Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 153 / Tuesday, August 11, 2009 / Notices 40227 

UTAH 

Millard County 

Millard High School Gymnasium, 35 N. 200 

W., Fillmore, 85000808 

Salt Lake County 

Building at 592–98 West 200 South, 592–98 

W. 200 S., Salt Lake City, 82004134 

Sevier County 

Ramsay, Ralph, House, 57 E. 2nd N., 

Richfield, 75001824 

Utah County 

Stratton House–Orem City Hall, 870 W. 

Center, Orem, 98000674 

[FR Doc. E9–19118 Filed 8–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Indian Affairs 

Rate Adjustment for Indian Irrigation 

Project 

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of rate adjustment for 

San Carlos Irrigation Project—Joint 

Works, Arizona. 

SUMMARY: The Bureau of Indian Affairs 

(BIA) owns and operates the San Carlos 

Irrigation Project—Joint Works (SCIP– 

JW) located with the project office in 

Coolidge, Arizona. We are required to 

establish irrigation assessment rates to 

recover the costs to administer, operate, 

maintain, and rehabilitate this project. 

We are notifying you that we have 

adjusted the irrigation assessment rate at 

the SCIP–JW to reflect current costs of 

administration, operation, maintenance, 

and rehabilitation. 

DATES: Effective September 10, 2009. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Bryan Bowker, Project Manager, P.O. 

Box 250, Coolidge, AZ 85228, 

telephone: (520) 723–6216. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A Notice 

of Proposed Rate Adjustment was 

published in the Federal Register (74 

FR 19981) on April 30, 2009, to propose 

an adjustment to the irrigation 

assessment rate at the SCIP–JW for 2011. 

The public and interested parties were 

provided an opportunity to submit 

written comments during the 30-day 

period that ended June 1, 2009. 

Does this notice affect me? 

This notice affects you if you own or 

lease land within the assessable acreage 

of the SCIP–JW or if you have a carriage 

agreement with this irrigation project. 

What irrigation assessments or charges 

are adjusted by this notice? 

The rate table below contains the 

current rate for SCIP–JW, where we 

recover costs of administering, 

operating, maintaining, and 

rehabilitating the project. The table also 

contains the final rate for the 2011 

season. 

WESTERN REGION RATE TABLE

Project name Rate category Final 

2009 rate 

Final 

2010 rate 

Final 

2011 rate 

San Carlos Irrigation Project (Joint Works) ............................................

(See Note #1) ..........................................................................................

Basic per acre ................................ $21.00 $21.00 $25.00 

Note #1. The 2010 rate was established by final notice published in the Federal Register on April 22, 2009 (74 FR 18402). 

Did the BIA change the proposed rate 

increase? 

Yes. The BIA proposed a $30/acre 

operation and maintenance (O&M) 

assessment rate for the SCIP–JW in 

2011. This would have been a $9/acre 

increase from the 2010 O&M assessment 

rate of $21/acre. After further 

consideration, the BIA is establishing 

the 2011 O&M assessment rate at $25/ 

acre. This $5/acre change in the 

proposed rate increase would extend, 

from two to three years, the time period 

required for BIA to collect from the 

water users the funds needed to replace 

the Coolidge Dam cylinder gates. 

Did the BIA receive any comments on 

the proposed irrigation assessment rate 

adjustments? 

Yes. Written comments relating to the 

proposed rate adjustment for the SCIP– 

JW were received by letter dated May 

29, 2009, from one entity, the San Carlos 

Irrigation and Drainage District 

(District). 

What issues were of concern to the 

commenter? 

The District raised the following 

comments in its letter. The BIA’s 

response is provided immediately after 

each comment statement. 

(1) Comment: The BIA has not 

employed a reasonable methodology for 

determining an appropriate O&M charge 

for 2011. 

