29744 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 106 / Friday, June 1, 2001 / Proposed Rules

roles of the Federal and State

governments with regard to the

regulation of surface coal mining and

reclamation operations. One of the

purposes of SMCRA is to ‘‘establish a

nationwide program to protect society

and the environment from the adverse

effects of surface coal mining

operations.’’ Section 503(a)(1) of

SMCRA requires that State laws

regulating surface coal mining and

reclamation operations be ‘‘in

accordance with’’ the requirements of

SMCRA. Section 503(a)(7) requires that

State programs contain rules and

regulations ‘‘consistent with’’

regulations issued by the Secretary

pursuant to SMCRA.

National Environmental Policy Act

Section 702(d) of SMCRA (30 U.S.C.

1292(d)) provides that a decision on a

proposed State regulatory program

provision does not constitute a major

Federal action within the meaning of

section 102(2)(C) of the National

Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C.

4332(2)(C)). A determination has been

made that such decisions are

categorically excluded from the NEPA

process (516 DM 8.4.A).

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.).

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

that is the subject of this rule is based

upon counterpart 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 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 for the

counterpart Federal regulations.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement

Fairness Act

This rule is not a major rule under 5

U.S.C. 804(2), the Small Business

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act.

This rule: (a) Does not have an annual

effect on the economy of $100 million;

(b) Will not cause a major increase in

costs or prices for consumers,

individual industries, geographic

regions, or Federal, State or local

governmental agencies; and (c) Does not

have significant adverse effects on

competition, employment, investment,

productivity, innovation, or the ability

of U.S. based enterprises to compete

with foreign-based enterprises. This

determination is based upon the fact

that the State submittal which is the

subject of this rule is based upon

counterpart Federal regulations for

which an analysis was prepared and a

determination made that the Federal

regulation was not considered a major

rule.

Unfunded Mandates

This rule will not impose a cost of

$100 million or more in any given year

on any governmental entity or the

private sector.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 926

Intergovernmental relations, Surface

mining, Underground mining.

Dated: May 23, 2001.

James Fulton,

Acting Regional Director, Western Regional

Coordinating Center.

[FR Doc. 01–13786 Filed 5–31–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–05–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation

and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 926

[SPATS No. MT–021–FOR]

Montana Abandoned Mine Land

Reclamation Plan

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening and

extension of public comment period and

opportunity for public hearing on

proposed amendment.

SUMMARY: Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is

announcing receipt of revisions and

additional explanatory information

pertaining to a previously proposed

amendment to the Montana abandoned

mine land reclamation (AMLR) plan

(hereinafter, the ‘‘Montana plan’’) under

the Surface Mining Control and

Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA).

Montana proposes revisions and

additional explanatory information

about the Department of Environmental

Quality, its authority, organization,

personnel staffing policies, and

purchasing and procurement policies.

Montana also provides information

about the AMLR plan, the goals and

objectives of the emergency program,

reclamation project ranking and

selection, the coordination among

agencies, policies and procedures for

land acquisition, reclamation of private

land, consent for entry, the accounting

system, and a new appendix concerning

the abandoned inactive mines scoring

system (AIMSS). Montana intends to

revise its plan to meet the requirements

of the corresponding Federal regulations

and to be consistent with SMCRA, to

clarify ambiguities, and to improve

operational efficiency.

DATES: We will accept written

comments on this amendment until 4

p.m., [m.d.t.], on July 2, 2001. If

requested, we will hold a public hearing

on the amendment on June 26, 2001. We

will accept requests to speak until 4

p.m., [m.d.t.], on June 18, 2001.

ADDRESSES: You should mail or hand

deliver written comments and requests

to speak at the hearing to Guy Padgett

at the address listed below. You may

review copies of the Montana plan, this

amendment, and all written comments

received in response to this document at

the addresses listed below during

normal business hours, Monday through

Friday, excluding holidays. You may

receive one free copy of the 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, Federal Building,

Room 2128, Casper, Wyoming 82601–

1918

Vic Anderson, Chief, Mine Waste

Cleanup Bureau, Remediation

Division, Montana Department of

Environmental Quality, P.O. Box

200901, Helena, MT 59620–0901,

Telephone: (406) 444–2544

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Guy

Padgett, Telephone: (307) 261–6550,

Internet address: gpadgett@osmre.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the Montana Plan

II. Description of the Proposed Amendment

III. Public Comment Procedures

IV. Procedural Determinations

I. Background on the Montana Plan

On November 24, 1980, the Secretary

of the Interior approved the Montana

plan. You can find general background

information on the Montana plan,

including the Secretary’s findings and

the disposition of comments, in the

October 24, 1980, Federal Register (45

FR 70445). You can also find later

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 106 / Friday, June 1, 2001 / Proposed Rules 29745

actions concerning Montana’s plan and

plan amendments at 30 CFR 926.21 and

926.25.

II. Description of the Proposed

Amendment

By letter dated August 15, 2000,

Montana sent to us a proposed

amendment to its plan (SPATS No. MT–

021–FOR, Administrative Record No.

MT–18–01) under SMCRA (30 U.S.C.

