Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 74 / Monday, April 17, 2000 / Notices 20485

Comments: We will summarize

written responses to this notice and

address them in our submission for

OMB approval. As a result of your

comments, we will make any necessary

adjustments to the burden in our

submission to OMB. In calculating the

burden, we assumed that respondents

perform many of the requirements in the

normal course of their activities. We

consider these to be usual and

customary and took that into account in

estimating the burden.

(1) We specifically solicit your

comments on the following questions:

(a) Is the proposed collection of

information necessary for us to properly

perform our functions, and will it be

useful?

(b) Are the estimates of the burden

hours of the proposed collection

reasonable?

(c) Do you have any suggestions that

would enhance the quality, clarity, or

usefulness of the information to be

collected?

(d) Is there a way to minimize the

information collection burden on

respondents, including through the use

of appropriate automated electronic,

mechanical, or other forms of

information technology?

(2) In addition, the PRA requires

agencies to estimate the total annual

reporting ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burden to

respondents or recordkeepers resulting

from the collection of information. We

need to know if you have costs

associated with the collection of this

information for either total capital and

startup cost components or annual

operation, maintenance, and purchase

of service components. Your estimates

should consider the costs to generate,

maintain, and disclose or provide the

information. You should describe the

methods you use to estimate major cost

factors, including system and

technology acquisition, expected useful

life of capital equipment, discount

rate(s), and the period over which you

incur costs. Capital and startup costs

include, among other items, computers

and software you purchase to prepare

for collecting information; monitoring,

sampling, drilling, and testing

equipment; and record storage facilities.

Generally, your estimates should not

include equipment or services

purchased: (i) Before October 1, 1995;

(ii) to comply with requirements not

associated with the information

collection; (iii) for reasons other than to

provide information or keep records for

the Government; or (iv) as part of

customary and usual business or private

practices.

MMS Information Collection

Clearance Officer: Jo Ann Lauterbach,

(202) 208–7744).

Dated: March 31, 2000.

E.P. Danenberger,

Chief, Engineering and Operations Division.

[FR Doc. 00–9425 Filed 4–14–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service

Agency Information Collection

Activities: Proposed Collection;

Comment Request

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service

(MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of extension of a

currently approved information

collection (OMB Control Number 1010–

0067).

SUMMARY: As part of its continuing effort

to reduce paperwork and respondent

burden, MMS invites the public and

other Federal agencies to comment on a

proposal to extend the currently

approved collection of information

discussed below on oil and gas wellcontrol operations. We intend to submit

this collection of information to the

Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) for approval. The Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) provides

that an agency may not conduct or

sponsor, and a person is not required to

respond to, a collection of information

unless it displays a currently valid OMB

control number.

DATES: Submit written comments by

June 16, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Mail or hand carry

comments to the Department of the

Interior; Minerals Management Service;

Attention: Rules Processing Team; Mail

Stop 4024; 381 Elden Street; Herndon,

Virginia 20170–4817. Our practice is to

make comments, including names and

home addresses of respondents,

available for public review during

regular business hours. Individual

respondents may request that we

withhold their home address from the

rulemaking record, which we will honor

to the extent allowable by law. There

may be circumstances in which we

would withhold from the record a

respondent’s identity, as allowable by

the law. If you wish us to withhold your

name and/or address, you must state

this prominently at the beginning of

your comment. However, we will not

consider anonymous comments. We

will make all submissions from

organizations or businesses, and from

individuals identifying themselves as

representatives or officials of

organizations or businesses, available

for public inspection in their entirety.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Alexis London, Rules Processing Team,

telephone (703) 787–1600. You may also

contact Alexis London to obtain a copy

of the collection of information at no

cost.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: 30 CFR 250, Subpart E, Oil and

Gas Well-Completion Operations

OMB Control Number: 1010–0067.

Abstract: The Outer Continental Shelf

(OCS) Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.,

requires the Secretary of the Interior to

preserve, protect, and develop oil and

gas resources in the OCS; make such

resources available to meet the Nation’s

energy needs as rapidly as possible;

balance orderly energy resources

development with protection of the

human, marine, and coastal

environment; ensure the public a fair

and equitable return on resources

offshore; and preserve and maintain free

enterprise competition. Section 1332(6)

of the OCS Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1332)

requires that ‘‘operations in the [O]uter

Continental Shelf should be conducted

in a safe manner by well-trained

personnel using technology,

precautions, and techniques sufficient

to prevent or minimize the likelihood of

blowouts, loss of well control, fires,

spillages, physical obstruction to other

users of the waters or subsoil and

seabed, or other occurrences which may

cause damage to the environment or to

property, or endanger life or health.’’

This authority and responsibility are

among those delegated to MMS. To

carry out these responsibilities, MMS

issues regulations governing oil and gas

and sulphur operations in the OCS. This

collection of information addresses 30

CFR part 250, subpart E, Oil and Gas

Well-Completion Operations.

The MMS district supervisors analyze

and evaluate the information and data

collected under subpart E to ensure that

planned well-completion operations

will protect personnel safety and natural

resources. They use the analysis and

evaluation results in the decision to

approve, disapprove, or require

modification to the proposed wellcompletion operations. Specifically,

MMS uses the information to ensure: (a)

compliance with personnel safety

training requirements; (b) crown block

safety device is operating and can be

expected to function to avoid accidents;

(c) proposed operation of the annular

preventer is technically correct and

provides adequate protection for

personnel, property, and natural

resources; (d) well-completion

20486 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 74 / Monday, April 17, 2000 / Notices

operations are conducted on well

casings that are structurally competent;

and (e) sustained casing pressures are

within acceptable limits.