Response: The methodology used by 

the BIA to estimate an 2011 O&M 

budget and determine an appropriate 

rate for 2011 was reasonable. Based on 

a review of historical income receipts 

and expenditures, a budget of projected 

income receipts and expenditures is 

developed approximately two years 

before the O&M income is collected and 

expenses are incurred. The BIA relies on 

financial reports generated by the 

Federal Finance System for reviewing 

past expenditures and projecting a 

future budget and expenditures. 

Procurement files and records 

maintained by the SCIP–JW are also 

reviewed and considered. For example, 

with regard to development of the 2011 

O&M budget, the BIA reviewed: (1) The 

year-end reconciled income and 

expenditure information for 2008; (2) 

available income and expenditure 

information 2009; (3) previous budget 

projections for 2010; and (4) other 

information relevant to potential future 

activities, such as the cost information 

for replacement of the Coolidge Dam 

cylinder gates. 

The SCIP–JW staff and District 

representatives discussed the pertinent 

budget information during several 

meetings held between November 13, 

2008 and March 30, 2009. The District 

was provided with pertinent budget 

information during this time period. 

(2) Comment: The BIA has provided 

the District with conflicting information 

about current and projected staffing 

levels for the Irrigation Division of the 

Project, and the allocation of $615,000 

in 2011 for personnel is excessive and 

unreasonable. 

Response: The BIA does not believe 

that it has provided the District with 

conflicting information about current 

and projected staffing levels for the 

Irrigation Division of the SCIP–JW. The 

projected 2011 personnel budget for the 

Irrigation O&M staff is based on actual 

expenditures incurred by the SCIP–JW 

in 2008 and 2009 for the staff positions 

the SCIP–JW anticipates to be in its 

employment in 2010 and 2011, with 

modest cost of living increases. The base 

information for these staff positions and 

salary and wage grade scales was 


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40228 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 153 / Tuesday, August 11, 2009 / Notices 

provided to the District in December 

2008. 

In anticipation of the reduction-inforce resulting from the transfer of the 

SCIP–JW maintenance duties to the 

Joint Control Board (JCB) required by 

the Arizona Water Settlements Act (Pub. 

L. 108–451, 118 Stat. 3478, 3499 (Dec. 

10, 2004)) and the Related Joint Control 

Board Agreement signed by the District 

and the Secretary of the Interior, the 

SCIP–JW will be updating its Irrigation 

Organization Chart. At that time, the 

District will be provided a copy of the 

revised Irrigation Organization Chart 

and associated salary table. 

The reduction-in-force is in progress 

and the BIA estimates this action will 

result in an annual personnel cost 

savings of approximately $400,000. This 

savings is accounted for in the 2010 and 

2011 O&M budgets for the SCIP–JW and 

was identified to the District on or 

before March 30, 2009. Although the 

Supervisory Civil Engineer position was 

vacant from August 2008 through May 

2009, the position has now been filled. 

The BIA disagrees with the District’s 

assertion that only a half-time Civil 

Engineer position is needed. There are 

extensive construction activities 

planned for SCIP–JW facilities pursuant 

to the Arizona Water Settlements Act by 

the District, the Gila River Indian 

Community, and the U.S. Bureau of 

Reclamation. These activities require 

the attention of the Supervisory Civil 

Engineer, in addition to the duties 

retained by the SCIP–JW after the 

transfer of maintenance duties to the 

JCB. 

Similarly, the BIA disagrees with the 

District’s estimate of how many 

irrigation system operators the SCIP–JW 

needs to perform the water delivery 

duties. The SCIP–JW has a vast 

geographical territory, and the irrigation 

system operators are regularly called on 

to perform water delivery duties after 

normal working hours and on weekends 

and holidays. 

BIA notes that the District reiterates 

its request for the SCIP–JW to assign the 

well maintenance function to the JCB. 

