Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 237 / Friday, December 8, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 76933

§ 1.894–1T [Removed]

Par. 3. Section 1.894–1T is removed.

Cynthia E. Grigsby,

Chief, Regulations Unit, Office of Special

Counsel (Modernization & Strategic

Planning).

[FR Doc. 00–31255 Filed 12–7–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4830–01–U

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service

30 CFR Part 250

RIN 1010–AC66

Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in

the Outer Continental Shelf—Update of

Documents Incorporated by

Reference—API Specification 14A,

Tenth Edition

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service

(MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: MMS is updating one

document incorporated by reference in

regulations governing oil and gas and

sulphur operations in the Outer

Continental Shelf (OCS). The new

edition of this document incorporated

by reference will ensure that lessees use

the best available and safest

technologies while operating in the

OCS. The updated document, issued by

the American Petroleum Institute (API),

is API Specification 14A, Tenth Edition,

November 2000, ISO 10432:1999,

Petroleum and natural gas industries—

Downhole equipment—Subsurface

safety valve equipment, Stock No.

G14A09.

DATES: This rule is effective January 8,

2001. The incorporation by reference of

publications listed in the regulation is

approved by the Director of the Federal

Register as of January 8, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Fred

Gray, Operations Analysis Branch, at

(703) 787–1027.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We use

standards, specifications, and

recommended practices developed by

standard-setting organizations and the

oil and gas industry for establishing

requirements for activities in the OCS.

This practice, known as incorporation

by reference, allows us to incorporate

the provisions of technical standards

into the regulations without increasing

the volume of the Code of Federal

Regulations (CFR). The legal effect of

incorporation by reference is that the

material is treated as if it was published

in the Federal Register. This material,

like any other properly issued

regulation, then has the force and effect

of law. We hold operators/lessees

accountable for complying with the

documents incorporated by reference in

our regulations. The regulations found

at 1 CFR part 51 govern how MMS and

other Federal agencies incorporate

various documents by reference.

Agencies can only incorporate by

reference through publication in the

Federal Register. Agencies must also

gain approval from the Director of the

Federal Register for each publication

incorporated by reference. Incorporation

by reference of a document or

publication is limited to the specific

edition or specific edition and

supplement or addendum cited in the

regulations.

The International Organization for

Standardization (ISO) is a worldwide

federation of national standards bodies

(ISO member bodies). Founded in the

mid-1940’s, ISO is a non-profit agency

based in Geneva, Switzerland, whose

purpose is to promote the development

of international standards and related

activities to facilitate the global

exchange of goods and services. The

American National Standards Institute

(ANSI) is the official United States

member body to ISO.

The work of preparing international

standards is normally carried out

through an ISO technical committee

(TC). Each member body interested in a

subject for which a TC has been

established has the right to be

represented on that committee. ANSI

relies on various United States trade and

industry associations, such as the API,

for support on industry-specific

standards. This standard was developed

by ISO/TC 67, ‘‘Materials, equipment

and offshore structures for petroleum

and natural gas industries.’’ API has

been appointed by ANSI to administer

the US ISO/TC 67 delegation, known as

the US Technical Advisory Group (US

TAG). MMS has been an active

participant in the US TAG since August

1998.

This second edition of the

international standard cancels and

replaces the first edition (ISO

10432:1993) and includes the changes

in the similar API standard, API

specification 14A, Ninth Edition, 1994,

and its supplement dated December 15,

1997. ISO 10432:1999 was released as a

Final Draft International Standard

(FDIS) on June 3, 1999. Voting to

advance the FDIS to a full international

standard occurred on August 3, 1999,

and the standard was published as an

international standard in November

1999.

ISO permits a national adoption of its

international standards with or without

the inclusion of regional-specific

annexes to account for regional or local

conditions. The API procedures to effect

the adoption of this international

standard with a regional annex included

a balloting and comment period to

ensure consensus among users,

manufacturers, regulatory agencies, and

other interested parties. API balloting of

the international standard with U.S.

annexes, including an annex addressing

the API quality specification and an

independent test agency, occurred on

June 9, 2000, and the API version of the

international standard was published in

October 2000.

