[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 188 (Thursday, September 29, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-24132]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: September 29, 1994]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
30 CFR Part 913
Illinois 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 is announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the
Illinois regulatory program (hereinafter the ``Illinois program'')
under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA).
The proposed amendment consists of revisions to the Illinois Surface
Coal Mining Land Conservation and Reclamation Act (State Act)
pertaining to small operator assistance, vegetation requirements for
lands eligible for remining, and fees and civil penalties. The proposed
amendment is intended to incorporate the additional flexibility
afforded by SMCRA, as amended, and improve operational efficiency.
DATES: Written comments must be received by 4:00 p.m. on October 31,
1994. If requested, a public hearing on the proposed amendment will be
held on October 24, 1994. Requests to speak at the hearing must be
received by 4:00 p.m. on October 14, 1994.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and requests to speak at the hearing should
be mailed or hand delivered to Mr. James F. Fulton, Director, at the
address listed below.
Any disabled individual who has need for a special accommodation to
attend a public hearing should contact the individual listed under FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Copies of the Illinois program, the proposed amendment, a listing
of any scheduled public hearings, and all written comments received in
response to this document will be available for public review at the
addresses listed below during normal business hours, Monday through
Friday, excluding holidays. Each requester may receive one free copy of
the proposed amendment by contacting OSM's Springfield Field Office.
James F. Fulton, Director, Springfield Field Office, Office of Surface
Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 511 West Capitol, Suite 202,
Springfield, Illinois 62704, Telephone: (217) 492-4495
Illinois Department of Mines and Minerals, 300 West Jefferson Street,
Suite 300, Springfield, Illinois 62791, Telephone: (217) 782-4970
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James F. Fulton, Director, Springfield
Field Office, Telephone: (217) 492-4495.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background on the Illinois Program
On June 1, 1982, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally
approved the Illinois program. Background information on the Illinois
program, including the Secretary's findings, the disposition of
comments, and the conditions of approval can be found in the June 1,
1982, Federal Register (47 FR 23883). Subsequent actions concerning the
conditions of approval and program amendments can be found at 30 CFR
913.15, 913.16, and 913.17.
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
By letter dated September 9, 1994, (Administrative Record No. IL-
1550) Illinois submitted a proposed amendment to its program pursuant
to SMCRA. Illinois submitted the proposed amendment at its own
initiative. The proposed amendment incorporates statutory changes to
the State Act at 225 ILCS 720/2.02, Contents of Permit Application;
3.15, Vegetation; and 9.07, Fees and Forfeitures. The revised statutes
were enacted through Public Act 88-599 (HB 2349), and they were signed
into law by the Governor of Illinois on September 1, 1994.
Public Act 88-599 amended 225 ILCS 720/2.02(b) of the State Act
concerning small operator assistance for consistency with Section
507(c) of SMCRA, as amended by Section 2513 of the Energy Policy Act of
1992. At subsection (b), Illinois proposes raising the annual coal
production cap from 100,000 to 300,000 tons at all locations for
eligibility for its small operator assistance program (SOAP).
Subsection (b) is also amended by deleting reference to the current
services and adding the following new or enhanced services: (1) the
determination of probable hydrologic consequences, including the
engineering analyses and designs necessary for the determination; (2)
the development of cross-section maps and plans; (3) the geologic
drilling and statement of results of test borings and core samplings;
(4) the collection of archaeological information and any other
archaeological and historical information required by the Department,
and the preparation of plans necessitated thereby; (5) pre-blast
surveys; and (6) the collection of site-specific resource information
and production of protection and enhancement plans for fish and
wildlife habitats and other environmental values required by the
Department under this Act. Subsection (b) if further amended by adding
the following SOAP assistance reimbursement requirement: A coal
operator that has received assistance pursuant to this subsection shall
reimburse the regulatory authority for the cost of the services
rendered if the program administrator finds that the operator's actual
and attributed annual production of coal for all locations exceeds
300,000 tons during the 12 months immediately following the date on
which the operator is issued the surface coal mining and reclamation
permit.
Public Act 88-599 amended 225 ILCS 720/3.15 of the State Act by
adding new subsection (e) concerning vegetation requirements for lands
eligible for remining. Subsection (e) was added for consistency with
Section 515(b) of SMCRA, as amended by the Energy Policy Act of 1992.
