Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 79 / Tuesday, April 25, 1995 / Proposed Rules 20251

30 CFR Part 926

Montana Abandoned Mine Land

Reclamation (AMLR) Plan

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM),

Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment

period and opportunity for public

hearing on proposed amendment.

SUMMARY: OSM is announcing receipt of

a proposed amendment to the Montana

AMLR plan (hereinafter, the ‘‘Montana

plan’’) under the Surface Mining

Control and Reclamation Act of 1977

(SMCRA). The proposed amendment

consists of the addition of new

provisions to the Montana plan

concerning the reclamation of interim

program and insolvent surety bond

forfeiture coal sites, future set-aside

funds and an acid mine drainage

program, and water supply replacement

project requirements. The amendment is

intended to incorporate the additional

flexibility afforded by SMCRA, as

amended by the Omnibus Budget

Reconciliation Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101–

508), and to improve operational

efficiency.

DATES: Written comments must be

received by 4 p.m., m.d.t., May 25, 1995.

If requested, a public hearing on the

proposed amendment will be held on

May 22, 1995. Requests to present oral

testimony at the hearing must be

received by 4 p.m., m.d.t., on May 10,

1995.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should

be mailed or hand delivered to Guy

Padgett at the address listed below.

Copies of the Montana plan, the

proposed amendment, 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 Casper Field Office.

Guy Padgett, Director, Casper Field

Office, Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement, 100

East B Street, room 2128, Casper,

Wyoming 82601–1918

Vic Anderson, Director, Abandoned

Mine Reclamation Bureau, Montana

Department of State Lands, Capitol

Station, 1625 Eleventh Avenue,

Helena, Montana 59620, Telephone:

(406) 444–2074

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Guy Padgett, Telephone: (307) 261–

5776.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the Montana AMLR

Plan

On November 24, 1980, the Secretary

of the Interior approved the Montana

plan. General background information,

including the Secretary’s findings, the

disposition of comments, and the

approval of the Montana plan can be

found in the November 24, 1980,

Federal Register (45 FR 70445).

Subsequent actions concerning

Montana’s plan and plan amendments

can be found at 30 CFR 926.20 and

926.25.

II. Proposed Amendment

By letter dated March 22, 1995

(administrative record No. MT–AML–

01), and memorandum dated April 5,

1995 (administrative record No. MT–

AML–02), Montana submitted a

proposed amendment to its AMLR plan

pursuant to SMCRA. Montana

submitted the proposed amendment at

its own initiative. Montana proposed to

revise its AMLR plan to allow

implementation of several initiatives

established under the Omnibus Budget

Reconciliation Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101–

508). The first initiative involves use of

abandoned mine reclamation funds for

reclaiming high priority sites where

mining occurred during the period

beginning on August 4, 1977, and

ending on or before April 1, 1980, and

where any funds available for

reclamation or abatement are not

sufficient to provide for adequate

reclamation or abatement at the site.

The second initiative involves use of

abandoned mine reclamation funds for

reclaiming high priority sites where

mining occurred during the period

beginning on August 4, 1977, and

ending on or before November 5, 1990,

during which time the surety became

insolvent, and where funds immediately

available from proceedings relating to

such insolvency or from any other

source, are not sufficient to provide for

adequate reclamation or abatement at

the site. The third initiative involves

setting aside up to 10 percent of the

total of the abandoned mine reclamation

grants made annually to Montana to

provide for restoration of eligible lands

and waters after expiration of the

Federal abandoned mine land program

and implementation of an acid mine

drainage program. The fourth initiative

allows Montana to expend up to 30

percent of the abandoned mine

reclamation grant funds allocated each

year to the State for the purpose of

protecting, repairing, replacing,

constructing, or enhancing facilities

relating to water supply, including

water distribution facilities and

treatment plants, and to replace water

supplies adversely affected by past

mineral mining practices.

III. Public Comment Procedures

In accordance with the provisions of

30 CFR 884.15(a) and 884.14(a), OSM is

seeking comments on whether the

proposed amendment satisfies the

applicable plan approval criteria of 30

CFR 884.14. If the amendment is

deemed adequate, it will become part of

the Montana plan.

1. 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 Casper Field Office will

not necessarily be considered in the

final rulemaking or included in the

administrative record.

2. Public Hearing

Persons wishing to testify at the

public hearing should contact the

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m.,

m.d.t., May 10, 1995. The location and

time of the hearing will be arranged

with those persons requesting the

hearing. 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. If no one requests

an opportunity to testify 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 testify have been heard.