This standard was formulated to

provide the minimum acceptable

requirements for subsurface safety valve

(SSSV) equipment—the SSSV is a

downhole safety device used to shut off

flow of oil and gas in the event of an

emergency. MMS views this important

piece of equipment as the last

opportunity to secure the well and/or

prevent pollution of the environment.

The standard covers SSSVs, safety valve

locks, safety valve landing nipples, and

all components that establish tolerances

and/or clearances that may affect

performance or interchangeability of the

SSSV equipment.

We currently incorporate by reference

the ninth edition (July 1994) of API

specification 14A, without Supplement

1. Until now, we have not included API

Specification 14A, Supplement 1, in the

documents incorporated by reference in

our regulations. Among other things,

API Specification 14A, Supplement 1,

deleted a 3-year requalification test

requirement for SSSVs.

We have been involved in a series of

meetings and discussions with oil and

gas operating companies,

representatives of oil and gas

associations, equipment manufacturers,

quality assurance auditors, independent

third-party testing and research

facilities, and MMS offshore inspectors

to consider the relative merits of the 3-

year requalification test requirement.

We specifically requested public

comment on the potential impacts of

deleting the 3-year requalification

testing requirement for SSSVs in the

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (65 FR

9232) published in the Federal Register

on February 24, 2000. Comments were

also sought on the suitability of

including an international standard

among the documents incorporated by

reference in our regulations.

In response to our request for public

comment on the 3-year requalification

test requirement, we received five

comments supportive of deleting the 3-

76934 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 237 / Friday, December 8, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

year requalification test requirement

and two comments that did not support

deletion of the 3-year requalification test

requirement. Comments were received

from three oil and gas associations,

three equipment manufacturers, and one

test agency. We have considered all the

comments received in our analysis, and

have determined that the newly issued

API version of the international

standard, which does not include a 3-

year requalification test requirement,

should be incorporated into the MMS

regulations. Comments were also

generally in favor of using the API

standard in lieu of the international

standard since the API standard

contained the regionally specific

annexes appropriate for OCS use.

Procedural Matters

This is a very simple rule to update

one document previously incorporated

by reference. The addition of the new

document, API Specification 14A, Tenth

Edition, ISO 10432:1999, Petroleum and

natural gas industries—Downhole

equipment—Subsurface safety valve

equipment, will not have a significant

effect on any offshore lessee/operator

(small or large). One entity, which

serves as the only independent test

agency for initial design verification

testing and 3-year requalification

testing, will be negatively affected by

the deletion of the 3-year requalification

test requirement. Four U.S.

manufacturers, with six U.S. facilities

manufacturing SSSVs, will benefit from

the elimination of costs associated with

the 3-year requalification test

requirement.

Regulatory Planning and Review

(Executive Order 12866)

This document is not a significant

rule and is not subject to review by the

Office of Management and Budget under

Executive Order 12866.

(1) This rule will not have an effect of

$100 million or more on the economy.

It will not adversely affect in a material

way the economy, productivity,

competition, jobs, the environment,

public health or safety, or State, local,

or tribal governments or communities.

The rule would have no significant

economic impact because the document

does not contain any significant

revisions that will cause lessees or

operators to change their business

practices. The document will not

require the retrofitting of any facilities.

(2) This rule will not create a serious

inconsistency or otherwise interfere

with an action taken or planned by

another agency.

(3) This rule does not alter the

budgetary effects or entitlements, grants,

user fees, or loan programs or the rights

or obligations of their recipients.

(4) This rule does not raise novel legal

or policy issues.