The agreement applicable to the JCB 

requires the BIA to continue 

maintenance of project wells until such 

time as the wells become a ‘‘District 

Rehabilitation Responsibility’’ as 

defined in sections 9.1 and 9.4 of the 

Joint Control Board Agreement. There 

may be other options available for 

consideration by BIA in response to this 

request, such as a Federal procurement 

action or an Indian Self-Determination 

contract action. However, consideration 

of these options would take time to 

discuss and evaluate and cannot be 

resolved in the context of the 2011 O&M 

rate process. Regardless, 

implementation of other options for 

maintenance of project wells does not 

eliminate the costs; it only changes the 

way the costs are covered. 

(3) Comment: The BIA’s 2011 budget 

estimate for utilities, services, and 

supplies is excessive. 

Response: The BIA does not believe 

the 2011 budget estimate for these 

categories is excessive. This conclusion 

is based on the best historical 

information available to the BIA for 

these expenditures. The details 

concerning these budget items were 

provided to the District earlier this 

calendar year. These categories 

primarily include expenditures to pay 

for repair and maintenance of the 98 

wells owned and operated by the SCIP– 

JW. This is a high priority in the O&M 

budget because the groundwater 

supplied from these wells contributes 

significantly to the annual water 

apportionment in the project. Another 

significant expenditure in this category 

is the Federal environmental 

compliance costs incurred by the SCIP– 

JW to: (1) Evaluate encroachment 

actions on SCIP–JW facilities due to 

non-irrigation development by District 

landowners; and (2) to comply with 

other applicable Federal environmental 

requirements in the course of O&M 

activities retained by the BIA under the 

Arizona Water Settlements Act and Joint 

Board Agreement. 

(4) Comment: The replacement of the 

Coolidge Dam cylinder gates constitutes 

‘‘betterment’’ and requires the consent 

of the District because the purpose for 

replacing these gates is to extend the 

useful life of Coolidge Dam. 

Response: The BIA disagrees with the 

District’s assertion that replacement of 

the Coolidge Dam cylinder gates is 

‘‘betterment.’’ Coolidge Dam is the asset 

and the cylinder gates are components 

of the dam. Replacing the gates does not 

increase the life of the dam; the 

replacement only allows the BIA to 

operate the asset (Coolidge Dam) 

properly. The BIA considers the gate 

replacement to be deferred maintenance 

which needs to be completed as soon as 

the requisite funds to pay for the 

replacement costs can be collected 

through the O&M assessment rate 

process. The BIA provided extensive 

technical information about the 

condition of the cylinder gates to the 

District twice since 2006 and sought 

review and comment from the District 

about the problem and the replacement 

plan. See the report completed in July 

2004 by the Bureau of Reclamation for 

the BIA titled: ‘‘Coolidge Dam, 

Comprehensive Dam Review, Bureau of 

Indian Affairs—Safety of Dams Program, 

Western Region, San Carlos Indian 

Reservation, 2004.’’ This report includes 

an additional document titled: 

‘‘Examination Report, Special 

Examination, Coolidge Dam, San Carlos, 

Arizona,’’ which documents the 

findings and recommendations relating 

to the Coolidge Dam cylinder gates. The 

District has not submitted substantive 

comments to the BIA on this matter in 

response to this technical information. 

These reports provide the following 

information: a buckling failure of a 

cylinder gate while closed, due to large 

hydrostatic loads on a reduced steel 

section (from corrosion), could prevent 

re-opening of the gate for reservoir 

releases and also present a dam safety 

concern. A single nine-foot-diameter 

circular bulkhead gate could be 

fabricated for installation by a crane 

onto either cylinder gate seat within 

each intake tower for maintenance and 

inspection purposes, replacing the 

function of the cylinder gates at a 

reasonable cost. Failure of either 

cylinder gate is considered likely within 

the next 30 years under normal 

operating heads and immediate 

measures should be taken to lock both 

gates in the fully open position until 

they are removed. Based on this 

technical review and information, BIA 

decided to lock the existing cylinder 

gates in a fully open position and the 

gates are no longer available to be closed 

under any circumstance. This prevents 

inspection and maintenance of the 

emergency guard gate and sections of 

the conduit through the dam upstream 

of the emergency guard gate. 