Responses are mandatory. Proprietary

information respondents submit is

protected according to the Freedom of

Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and its

implementing regulations (43 CFR 2)

and 30 CFR 250.196. No items of a

sensitive nature are collected.

Frequency: The frequency of reporting

varies by section, but is mostly on

occasion.

Estimated Number and Description of

Respondents: Approximately 130

Federal OCS oil, gas, and sulphur

lessees.

Estimated Annual Reporting and

Recordkeeping ‘‘Hour’’ Burden: The

currently approved burden for this

information collection is 4,481 hours

(338 reporting and 4,503 recordkeeping

hours). This averages approximately 35

hours per respondent.

Estimated Annual Reporting and

Recordkeeping ‘‘Non-Hour Cost’’

Burden: We have identified no non-hour

cost burdens.

Comments: We will summarize

written responses to this notice and

address them in our submission for

OMB approval. As a result of your

comments, we will make any necessary

adjustments to the burden in our

submission to OMB. In calculating the

burden, we assumed that respondents

perform many of the requirements in the

normal course of their activities. We

consider these to be usual and

customary and took that into account in

estimating the burden.

(1) We specifically solicit your

comments on the following questions:

(a) Is the proposed collection of

information necessary for us to properly

perform our functions, and will it be

useful?

(b) Are the estimates of the burden

hours of the proposed collection

reasonable?

(c) Do you have any suggestions that

would enhance the quality, clarity, or

usefulness of the information to be

collected?

(d) Is there a way to minimize the

information collection burden on

respondents, including through the use

of appropriate automated electronic,

mechanical, or other forms of

information technology?

(2) In addition, the PRA requires

agencies to estimate the total annual

reporting ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burden to

respondents or recordkeepers resulting

from the collection of information. We

need to know if you have costs

associated with the collection of this

information for either total capital and

startup cost components or annual

operation, maintenance, and purchase

of service components. Your estimates

should consider the costs to generate,

maintain, and disclose or provide the

information. You should describe the

methods you use to estimate major cost

factors, including system and

technology acquisition, expected useful

life of capital equipment, discount

rate(s), and the period over which you

incur costs. Capital and startup costs

include, among other items, computers

and software you purchase to prepare

for collecting information; monitoring,

sampling, drilling, and testing

equipment; and record storage facilities.

Generally, your estimates should not

include equipment or services

purchased: (i) Before October 1, 1995;

(ii) to comply with requirements not

associated with the information

collection; (iii) for reasons other than to

provide information or keep records for

the Government; or (iv) as part of

customary and usual business or private

practices.

MMS Information Collection

Clearance Officer: Jo Ann Lauterbach,

(202) 208–7744).

Dated: March 31, 2000.

E.P. Danenberger,

Chief, Engineering and Operations Division.

[FR Doc. 00–9426 Filed 4–14–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation

and Enforcement

Notice of Proposed Information

Collection

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement, DOI.

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: In compliance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the

Office of Surface Mining (OSM) is

announcing its intention to request

approval for the collection of

information for noncoal reclamation, 30

CFR part 875.

DATES: Comments on the proposed

information collection must be received

by June 16, 2000, to be assured of

consideration.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to

John A. Trelease, Office of Surface

Mining Reclamation and Enforcement,

1951 Constitution Ave, NW, Room

210—SIB, Washington, DC 20240.

Comments may also be submitted

electronically to jtreleas@osmre.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To

request a copy of the information

collection request, explanatory

information and related forms, contact

John A. Trelease, at (202) 208–2783.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office

of Management and Budget (OMB)

regulations at 5 CFR 1320, which

implement provisions of the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–13),

require that interested members of the

public and affected agencies have an

opportunity to comment on information

collection and recordkeeping activities

(see 5 CFR 1320.8(d)). This notice

identifies an information collection

activity that OSM will submit to OMB

for extension. This collection is

contained in 30 CFR part 855, Noncoal

reclamation.

OSM has revised burden estimates,

where appropriate, to reflect current

reporting levels or adjustments based on

reestimates of burden or respondents.

OSM will request a 3-year term of

approval for this information collection

activity.

Comments are invited on: (1) The

need for the collection of information

for the performance of the functions of

the agency; (2) the accuracy of the

agency’s burden estimates; (3) ways to

enhance the quality, utility and clarity

of the information collection; and (4)

ways to minimize the information

collection burden on respondents, such

as use of automated means of collection

of the information. A summary of the

public comments will accompany

OSM’s submission of the information

collection request to OMB.

This notice provides the public with

60 days in which to comment on the

following information collection

activity:

Title: Noncoal reclamation, 30 CFR

875.

OMB Control Number: 1029–0103.

Summary: This Part establishes

procedures and requirements for State

and Indian tribes to conduct noncoal

reclamation under abandoned mine

land funding. The information is needed

to assure compliance with the Surface

Mining Control and Reclamation Act of

1977.

Bureau Form Number: None.

Frequency of Collection: Once.

Description of Respondents: State

governments and Indian Tribes.

Total Annual Responses: 7.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 340.

Dated: April 11, 2000.

Richard G. Bryson,

Chief, Division of Regulatory Support.

[FR Doc. 00–9462 Filed 4–14–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–05–M