Regulatory Flexibility Act (RF Act)

The Department certifies that this

document will not have a significant

economic effect on a substantial number

of small entities under the RF Act (5

U.S.C. 601 et seq.). The Small Business

Administration (SBA) defines a small

business as having:

• Annual revenues of $5 million or

less for exploration service and field

service companies.

• Fewer than 500 employees for

drilling companies and for companies

that extract oil, gas, or natural gas

liquids.

Incorporating the new document into

MMS regulations would allow SSSVs

with design verification approval to be

manufactured and placed into service

without the need for a requalification

test every 3 years. Thus, incorporating

the new document will not impose new

costs on the offshore oil and gas

industry but rather may reduce costs to

the industry in that manufacturers of

SSSVs will not incur the costs of a

requalification test every 3 years.

Incorporating the new document will

also not impose new costs on the

manufacturers of the offshore

equipment, as previously stated. There

are four U.S. companies that

manufacture SSSVs for service on the

OCS, none of whom could be classified

as a small entity, who will benefit from

cost savings attributable to the deletion

of the 3-year requalification test

requirement.

The test agency that will be negatively

affected by the deletion of the 3-year

requalification test requirement is an

independent, nonprofit, applied

research and development organization.

The test agency has recently reported

annual revenues in excess of $300

million and employment of over 2500

staff. The test agency does not qualify as

a small entity.

The Department also determined that

the indirect effects of this rule on small

entities that provide other support

functions for offshore activities are

insignificant (in effect zero).

Your comments are important. The

Small Business and Agriculture

Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman

and 10 Regional Fairness Boards were

established to receive comments from

small business about Federal agency

enforcement actions. The Ombudsman

will annually evaluate the enforcement

activities and rate each agency’s

responsiveness to small business. If you

wish to comment on the enforcement

actions of MMS, call toll-free (888) 734–

3247.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement

Fairness Act (SBREFA)

This rule is not a major rule under 5

U.S.C. 804(2), SBREFA. This rule:

(a) Does not have an annual effect on

the economy of $100 million or more.

The proposed rule will not cause any

significant costs to lessees or operators.

The only costs will be the purchase of

the new document and revisions to

some operating procedures. The

revisions to operating procedures will

actually result in significant costs

savings, in that manufacturers of SSSVs

will not incur the costs of a

requalification test every 3 years.

(b) Will not cause a major increase in

costs or prices for consumers,

individual industries, Federal, State, or

local government agencies, or

geographic regions.

(c) Does not have significant adverse

effects on competition, employment,

investment, productivity, innovation, or

the ability of United States-based

enterprises to compete with foreignbased enterprises.

Federalism (Executive Order 13132)

According to Executive Order 13132,

this rule does not have Federalism

implications. The rule does not

substantially and directly affect the

relationship between the Federal and

State governments because it concerns

the manufacturing requirements for

specific equipment used in offshore oil

and gas wells. The rule only affects

manufacturers and users of such

equipment. This rule does not impose

costs on States or localities, as it only

affects manufacturers and users of

specific equipment used in offshore oil

and gas wells.

Takings Implication Assessment

(Executive Order 12630)

According to Executive Order 12630,

this rule does not have significant

Takings Implications. MMS determined

this rule does not represent a

governmental action capable of

interference with constitutionally

protected property rights. Thus, a

Takings Implications Assessment is not

required under Executive Order 12630,

Governmental Actions and Interference

with Constitutionally Protected Property

Rights.

Civil Justice Reform (Executive Order

12988)

According to Executive Order 12988,

the Office of the Solicitor has

determined that this rule does not

unduly burden the judicial system and

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 237 / Friday, December 8, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 76935

meets the requirements of sections 3(a)

and 3(b)(2) of the Order.

