Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 12 / Thursday, January 18, 2001 / Rules and Regulations 4671

expects to refund with a long-term

financing (such as a bond anticipation

note), 120 percent of the weighted

average reasonably expected economic

life of the facilities financed; or

(ii) A principal purpose for the

issuance of the refunding bonds is to

make one or more new conduit loans.

(h) Permissive retroactive application.

Except as provided in § 1.141–15(d) or

(e) or paragraph (i) of this section,

§§ 1.141–1 through 1.141–6, 1.141–7T

through 1.141–8T, 1.141–9 through

1.141–14, 1.145–1 through 1.145–2,

1.150–1(a)(3) and the definition of bond

documents contained in § 1.150–1(b)

may be applied in whole, but not in part

to—

(1) Outstanding bonds that are sold

before January 19, 2001, and subject to

section 141; or

(2) Refunding bonds sold on or after

January 19, 2001, that are subject to

section 141.

(i) Permissive application of certain

regulations pertaining to output

contracts. Section 1.141–7T(f)(4) and (5)

may be applied to any bonds.

Par. 7. Section 1.142(f)(4)–1 is added

to read as follows:

§ 1.142(f)(4)–1 Manner of making election

to terminate tax-exempt bond financing.

(a) Overview. Section 142(f)(4) permits

a person engaged in the local furnishing

of electric energy or gas (a local

furnisher) that uses facilities financed

with exempt facility bonds under

section 142(a)(8) and that expands its

service area in a manner inconsistent

with the requirements of sections

142(a)(8) and (f) to make an election to

ensure that those bonds will continue to

be treated as exempt facility bonds. The

election must meet the requirements of

paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.

(b) Time for making election—(1) In

general. An election under section

142(f)(4)(B) must be filed with the

Internal Revenue Service on or before 90

days after the date of the service area

expansion that causes bonds to cease to

meet the requirements of sections

142(a)(8) and (f).

(2) Date of service area expansion. For

the purposes of this section, the date of

the service area expansion is the first

date on which the local furnisher is

authorized to collect revenue for the

provision of service in the expanded

area.

(c) Manner of making election. An

election under section 142(f)(4)(B) must

be captioned ‘‘ELECTION TO

TERMINATE TAX-EXEMPT BOND

FINANCING’’, must be signed under

penalties of perjury by a person who has

authority to sign on behalf of the local

furnisher, and must contain the

following information—

(1) The name of the local furnisher;

(2) The tax identification number of

the local furnisher;

(3) The complete address of the local

furnisher;

(4) The date of the service area

expansion;

(5) Identification of each bond issue

subject to the election, including the

complete name of each issue, the tax

identification number of each issuer, the

report number of the information return

filed under section 149(e) for each issue,

the issue date of each issue, the CUSIP

number (if any) of the bond with the

latest maturity of each issue, the issue

price of each issue, the adjusted issue

price of each issue as of the date of the

election, the earliest date on which the

bonds of each issue may be redeemed,

and the principal amount of bonds of

each issue to be redeemed on the

earliest redemption date;

(6) A statement that the local

furnisher making the election agrees to

the conditions stated in section

142(f)(4)(B); and

(7) A statement that each issuer of the

bonds subject to the election has

received written notice of the election.

(d) Effect on section 150(b). Except as

provided in paragraph (e) of this

section, if a local furnisher files an

election within the period specified in

paragraph (b) of this section, section

150(b) does not apply to bonds

identified in the election during and

after that period.

(e) Effect of failure to meet

agreements. If a local furnisher fails to

meet any of the conditions stated in an

election pursuant to paragraph (c)(6) of

this section, the election is invalid.

(f) Corresponding provisions of the

Internal Revenue Code of 1954. Section

103(b)(4)(E) of the Internal Revenue

Code of 1954 set forth corresponding

requirements for the exclusion from

gross income of the interest on bonds

issued for facilities for the local

furnishing of electric energy or gas. For

the purposes of this section any

reference to sections 142(a)(8) and (f) of

the Internal Revenue Code of 1986

includes a reference to the

corresponding portion of section

103(b)(4)(E) of the Internal Revenue

Code of 1954.

(g) Effective dates. This section

applies to elections made on or after

January 19, 2001.

§ 1.142(f)(4)–1T [Removed]

Par. 8. Section 1.142(f)(4)–1T is

removed.

Par. 9. Section 1.150–5 is added to

read as follows:

§ 1.150–5 Filing notices and elections.

(a) In general. Notices and elections

under the following sections must be

filed with the Internal Revenue Service,

1111 Constitution Avenue, NW,

Attention: T:GE:TEB:O, Washington, DC

20224 or such other place designated by

publication of a notice in the Internal

Revenue Bulletin—

(1) Section 1.141–12(d)(3);

(2) Section 1.142(f)(4)-1; and

(3) Section 1.142–2(c)(2).