Based on this information, the BIA 

believes it is appropriate as the owner/ 

operator of Coolidge Dam, as well as the 

steward of the water supply delivered 

from Coolidge Dam, to move forward 

with the actions required to replace the 

cylinder gates. In order to reduce the 

cost burden to the District landowners, 

the BIA will reduce the 2011 O&M rate 

from $30/acre to $25/acre and collect 

the funds for this purpose over a threeyear period rather than a two-year 

period. 

(5) Comment: The BIA’s emergency 

reserve fund should be maintained at 

$200,000, not $600,000. 

Response: The BIA disagrees with the 

District’s analysis of the emergency 

reserve fund. During calendar year 2006, 

when the BIA engaged in water user 

meetings with the District and the 

Indian water users about the proposed 

O&M rate for 2008 and 2009, extensive 

discussion ensued concerning the 

amount of the emergency reserve fund 

and the separate reserve fund 

maintained by the SCIP–JW for well 

replacement. In response to the 


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concerns expressed by the District in 

these meetings, the BIA abolished the 

separate reserve fund for the well 

replacement contingencies and the BIA 

decided to use the emergency reserve 

fund to replace wells as needed and will 

replenish the reserve fund if it is used 

for well replacement. A single well 

replacement is estimated to cost 

between $250,000 and $300,000. The 

BIA believes a reserve fund sufficient to 

replace two wells should be maintained. 

As such, the BIA believes it is 

reasonable to maintain the SCIP–JW 

emergency reserve fund at $600,000. 

This amount complies with the BIA’s 

policy for irrigation project reserve 

funds. 

(6) Comment: The District requests 

copies of all information that was used 

to prepare the proposed budget and 

O&M charge for 2011. 

Response: The development of the 

2011 O&M budget estimate is logically 

an outgrowth of the extensive 

discussions between BIA and the 

District about the O&M income and 

expenditures in 2008 and 2009 and the 

projected O&M budget for 2010. These 

discussions also included fiscal and 

programmatic issues and information 

related to the transfer of SCIP–JW 

maintenance duties to the JCB, as 

required by the Arizona Water 

Settlements Act and the Joint Control 

Board Agreement signed by the District 

and the Secretary of the Interior. 

Examples of the information provided 

to the District include: staff position 

titles; staff position salary and wage 

grade scales; projected and actual 

expenditures for FY 2009; projected 

expenditures for 2010; final income and 

expenditure information for the 

reconciled year-end 2008 O&M budget 

(including volumes of documentation 

from the Federal Finance System and 

General Ledger); SCIP–JW budget 

spreadsheets displaying historical 

expenditure data for nearly the last ten 

years; and detailed descriptions of the 

O&M activities and performance 

standards for the SCIP–JW. 

Additionally, the SCIP–JW provided 

the District with access to all of its 

contract files as part of the pending 

litigation in San Carlos Irrigation and 

Drainage District v. United States, No. 

06–576C, U.S. Court of Federal Claims. 

These contract files contained 

information pertaining to current SCIP– 

JW obligations and payments for 

contract obligations relating to large 

outlays, such as well maintenance and 

repair and environmental compliance 

costs associated with O&M of the SCIP– 

JW. 

Where can I get information on the 

regulatory and legal citations in this 

notice? 

You can contact the appropriate 

office(s) stated in the table for the SCIP– 

JW, or you can use the Internet site for 

the Government Printing Office at 

http://www.gpo.gov. 

What authorizes you to issue this 

notice? 

Our authority to issue this notice is 

vested in the Secretary of the Interior by 

5 U.S.C. 301 and the Act of August 14, 

1914 (38 Stat. 583; 25 U.S.C. 385). The 

Secretary has, in turn, delegated this 

authority to the Assistant Secretary— 

Indian Affairs under Part 209, Chapter 

8.1A, of the Department of the Interior’s 

Departmental Manual. 

Who can I contact for further 

information? 

The following table contains the 

regional and project/agency contacts for 

the SCIP–JW. 