1201 et seq.). Montana sent the

amendment in response to the required

plan amendment at 30 CFR 926.21(a)

and at its own initiative. The full text of

the plan amendment is available for you

to read at the locations listed above

under ADDRESSES.

Montana proposed to delete its AMLR

rule definitions of ‘‘abandoned mine

land reclamation fund,’’ ‘‘emergency,’’

and ‘‘extreme danger,’’ at ARM 26.4.301

and its definitions of ‘‘abandoned mine

land reclamation fund,’’ ‘‘emergency,’’

‘‘expended,’’ ‘‘extreme danger,’’ ‘‘fund,’’

‘‘left or abandoned in either an

unreclaimed or inadequately reclaimed

condition,’’ ‘‘Montana abandoned mine

reclamation program,’’ and ‘‘reclamation

activities’’ at ARM 26.4.1231. Montana

also proposed to delete the AMLR rules

at ARM 26.4.1232 through 26.4.1242

and to rely instead on its AMLR plan

and on the statutory provisions at MCA

82–4–239, 82–4–371, and 82–4–445.

Montana proposed revisions to MCA

82–4–239 to reflect the reorganized

duties of the Board of Environmental

Review and the Department of

Environmental Quality. Lastly, Montana

presented its 1995 reorganization plan

abolishing the Department of State

Lands and creating the Department of

Environmental Quality.

We announced receipt of the

proposed amendment in the September

25, 2000, Federal Register (65 FR

57581), provided an opportunity for a

public hearing or meeting on its

substantive adequacy, and invited

public comment on its adequacy

(Administrative Record No. MT–18–06).

Because no one requested a public

hearing or meeting, none was held. The

public comment period ended on

October 25,2000.

During our review of the amendment,

we identified concerns relating to the

deletion of Montana’s rules concerning

non-emergency AML reclamation, the

deletion of Montana’s rules concerning

emergency reclamation, the statutes

relating to Montana’s AMLR plan, crossreferences and quotes in the Montana

plan which cited the deleted rules, and

the reference to the former Department

of State Lands, now the Department of

Environmental Quality. We notified

Montana of our concerns by letter dated

January 24, 2001 (Administrative

Record No. MT–18–08). Montana

responded in a letter dated April 30,

2001, by submitting additional

explanatory information to OSM’s

concerns and a revised 2001 plan

amendment (Administrative Record No.

MT–18–11).

Specifically, Montana proposes

explanatory information in a letter dated

April 30, 2001 to address each of OSM’s

concerns, in particular to explain where

Montana believes it retains authority to

implement its approved AMLR program

(both emergency and non-emergency

reclamation activities) for each deleted

rule, where Montana intends to rely

upon Federal authority, that the 2001

plan amendment supercedes anything

contained in earlier plans which may

conflict with subsequent revisions, and

to list additional statutes which provide

AMLR authority. Montana has also

revised the AMLR plan to provide 2001

updated information, delete obsolete

cites, change the State agency name to

the Department of Environmental

Quality, provide missing pages, provide

an organization chart for the Department

of Environmental Quality, and make

other editorial changes.

III. Public Comment Procedures

Written Comments

Send your written comments to us at

the address given above. Your written

comments should be specific, pertain

only to the issues proposed in this

rulemaking, and include explanations in

support of your recommendations. In

the final rulemaking, we will not

consider or include in the

Administrative Record any comments

received after the time indicated under

DATES or at locations other than the

Casper Field Office.

Electronic Comments

Please submit Internet comments as

an ASCII, WordPerfect, or Word file

avoiding the use of special characters

and any form of encryption. Please also

include Attn: SPATS No. MT–021–FOR,

your name and return address in your

Internet message. If you do not receive

a confirmation that we have received

your Internet message, contact the

Casper Field Office at (307) 261–6550.

Availability of Comments

We will make comments, including

names and addresses of respondents,

available for public review during

normal business hours. We will not

consider anonymous comments. If

individual respondents request

confidentiality, we will honor their

request to the extent allowable by law.

Individual respondents who wish to

withhold their name or address from

public review, except for the city or

town, must state this prominently at the

beginning of their 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 review in their entirety.

IV. Procedural Determinations

Executive Order 12630—Takings

This rule does not have takings

implications. This determination is

based on the analysis performed for the

counterpart Federal regulations.

Executive Order 12866—Regulatory

Planning and Review

This rule is exempted from review by

the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) under Executive Order 12866.

Executive Order 12988—Civil Justice

Reform

The Department of the Interior has

conducted the reviews required by

section 3 of Executive Order 12988 and

has determined that, to the extent

allowable by law, 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 AMLR plans

and revisions thereof since each such

plan is drafted and promulgated by a

specific State, not by OSM. Decisions on

proposed State AMLR plans and

revisions thereof submitted by a State

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 Part 884.

