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: OCS Net Profit Share Payment Reporting--30 CFR Part 1220.
OMB Control Number: 1012-0009.
Bureau Form Number: None.
Abstract: The Secretary of the United States Department of the
Interior is responsible for collecting royalties from lessees who
produce minerals from leased Federal and Indian lands and the OCS. The
Secretary's responsibility, under various laws, is to manage mineral
resource production from Federal and Indian lands and the OCS, collect
the royalties and other mineral revenues due, and distribute the funds
collected under those laws. ONRR performs the royalty management
functions for the Secretary.
We have posted those laws pertaining to mineral leases on Federal
and Indian lands and the OCS at http://www.onrr.gov/Laws_R_D/PubLaws/default.htm.
I. General Information
ONRR collects and uses this information to determine (1) all
allowable direct and allocable joint costs and credits under Sec.
1220.011 incurred during the lease term; (2) appropriate overhead
allowance permitted on these costs under Sec. 1220.012; and (3)
allowances for capital recovery calculated under Sec. 1220.020. ONRR
also collects this information to ensure that royalties or net profit
share payments are accurately valued and appropriately paid. This ICR
affects only oil and gas leases on submerged Federal lands on the OCS.
II. Information Collections
Title 30 CFR part 1220 covers the net profit share lease (NPSL)
program and establishes reporting requirements for determining the net
profit share base under Sec. 1220.021. It also covers the calculating
of net profit share payments due to the Federal Government for the
production of oil and gas from leases under Sec. 1220.022.
A. NPSL Bidding System
To encourage exploration and development of oil and gas leases on
submerged Federal lands on the OCS, the Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management (BOEM) promulgated regulations at 30 CFR part 506--Outer
Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing. Also, BOEM promulgated specific
implementing regulations for the NPSL bidding system at Sec.
506.110(d). BOEM established the NPSL bidding system to balance a fair
market return to the Federal Government for the lease of its public
lands and providing a fair profit to companies risking their investment
capital. The system provides an incentive for early expeditious
exploration and development providing for sharing of the risks by the
lessee and the Federal Government. The NPSL bidding system incorporates
a fixed capital recovery system as a means through which the lessee
recovers costs of exploration and development from production revenues,
along with a reasonable return on investment.
B. NPSL Capital Account
The Federal Government does not receive a profit share payment from
an NPSL until the lessee shows a credit balance in its capital account;
that is, cumulative revenues and other credits exceed cumulative costs.
Lessees multiply the credit balance by the net profit share rate (30 to
50 percent), resulting in the amount of net profit share payment due to
the Federal Government.
ONRR requires lessees to maintain an NPSL capital account for each
lease under Sec. 1220.010, which transfers to a new owner when sold.
Following the cessation of production, lessees are also required to
provide either an annual or a monthly report to the Federal Government
by using data from the capital account until the lease is terminated,
expired, or relinquished.
C. NPSL Inventories
The NPSL lessees must notify BOEM of their intent to take inventory
so that BOEM's Director may be represented at the taking of inventory
under Sec. 1220.032. Each lessee must file a report after each
inventory is taken, reporting the controllable material under Sec.
1220.031.
D. NPSL Audits
Non-operators of an NPSL must notify ONRR when they call for an
audit. When ONRR calls for an audit, the lessee must notify all non-
operators on the lease. These requirements are located at Sec.
1220.033.
III. OMB Approval
ONRR will request OMB approval to continue to collect this
information. If ONRR does not collect this information, this would
limit the Secretary's ability to discharge fiduciary duties and may
also result in the inability to confirm the accurate royalty value.
ONRR protects the proprietary information that we receive, and we do
not collect items of a sensitive nature.
ONRR requires lessees to respond to this ICR because the
information collected is essential in order to determine when net
profit share payments are due and to ensure that lessees properly value
and pay royalties or net profit share payments.
Frequency: Annually, monthly, and on occasion.
Estimated Number and Description of Respondents: 6 lessees.
Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Hour'' Burden: 1,926
hours.
All six lessees report monthly because all current NPSLs are in
producing status. Because the requirements for establishment of capital
accounts at Sec. 1220.010(a) and capital account annual reporting at
Sec. 1220.031(a) are necessary only during the non-producing status of
a lease, ONRR included only one annual response for these requirements
in case a new NPSL is established. ONRR did not include in the
estimates certain requirements performed in the normal course of
business, which are considered usual and customary. The following table
shows the estimated annual burden hours by CFR section and paragraph.
[[Page 28947]]
Respondents' Estimated Annual Burden Hours
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Number of
Citation 30 CFR 1220 Reporting & recordkeeping Hour burden annual Annual burden
requirement responses hours
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Part 1220--Accounting Procedures for Determining Net Profit Share Payment for Outer Continental Shelf Oil and
Gas Leases
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Sec. 1220.010 NPSL Capital Account
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1220.010(a)......................... (a) For each NPSL tract, 1 1 1
an NPSL capital account
shall be established and
maintained by the lessee
for NPSL operations . . .