Proposed subsection (e) reads as follows: On lands eligible for
remining, the operator shall assume the responsibility for successful
revegatation for a period of 2 full years after the last year of
augmented seeding, fertilizing, irrigation, or other work in order to
assure compliance with the applicable standards of the Act. This does
not preclude responsible land management practices on portions of the
total area as deemed necessary and approved by the Department.
Public Act 88-599 added 30 ILCS 105/6z-36 to the State Finance Act
to establish the Coal Mine Regulatory Fund. It also amended 225 ILCS
720/9.07 of the State Act by requiring all fees and civil penalties
collected under the State Act be deposited into the Coal Mine
Regulatory Fund. Section 6z-36 specifies that moneys in the Fund shall
be annually appropriated to the Department of Mines and Minerals for
the enforcement of coal mining regulatory laws and rules adopted by the
Department under those laws.
III. Public Comment Procedures
In accordance with the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), OSM is
seeking comments on whether the proposed amendment satisfies the
applicable program approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If the amendment
is deemed adequate, it will become part of the Illinois program.
Written Comments
Written comments should be specific, pertain only to the issues
proposed in this rulemaking, and include explanations in support of the
commenter's recommendations. Comments received after the time indicated
under DATES or at locations other than the Springfield Field Office
will not necessarily be considered in the final rulemaking or included
in the Administrative Record.
Public Hearing
Persons wishing to speak at the public hearing should contact the
person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m. on
October 14, 1994. The location and time of the hearing will be arranged
with those persons requesting the hearing. If no one requests an
opportunity to speak at the public hearing, the hearing will not be
held.
Filing of a written statement at the time of the hearing is
requested as it will greatly assist the transcriber. Submission of
written statements in advance of the hearing will allow OSM officials
to prepare adequate responses and appropriate questions.
The public hearing will continue on the specified date until all
persons scheduled to speak have been heard. Persons in the audience who
have not been scheduled to speak, and who wish to do so, will be heard
following those who have been scheduled. The hearing will end after all
persons scheduled to speak and persons present in the audience who wish
to speak have been heard.
Public Meeting
If only one person requests an opportunity to speak at a hearing, a
public meeting, rather than a public hearing, may be held. Persons
wishing to meet with OSM representatives to discuss the proposed
amendment may request a meeting by contacting the person listed under
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All such meetings will be open to the
public and, if possible, notices of meetings will be posted at the
locations listed under ADDRESSES. A written summary of each meeting
will be made a part of the Administrative Record.
IV. Procedural Determinations
Executive Order 12866
This rule is exempted from review by the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and
Review).
Executive Order 12778
The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required
by section 2 of Executive Order 12778 (Civil Justice Reform) and has
determined that, to the extent allowed by law, this rule meets the
applicable standards of subsections (a) and (b) of that section.
However, these standards are not applicable to the actual language of
State regulatory programs and program amendments since each such
program is drafted and promulgated by a specific State, not by OSM.
Under sections 503 and 505 of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1253 and 1255) and 30
CFR 730.11, 732.15, and 732.17(h)(10), decisions on proposed State
regulatory programs and program amendments submitted by the States must
be based solely on a determination of whether the submittal is
consistent with SMCRA and its implementing Federal regulations and
whether the other requirements of 30 CFR Parts 730, 731, and 732 have
been met.
National Environmental Policy Act
No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since
section 702(d) of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1292(d)) provides that agency
decisions on proposed State regulatory program provisions do not
constitute major Federal actions within the meaning of section
102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C.
4332(2)(C)).
Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule does not contain information collection requirements that
require approval by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C.
3507 et seq.).
Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Department of the Interior has determined that this rule will
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities under the regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).
The State submittal which is the subject of this rule is based upon
counterpart Federal regulations for which an economic analysis was
prepared and certification made that such regulations would not have a
significant economic effect upon a substantial number of small
entities. Accordingly, this rule will ensure that existing requirements
previously promulgated by OSM will be implemented by the state. In
making the determination as to whether this rule would have a
significant economic impact, the Department relied upon the data and
assumptions for the counterpart Federal regulations.
List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 913
Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.
Dated: September 23, 1994.
Tim L. Dieringer,
Acting Assistant Director Eastern Support Center.
[FR Doc. 94-24132 Filed 9-28-94; 8:45 am]
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