WESTERN REGION CONTACTS

Allen Anspach, Regional Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Western Regional Office, Two Arizona Center, 400 N. 5th Street, 12th floor, Phoenix, AZ 85004, Telephone: (602) 379–6600 

Project Name Project/Agency Contacts 

San Carlos Irrigation Project—Joint Works Bryan Bowker, Project Manager, P.O. Box 250, Coolidge, AZ 85228, 

Telephone: (520) 723–6216 

Consultation and Coordination With 

Tribal Governments (Executive Order 

13175) 

To fulfill its consultation 

responsibility to tribes and tribal 

organizations, BIA communicates, 

coordinates, and consults on a 

continuing basis with these entities on 

issues of water delivery, water 

availability, costs of administration, 

operation, maintenance, and 

rehabilitation of projects that concern 

them. This is accomplished at the 

individual irrigation project by project, 

BIA, and regional representatives, as 

appropriate, in accordance with local 

protocol and procedures. This notice is 

one component of our overall 

coordination and consultation process 

to provide notice to, and request 

comments from, these entities when we 

adjust irrigation assessment rates. 

Actions Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use (Executive Order 

13211) 

This rate adjustment will have no 

adverse effects on energy supply, 

distribution, or use (including a 

shortfall in supply, price increases, and 

increase use of foreign supplies) as this 

rate adjustment is implemented. This is 

a notice for rate adjustment at a BIAowned and operated irrigation project. 

Regulatory Planning and Review 

(Executive Order 12866) 

This rate adjustment is not a 

significant regulatory action and does 

not need to be reviewed by the Office 

of Management and Budget under 

Executive Order 12866. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

This rate adjustment is not a rule for 

the purposes of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act because it establishes ‘‘a 

rule of particular applicability relating 

to rates.’’ 5 U.S.C. 601(2). 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995 

This rate adjustment does not impose 

an unfunded mandate on State, local, or 

tribal governments in the aggregate, or 

on the private sector, of more than $130 

million per year. The rule does not have 

a significant or unique effect on State, 

local, or tribal governments or the 

private sector. Therefore, the 

Department of the Interior (Department) 

is not required to prepare a statement 

containing the information required by 

the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (2 

U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

Takings (Executive Order 12630) 

The Department has determined that 

rate adjustments do not have significant 

‘‘takings’’ implications. 


sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with NOTICES
40230 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 153 / Tuesday, August 11, 2009 / Notices 

Federalism (Executive Order 13132) 

The Department has determined that 

rate adjustments do not have significant 

Federalism effects because they will not 

affect the States, the relationship 

between the Federal Government and 

the States, or the distribution of power 

and responsibilities among various 

levels of government. 

Civil Justice Reform (Executive Order 

12988) 

In issuing this rule, the Department 

has taken the necessary steps to 

eliminate drafting errors and ambiguity, 

minimize potential litigation, and 

provide a clear legal standard for 

affected conduct, as required by section 

3 of Executive Order 12988. 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

This rate adjustment does not affect 

the collections of information that have 

been approved by the Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Office of Management and Budget, 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995. The OMB Control Number is 

1076–0141 and expires August 31, 2009. 

National Environmental Policy Act 

The Department has determined that 

this rate adjustment does not constitute 

a major Federal action significantly 

affecting the quality of the human 

environment and that no detailed 

statement is required under the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

U.S.C. 4321–4370(d)). 

Data Quality Act 

In developing this notice, we did not 

conduct or use a study, experiment, or 

survey requiring peer review under the 

Data Quality Act (Pub. L. No. 106–554). 

Dated: July 28, 2009. 

George T. Skibine, 

Acting Principal Deputy, Assistant 

Secretary—Indian Affairs. 

[FR Doc. E9–19115 Filed 8–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–W7–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS-R9-IA-2009-N161; 96300-1671-0000- 

P5] 

Receipt of Applications for Permit 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of receipt of applications 

for permit. 