Executive Order 13132—Federalism

This rule does not have Federalism

implications within the meaning of

Executive Order 13132. SMCRA

delineates the roles of the Federal and

State governments with regard to the

regulation of surface coal mining and

reclamation operations. One of the

purposes of SMCRA is to establish a

nationwide program to protect society

and the environment from the adverse

effects of surface coal mining

operations. Section 405 of SMCRA

authorized the creation of State

abandoned mine reclamation programs

for the purpose of reclaiming and

restoring land and water resources

adversely affected by past coal mining

operations. Section 405(d) of SMCRA

specifies the criteria for the approval

and disapproval of these State

abandoned mine reclamation programs

29746 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 106 / Friday, June 1, 2001 / Proposed Rules

which are funded at 100% by grants

from the Federal government.

National Environmental Policy Act

No environmental impact statement is

required for this rule because agency

decisions on proposed State 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)).

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.).

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

on Federal regulations for which an

economic analysis was prepared and

certification made that such regulations

would not have a significant economic

effect on 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 on the

data and assumptions in the analyses for

the corresponding Federal regulations.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement

Fairness Act

This rule is not a major rule under 5

U.S.C. 804(2), the Small Business

Regulatory Enforcement Act. This rule:

(a) Does not have an annual effect on the

economy of $100 million; (b) will not

cause a major increase in costs or prices

for consumers, individual industries,

geographic regions, or Federal, State or

local governmental agencies; and (c)

does not have significant adverse effects

on competition, employment,

investment, productivity, innovation, or

the ability of U.S.-based enterprises to

compete with foreign-based enterprises.

This determination is based on the fact

that the State submittal which is the

subject of this rule is based on

counterpart Federal regulations for

which an analysis was prepared and a

determination made that the Federal

regulation was not considered a major

rule.

Unfunded Mandates

This rule will not impose a cost of

$100 million or more in any given year

on any governmental entity or the

private sector.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 926

Abandoned mine reclamation

programs, Intergovernmental relations,

Surface mining, Underground mining.

Dated: May 21, 2001.

Brent Wahlquist,

Regional Director, Western Regional

Coordinating Center.

[FR Doc. 01–13802 Filed 5–31–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–05–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Fiscal Service

31 CFR 210

Federal Government Participation in

the Automated Clearing House—

Extension of Public Comment Period

AGENCY: Financial Management Service,

Fiscal Service, Department of the

Treasury.

ACTION: Notice of extension of public

comment period.

SUMMARY: On April 12, 2001, the

Financial Management Service (FMS)

published a Notice of Proposed

Rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to revise

the regulation, 31 CFR part 210,

governing the use of the Automated

Clearing House (ACH) system by

Federal agencies (66 FR 18888). The

proposed revisions address the

conversion of checks to ACH debit

entries at Federal agency points-ofpurchase and at lockbox locations

where payments to Federal agencies are

sent. The proposed revisions also

address the origination by agencies of

ACH debit entries authorized over the

Internet. FMS requested that public

comments on the proposed revisions be

submitted by July 11, 2001. In response

to requests by several parties for an

extension of the comment deadline,

FMS is extending the comment period

to July 31, 2001.

DATES: Comments will be accepted

through July 31, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent

electronically to

210comments@fms.treas.gov. Comments

may also be mailed to Donna Kotelnicki,

Acting Director, Cash Management

Policy and Planning Division, Financial

Management Service, U.S. Department

of the Treasury, Room 420, 410 14th

Street, SW., Washington, DC 20227. The

NPRM can be downloaded at the

following World Wide Web address:

http://www.fms.treas.gov/ach.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Walt

Henderson, Senior Financial Program

Specialist, at (202) 874–6705 or

walt.henderson@fms.treas.gov; Matthew

Helfrich, Financial Program Specialist,

at (202) 874–6754 or

matthew.helfrich@fms.treas.gov; Natalie

H. Diana, Senior Attorney, at (202) 874–

6680 or natalie.diana@fms.treas.gov; or

Donna Kotelnicki, Acting Director, Cash

Management Policy and Planning

Division, at (202) 874–6590 or

donna.kotelnicki@fms.treas.gov.

Dated: May 25, 2001.

Kenneth R. Papaj,

Deputy Commissioner.

[FR Doc. 01–13789 Filed 5–31–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4810–35–M

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

40 CFR Part 271

[FRL–6938–9]

Maryland: Final Authorization of State

Hazardous Waste Management

Program Revisions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: Maryland has applied to EPA

for Final authorization of changes to its

hazardous waste program under the

Resource Conservation and Recovery

Act (RCRA). EPA proposes to grant such

Final authorization to Maryland. In the

‘‘Rules and Regulations’’ section of this

Federal Register, EPA is authorizing the

changes by an immediate final rule. EPA

did not make a proposal prior to the

immediate final rule because we believe

this action is not controversial and we

do not expect comments that oppose it.

We have explained the reasons for this

authorization in the preamble to the

immediate final rule. Unless we get

written comments which oppose this

authorization during the comment

period, the immediate final rule will

become effective on the date it

establishes, and we will not take further

action on this proposal. If we get

comments that oppose this action, we

will withdraw the immediate final rule,

and it will not take effect. We will then

respond to public comments in a later

final rule based on this proposal. You

may not have another opportunity for

comment. If you want to comment on

this action, you must do so at this time.