(b) Effective dates. This section

applies to notices and elections filed on

or after January 19, 2001.

§ 1.150–5T [Removed]

Par. 10. Section 1.150–5T is removed.

PART 602—OMB CONTROL NUMBERS

UNDER THE PAPERWORK

REDUCTION ACT

Par. 11. The authority for part 602

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 26 U.S.C. 7805.

Par. 12 . In § 602.101, paragraph (b) is

amended by adding an entry in

numerical order to the table to read as

follows:

§ 602.101 OMB control numbers.

* * * * *

(b) * * *

CFR part or section where

identified and described

Current OMB

control No.

*****

1.142(f)(4)–1 ......................... 1545–1730

*****

Robert E. Wenzel,

Deputy Commissioner of Internal Revenue.

Approved: January 10, 2001.

Jonathan Talisman,

Assistant Secretary of the Treasury.

[FR Doc. 01–1412 filed 1–17–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4830–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation

and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 931

[NM–041–FOR]

New Mexico Regulatory Program

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.

ACTION: Final rule, approval of

amendment.

SUMMARY: The Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is

4672 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 12 / Thursday, January 18, 2001 / Rules and Regulations

approving a proposed amendment to the

New Mexico regulatory program

(hereinafter, the ‘‘New Mexico

program’’) under the Surface Mining

Control and Reclamation Act of 1977

(SMCRA). New Mexico proposed to

recodify the New Mexico Surface Coal

Mining Regulations. The amendment

revised the State program to improve

operational efficiency and ensure that

the New Mexico Surface Coal Mining

Regulations were codified according to

the New Mexico administrative rules.

EFFECTIVE DATE: January 18, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Willis L. Gainer, Telephone: (505) 248–

5096, Internet address:

WGAINER@SMRE.GOV.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the New Mexico

Program

On December 31, 1980, the Secretary

of the Interior conditionally approved

the New Mexico program. General

background information on the New

Mexico program, including the

Secretary’s findings, the disposition of

comments, and the conditions of

approval of the New Mexico program

can be found in the December 31, 1980,

Federal Register (45 FR 86459).

Subsequent actions concerning New

Mexico’s program and program

amendments can be found at 30 CFR

931.11, 931.15, 931.16, and 931.30.

II. Proposed Amendment

By letter dated September 22, 2000,

New Mexico submitted a proposed

amendment to its program

(administrative record No. NM–840)

pursuant to SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1201 et

seq.). New Mexico submitted the

proposed amendment at its own

initiative. New Mexico proposed to

recodify the New Mexico Surface Coal

Mining Regulations.

OSM announced receipt of the

proposed amendment in the October 23,

2000, Federal Register (65 FR 63223),

provided an opportunity for a public

hearing or meeting on its substantive

adequacy, and invited public comment

on its adequacy (administrative record

No. NM–842). Because no one requested

a public hearing or meeting, none was

held. The public comment period ended

on November 22, 2000.

III. Director’s Findings

As discussed below, the Director, in

accordance with SMCRA and 30 CFR

732.15 and 732.17, finds that the

proposed program amendment,

submitted by New Mexico on September

22, 2000, is no less effective than the

corresponding Federal regulations and

no less stringent than SMCRA.

Accordingly, the Director approves the

proposed amendment.

Minor Revisions to New Mexico’s Rules

New Mexico proposed recodification

of previously-approved New Mexico

Surface Coal Mining Regulations

including revisions that are minor in

nature, consisting of minor wording,

editorial and punctuation changes.

Specifically, New Mexico proposed to

recodify its regulations from Title 19

(Natural Resources and Wildlife),

Chapter 8, (Coal Mining), Part 2 (Coal

Surface Mining) of the New Mexico

Administrative Code (19 NMAC 8.2),

Subparts 1 through 34 to Title 19

(Natural Resources and Wildlife),

Chapter 8, (Coal Mining) of the New

Mexico Administrative Code (19.8

NMAC), Parts 1 through 34. In addition

to the renumbering and reformatting,

New Mexico proposed to revise the

history references after each section and

added to the rule history at the end of

each part. No substantive changes to the

text of the regulations were proposed.

Because the proposed revisions to

these previously-approved rules are

minor in nature, the Director finds that

these proposed New Mexico rules are no

less effective than the Federal

regulations at Title 30 (Mineral

Resources), Chapter VII (Office of

Surface Mining Reclamation and

Enforcement, Department of the

Interior), Parts 700 through 887. The

Director approves the proposed

recodification of New Mexico’s rules.