National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA) of 1969

This rule does not constitute a major

Federal action significantly affecting the

quality of the human environment. A

detailed statement under the NEPA is

not required.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

There are no information collection

requirements associated with this rule.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

(UMRA) of 1995

This rule does not impose an

unfunded mandate on State, local, and

tribal governments or the private sector

of more than $100 million per year. The

rule does not have a significant or

unique effect on State, local, or tribal

governments or the private sector. A

statement containing the information

required by the UMRA (2 U.S.C. 1531 et

seq.) is not required.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 250

Continental shelf, Environmental

impact statements, Environmental

protection, Government contracts,

Incorporation by reference,

Investigations, Mineral royalties, Oil

and gas development and production,

Oil and gas exploration, Oil and gas

reserves, Penalties, Pipelines, Public

lands—mineral resources, Public

lands—rights-of-way, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements, Sulphur

development and production, Sulphur

exploration, Surety bonds.

Dated: November 14, 2000.

Sylvia Baca,

Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals

Management.,

For the reasons stated in the

preamble, the Minerals Management

Service amends 30 CFR part 250 as

follows:

PART 250—OIL AND GAS AND

SULPHUR OPERATIONS IN THE

OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF

1. The authority citation for 30 CFR

part 250 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 43 U.S.C. 1331, et seq.

2. In § 250.198, in the table in

paragraph (e), the entry for ‘‘API Spec

14A’’ is revised to read as follows:

§ 250.198 Documents incorporated by

reference.

* * * * *

(e) * * *

Title of documents Incorporated by

reference at

*******

API Spec 14A, Tenth Edition, November 2000, ISO10432:1999, Petroleum and Natural Gas Industries—Downhole

Equipment—Subsurface Safety Valve Equipment, API Stock No. G14A09.

§ 250.806(a)(3).

***** * *

3. In § 250.806, the last sentence in

paragraph (a)(3) is revised and new

paragraph (a)(4) is added to read as

follows:

§ 250.806 Safety and pollution prevention

equipment quality assurance requirements.

(a) * * *

(3) * * * All SSSVs must meet the

technical specifications of API

Specification 14A.

(4) For information on all standards

mentioned in this section, see § 250.198.

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 00–30694 Filed 12–7–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–MR–U

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 117

[CGD07–00–106]

RIN 2115–AE47

Drawbridge Operation Regulations;

Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, Mile

1084.6, Miami, FL

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Temporary final rule with

request for comments.

SUMMARY: Commander, Seventh Coast

Guard District is temporarily changing

the regulations governing the West 79th

Street Causeway Bridge, mile 1084.6

across the Atlantic Intracoastal

Waterway at Miami, Florida. This

temporary rule establishes scheduled

openings on the hour and half hour,

Monday through Saturday, from 7 a.m.

to 6:30 p.m., and allows the bridge to

remain closed from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30

a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday

through Friday. The drawbridge will

open on demand during all other

periods including federal holidays and

Sundays. This action is necessary to

facilitate drawbridge rehabilitation to

resolve related vehicle traffic flow

problems during rush hour.

DATES: This rule is effective from

November 21, 2000, to February 28,

2001. Comments must be received by

December 31, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Comments and material

received from the public, as well as

documents indicated in this preamble as

being available in the docket, are part of

docket [CGD07–00–106] and are

available for inspection or copying at

Commander (obr), Seventh Coast Guard

District, 909 S. E. 1st Avenue, Room

406, Miami, FL 33131, between 8 a.m.

and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,

except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

Barry Dragon, Project Officer, Seventh

Coast Guard District, at (305) 415–6730.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Regulatory Information

We did not publish a notice of

proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for this

regulation. Under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the

Coast Guard finds that good cause exists

for not publishing an NPRM. Publishing

an NPRM is impracticable and contrary

to the public interest because

rehabilitation is underway.

Further, under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), the

Coast Guard finds that good cause exists

for making this rule effective less than

30 days after publication in the Federal

Register. Rehabilitation is underway

and a delayed effective date is

impracticable.

Request for Comments

We encourage you to participate in

this rulemaking by submitting

comments and related material. If you

do so, please include your name and

address, identify the docket number for

this rulemaking (CGD07–00–106),