Persons in the audience who have not

been scheduled to testify, and who wish

to do so, will be heard following those

who have been scheduled. The hearing

will end after all persons scheduled to

testify and persons present in the

audience who wish to testify have been

heard.

3. Public Meeting

If only one person requests an

opportunity to testify 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
20252 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 79 / Tuesday, April 25, 1995 / Proposed Rules

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

1. 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).

2. 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 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 or Tribal AMLR

plans and revisions thereof since each

such plan is drafted and promulgated by

a specific State or Tribe, not by OSM.

Decisions on proposed State or Tribal

AMLR plans and revisions thereof

submitted by a State or Tribe are based

on a determination of whether the

submittal meets the requirements of

Title IV of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1231–

1243) and the applicable Federal

regulations at 30 CFR parts 884 and 888.

3. National Environmental Policy Act

No environmental impact statement is

required for this rule since agency

decisions on proposed State or Tribe

AMLR plans and revisions thereof are

categorically excluded from compliance

with the National Environmental Policy

Act (42 U.S.C. 4332) by the Manual of

the Department of the Interior (516 DM

6, appendix 8, paragraph 8.4B(29)).

4. 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.).

5. 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 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

established by SMCRA or 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 in the analyses for

the corresponding Federal regulations.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 926

Intergovernmental relations, Surface

mining, Underground mining.

Dated: April 19, 1995.

Russell F. Price,

Acting Assistant Director , Western Support

Center.

[FR Doc. 95–10168 Filed 4–24–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–05–M

OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND

BUDGET

Office of Federal Procurement Policy

48 CFR Part 9903

Cost Accounting Standards Board;

Changes in Cost Accounting Practices

AGENCY: Cost Accounting Standards

Board, Office of Federal Procurement

Policy, OMB.

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed

rulemaking.

SUMMARY: The Cost Accounting

Standards Board (CASB) invites

coverage comments on proposed

amendments to the regulatory

provisions contained in Chapter 99 of

Title 48. The proposed amendments

would revise the current definitions and

illustrations governing changes in cost

accounting practices. Also proposed is

the addition of a new Subpart to clarify

the process for determining and

resolving the cost impact on covered

contract prices and/or contract costs

when a contractor makes a change to its

cost accounting practices, fails to

comply with a Cost Accounting

Standard (CAS) or fails to consistently

follow its established cost accounting

practices.

DATES: Requests for a copy of the

proposed amendments must be in

writing and must be received by June

26, 1995. Comments must be in writing

and must be received by July 10, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Requests for a copy of the

proposed amendments or comments

pertaining to this Advance Notice of

Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) should

be addressed to Mr. Rudolph J.

Schuhbauer, Project Director, Cost

Accounting Standards Board, Office of

Federal Procurement Policy, 725 17th

Street, NW, Room 9001, Washington,

DC 20503. Attn: CASB Docket No. 93–

01A.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rudolph J. Schuhbauer, Project Director,

Cost Accounting Standards Board

(telephone 202–395–3254).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Regulatory Process

The Cost Accounting Standards

Board’s rules and regulations are

codified at 48 CFR Chapter 99. Section

26(g)(1) of the Office of Federal

Procurement Policy Act, 41 U.S.C.

§ 422(g)(1), requires that the Board, prior

to the promulgation of any new or

revised Cost Accounting Standard,

complete a prescribed rulemaking

process. This process consists of the

following four steps:

1. Consult with interested persons

concerning the advantages,

disadvantages and improvements

anticipated in the pricing and

administration of government contracts

as a result of a proposed Standard.

2. Promulgate an Advance Notice of

Proposed Rulemaking.

3. Promulgate a Notice of Proposed

Rulemaking.

4. Promulgate a Final Rule.

This proposal is step two in the four

step process.

B. Summary of Proposed Rule

In response to the Cost Accounting

Standards Board’s solicitation of agenda

items, several commenters identified the

Board’s regulatory coverage on ‘‘changes

in cost accounting practice’’ as a

potential agenda item. The commenters

advised the Board that industry and

Government officials are interpreting

the regulatory coverage differently and

often disagree on whether a particular

change made in a contractor’s

organizational structure did or did not

result in a change in cost accounting

practice. The Board, after review and

extended discussions of the issues

associated with the proposed topic,

identified Organizational Changes and

Changes In Cost Accounting Practices as

a topic on which a research project

should be started.

On April 9, 1993, the CASB published

a notice in the Federal Register, 58 FR

18428, requesting public comments

from interested parties concerning a

Staff Discussion Paper on that topic.

The purpose of the Staff Discussion

Paper was to solicit public views

concerning the advantages,

disadvantages and improvements

anticipated if the Board were to