IV. Summary and Disposition of

Comments

Following are summaries of all

substantive written comments on the

proposed amendment that were

received by OSM, and OSM’s responses

to them.

1. Public Comments

OSM invited public comments on the

proposed amendment (administrative

record Nos. NM–841 and NM–842), but

none were received.

2. Federal Agency Comments

Pursuant to 30 CFR 732.17(h)(11)(i),

OSM solicited comments on the

proposed amendment from various

Federal agencies with an actual or

potential interest in the New Mexico

program (administrative record No.

NM–841). None were received.

3. Environmental Protection Agency

(EPA) Concurrence and Comments

Pursuant to 30 CFR 732.17(h)(11)(ii),

OSM is required to solicit the written

concurrence of EPA with respect to

those provisions of the proposed

amendment that relate to air or water

quality standards promulgated under

the authority of the Clean Water Act (33

U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) or the Clean Air Act

(42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.).

None of the revisions that New

Mexico proposed to make in its

amendment pertain to air or water

quality standards. Pursuant to 30 CFR

732.17(h)(11)(i), OSM solicited

comments on the proposed amendment

from EPA (administrative record No.

NM–841). It did not respond to OSM’s

request.

4. State Historic Preservation Officer

(SHPO) and the Advisory Council on

Historic Preservation (ACHP)

Pursuant to 30 CFR 732.17(h)(4); OSM

solicited comments on the proposed

amendment from the SHPO and ACHP

(administrative record No. NM–841).

Neither SHPO nor ACHP responded to

OSM’s request.

V. Director’s Decision

Based on the above finding, the

Director approves New Mexico’s

proposed amendment as submitted on

September 22, 2000.

The Federal regulations at 30 CFR

part 931, codifying decisions concerning

the New Mexico program, are being

amended to implement this decision.

This final rule is being made effective

immediately to expedite the State

program amendment process and to

encourage States to bring their programs

into conformity with the Federal

standards without undue delay.

Consistency of State and Federal

standards is required by SMCRA.

VI. Procedural Determination

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

(Regulatory Planning and Review).

Executive Order 12630—Takings

This rule does not have takings

implications. This determination is

based on the analysis performed for the

counterpart federal regulation.

Executive Order 13132—Federalism

This rule does not have federalism

implications. SMCRA delineates the

rules 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

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 12 / Thursday, January 18, 2001 / Rules and Regulations 4673

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, and section 503(a)(7) requires

that state programs contain rules and

regulations ‘‘consistent with’’

regulations issued by the Secretary

pursuant to SMCRA.

Executive Order 12988—Civil Justice

Reform

The Department of the Interior has

conducted the reviews required by

section 3 of Executive Order 12988

(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 regulatory

programs and program amendments

since each such program is drafted and

promulgated by a specific State, not by

OSM. Under sections 503 and 505 of

SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1253 and 1255) and

the Federal regulations at 30 CFR

730.11, 732.15, and 732.17(h)(10),

decisions on proposed State regulatory

programs and program amendments

submitted by the States must be based

solely on a determination of whether the

submittal is consistent with SMCRA and

its implementing Federal regulations

and whether the other requirements of

30 CFR Parts 730, 731, and 732 have

been met.

National Environmental Policy Act

This rule does not require an

environmental impact statement

because section 702(d) of SMCRA (30

U.S.C. 1292(d)) provides that agency

decisions on proposed State regulatory

program provisions do not constitute

major Federal actions within the

meaning of section 102(2)(C) of the

National Environmental Policy Act (42

U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)).

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, federal, state, or

local government agencies, or

geographic regions; 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.

OSM has determined and certifies

under the Unfunded Mandates Reform

Act (2 U.S.C. 1502 et seq.) that this rule

will not impose a cost of $100 million

or more in any given year on any local,

State, or tribal governments or private

entities.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 931

Intergovernmental relations, Surface

mining, Underground Mining.

Dated: January 3, 2001.

Brent T. Wahlquist,

Regional Director, Western Regional

Coordinating Center.

For the reasons set out in the

preamble, Title 30, Chapter VII,

Subchapter T of the Code of Federal

Regulations is amended as set forth

below:

PART 931—NEW MEXICO

1. The authority citation for part 931

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.

2. Section 931.15 is amended in the

table by adding a new entry in

chronological order by ‘‘Date of Final

Publication’’ to read as follows:

§ 931.15 Approval of New Mexico

regulatory program amendments.

* * * * *

Original amendment submission date Date of final publication Citation/description

*******

September 22, 2000 ......................................................... January 18, 2001 ............... 19.8 NMAC Parts 1 through 34 (recodification)

[FR Doc. 01–1474 Filed 1–17–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–05–M