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Sec. 1220.030 Maintenance of records
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1220.030(a) and (b)................. (a) Each lessee . . . 1 11 11
shall establish and
maintain such records as
are necessary . . .
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Sec. 1220.031 Reporting and payment requirements
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1220.031(a)......................... (a) Each lessee subject to 1 11 11
this part shall file an
annual report during the
period from issuance of
the NPSL until the first
month in which production
revenues are credited to
the NPSL capital account
. . .
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1220.031(b)......................... (b) Beginning with the 13 \1\ 132 1716
first month in which
production revenues are
credited to the NPSL
capital account, each
lessee . . . shall file a
report for each NPSL, not
later than 60 days
following the end of each
month . . .
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1220.031(c)......................... (c) Each lessee subject to Burden hours covered under Sec. 1220.031(b).
this Part 220 shall
submit, together with the
report required . . . any
net profit share payment
due . . .
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1220.031(d)......................... (d) Each lessee . . . 8 11 88
shall file a report not
later than 90 days after
each inventory is taken
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1220.031(e)......................... (e) Each lessee . . . 4 11 44
shall file a final
report, not later than 60
days following the
cessation of production .
. .
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Sec. 1220.032 Inventories
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1220.032(b)......................... (b) At reasonable 1 11 11
intervals, but at least
once every three years,
inventories of
controllable materiel
shall be taken by the
lessee. Written notice of
intention to take
inventory shall be given
by the lessee at least 30
days before any inventory
is to be taken so that
the BOEM Director may be
represented at the taking
of inventory . . .
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Sec. 1220.033 Audits
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1220.033(b)(1)...................... (b)(1) When nonoperators 2 11 22
of an NPSL lease call an
audit in accordance with
the terms of their
operating agreement, the
ONRR Director shall be
notified of the audit
call . . .
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1220.033(b)(2)...................... (b)(2) If DOI determines 2 11 22
to call for an audit, DOI
shall notify the lessee
of its audit call and set
a time and place for the
audit . . . The lessee
shall send copies of the
notice to the
nonoperators on the lease
. . .
1220.033(e)......................... (e) Records required to be The Office of Regulatory Affairs determined
kept under Sec. that the audit process is exempt from the
1220.030(a) shall be made Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 because ONRR
available for inspection staff asks non-standard questions to resolve
by any authorized agent exceptions.
of DOI . . .
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Total Burden.................... .......................... .............. 210 1,926
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\1\ 11 NPSL reports x 12 months = 132 reports
Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-hour'' Cost
Burden: We have not identified a ``non-hour'' cost burden associated
with the collection of information.
Public Disclosure Statement: The PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.)
provides that 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.
Comments: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA requires each agency to
``. . . provide 60-day notice in the Federal Register . . . and
otherwise consult with members of the public and affected agencies
concerning each proposed collection of information . . .'' Agencies
must specifically solicit comments to: (1) Evaluate whether the
proposed
[[Page 28948]]
collection of information is necessary for the agency to perform its
duties, including whether the information is useful; (2) evaluate the
accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed
collection of information; (3) enhance the quality, usefulness, and
clarity of the information that ONRR collects; and (4) minimize the
burden on the respondents, including the use of automated collection
techniques or other forms of information technology.
The PRA also requires agencies to estimate the total annual
reporting ``non-hour cost'' burden to respondents or recordkeepers
resulting from the collection of information. If you have costs to
generate, maintain, and disclose this information, you should comment
and provide your total capital and startup cost components or annual
operation, maintenance, and purchase of service components. You should
describe the methods that you use to estimate (1) major cost factors,
including system and technology acquisition, (2) expected useful life
of capital equipment, (3) discount rate(s), and (4) the period over
which you incur costs. Capital and startup costs include, among other
items, computers and software that you purchase to prepare for
collecting information and monitoring, sampling, and testing equipment,
and record-storage facilities. Generally, your estimates should not
include equipment or services purchased (i) before October 1, 1995;
(ii) to comply with requirements not associated with the information
collection; (iii) for reasons other than to provide information or keep
records for the Federal Government; or (iv) as part of customary and
usual business or private practices.
We will summarize written responses to this notice and address them
in our ICR submission for OMB approval, including appropriate
adjustments to the estimated burden. We will provide a copy of the ICR
to you, free of charge, upon request. We also will post the ICR at
http://www.onrr.gov/Laws_R_D/FRNotices/FRInfColl.htm.
Public Comment Policy: ONRR will post all comments, including names
and addresses of respondents at http://www.regulations.gov. Before
including Personally Identifiable Information (PII), such as your
address, phone number, email address, or other personal information in
your comment(s), you should be aware that your entire comment
(including PII) may be made available to the public at any time. While
you may ask us, in your comment, to withhold PII from public view, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
ONRR Information Collection Clearance Officer: David Alspach (202)
219-8526.
Dated: May 6, 2014.
Gregory J. Gould,
Director, Office of Natural Resources Revenue.
[FR Doc. 2014-11559 Filed 5-19-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-T2-P