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, invite the public to 

comment on the following applications 

for permits to conduct certain activities 

with endangered species. The 

Endangered Species Act requires that 

we invite public comment on these 

permit applications. 

DATES: Written data, comments or 

requests must be received by September 

10, 2009 

ADDRESSES: Documents and other 

information submitted with these 

applications are available for review, 

subject to the requirements of the 

Privacy Act and Freedom of Information 

Act, by any party who submits a written 

request for a copy of such documents 

within 30 days of the date of publication 

of this notice to: U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, Division of Management 

Authority, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, 

Room 212, Arlington, Virginia 22203; 

fax 703/358-2281. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Division of Management Authority, 

telephone 703/358-2104. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Endangered Species 

The public is invited to comment on 

the following applications for a permit 

to conduct certain activities with 

endangered species. This notice is 

provided pursuant to Section 10(c) of 

the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

Submit your written data, comments, or 

requests for copies of the complete 

applications to the address shown in 

ADDRESSES. 

Applicant: Archie Carr Center for Sea 

Turtle Research, University of Florida, 

Gainesville, FL, PRT-724540 

The applicant requests an amendment 

to an existing permit to import 

biological samples collected from 

captive-bred green sea turtles (Chelonia 

mydas) from the Cayman Turtle Farm, 

Cayman Islands, for the purpose of 

scientific research. Samples are to be 

collected from live or salvaged 

specimens. This notification covers 

activities conducted by the applicant 

over the remainder of the 5–year period 

of the permit. 

Applicant: University of California, 

Santa Cruz, CA, PRT-215732 

The applicant requests a permit to 

acquire from Coriell Institute of Medical 

Research, Camden, NJ, in interstate 

commerce fibroblast cell line cultures 

from gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and 

orangutan (Pongo abelli) for the purpose 

of scientific research. 

The following applicants request a 

permit to import the sport-hunted 

trophy of one male bontebok 

(Damaliscus pygargus pygargus) culled 

from a captive herd maintained under 

the management program of the 

Republic of South Africa, for the 

purpose of enhancement of the survival 

of the species. 

Applicant: Vance D. Coffman, Pebble 

Beach, CA, PRT-219600 

Applicant: Clint Chamberlain, Yukon, 

OK, PRT-219627 

Applicant: Thomas A. Fraley, Newburg, 

MO, PRT-219683 

Applicant: Eric L. Nysse, New Holstein, 

WI, PRT-219947 

Applicant: Gregory G. Rodriguez, Sugar 

Land, TX, PRT-220498 

Applicant: Randall R. Foster, Midland, 

TX, PRT-220517 

Applicant: James M. Beier, Rochester, 

MN, PRT-220669 

Applicant: James R. Boyd, Rapid City, 

SD, PRT-220718 

Applicant: Robert M. Bensinger, Akron, 

OH, PRT-220877 

Dated: July 31, 2009 

Lisa J. Lierheimer 

Senior Permit Biologist, Branch of Permits, 

Division of Management Authority 

[FR Doc. E9–19221 Filed 8–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–S 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Office of the Secretary 

Submission for OMB Review: 

Comment Request 

August 5, 2009. 

The Department of Labor (DOL) 

hereby announces the submission of the 

following public information collection 

requests (ICR) to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review and approval in accordance with 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(Pub. L. 104–13, 44 U.S.C. chapter 35). 

A copy of each ICR, with applicable 

supporting documentation; including 

among other things a description of the 

likely respondents, proposed frequency 

of response, and estimated total burden 

may be obtained from the RegInfo.gov 

Web site at http://www.reginfo.gov/

public/do/PRAMain or by contacting 

Darrin King on 202–693–4129 (this is 

not a toll-free number)/e-mail: 

DOL_PRA_PUBLIC@dol.gov. 

Interested parties are encouraged to 

send comments to the Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Attn: OMB Desk Officer for the 

Department of Labor-ETA, Office of 

Management and Budget, Room 10235, 


sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with NOTICES