[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 14, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5797-5798]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-3055]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[WO-320-4130-02-24 1A]
RIN 1004-AC39
Notice of Proposed Information Collection
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is announcing its intention to request
approval for the collection of information annually from holders of
unpatented mining claims concerning use and occupancy of their claims.
DATES: Comments on the proposed information collection must be received
by April 15, 1996 to be assured of consideration.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Regulatory Management Team (420),
Bureau of Land Management, 1849 C Street NW., Room 401LS, Washington,
D.C. 20240.
Comments may be sent via Internet to: WO[email protected]. Please
include ``ATTN: U&O-Info'' and your name and return address in your
Internet message. Comments may be hand-delivered to the Bureau of Land
Management Administrative Record, Room 401, 1620 L Street NW.,
Washington, DC. Comments will be available for public review at the L
Street address during regular business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.),
Monday through Friday.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard E. Deery, (202) 452-0353.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with 5 CFR 1320.8(d) BLM is
required to provide 60-day notice in the Federal Register concerning a
proposed collection of information to solicit comments on (a) whether
the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the
information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions
used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on those who are to respond, including
through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information
technology. Accordingly, none of the information proposed to be
collected as described below will be required until comments have been
received and analyzed and approval has been obtained from OMB under 44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq. and a clearance number assigned.
In a proposed rule published in the Federal Register on September
11, 1992 (57 FR 41846), BLM proposed to established procedures for
managing existing and future use and occupancy of mining claims on BLM-
administered lands consistent with the mining law (30 U.S.C. 612) and
the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1733).
Generally, under the terms of the proposed rule, any newly proposed
activity on public lands involving occupancy or fencing to exclude the
public would have to be acknowledged by BLM as reasonably related to
mining prior to the initiation of occupancy or fencing. Under the
proposed rule, anyone planning to use mining claims or the public lands
under the mining law for occupancy would have to submit the following
information to BLM, in addition to the information currently required
by 43 CFR subparts 3802 and 3809:
1. A map is sufficient detail to identify the site and placement of
(a) temporary or permanent structures, (b) fences and signs intended to
exclude the public, and (c) public passage or access routes through or
around the area; and
2. A written description of (a) how the proposed occupancy relates
to activities reasonably incident to prospecting, mining, or processing
operations, (b) how the proposed occupancy meets the standards of
Sec. 3715.2 of the proposed rule, and (c) the estimated period of use
and schedule for removal and reclamation. The proposed rule would also
allow a grace period during which existing occupancies would have to
come into compliance with the provisions of the regulations. To take
advantage of the grace period, existing occupancies would have to be
recorded with BLM through submittal of the same information described
above. The information is mandatory to obtain a benefit, use of the
public lands open to the mining laws for occupancy reasonably incident
to prospecting, mining, or processing operations.
[[Page 5798]]
Based on its review of comments on the proposed rule, BLM does not
anticipate significant changes in the final rule. BLM is considering,
however, changing the information requirements for existing occupancies
by significantly reducing the up-front information required to obtain
the one-year grace period. The reduction in the up-front reporting
burden would be realized through the use of a simple form that takes
about 10 minutes to fill out. The burden of providing the information
would remain, but would be required for existing occupancies only after
the benefit of the grace period is obtained. The information proposed
to be collected from existing occupancies for recording purposes would
subsequently be gathered by BLM field staff.
The public reporting burden for this entire collection, including
the simplified form and collection of information during the inspection
process, is estimated to average two hours per response. The
respondents are mining claimants and operators of prospecting,
exploration, mining, and processing operations. The number of responses
per respondent is one per operation. The number of new responses is
estimated to be 130 per year. The estimated total annual burden on new
respondents is collectively 260 hours. The estimated number of
respondents possessing existing occupancies is 1,950. The total annual
burden on respondents with existing occupancies would be a function of
the number of inspections carried out in any given year. The total
burden for these respondents would collectively total 3,900 hours
spread over a two- to three-year period, depending on the availability
of funding to conduct inspections.
All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the
request for Office of Management and Budget approval. All comments will
also become a matter of public record.
Dated: February 7, 1996.
Annetta Cheek,
Leader, Regulatory Management Team.
[FR Doc. 96-3055 Filed 2-13-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-84-M