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[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 18 (Friday, January 26, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 2459-2461]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-1318]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 925

[SPATS No. MO-025-FOR]

Missouri Regulatory Program

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), 
Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public 
hearing.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) 
is 

[[Page 2460]]
announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Missouri regulatory 
program (hereinafter the ``Missouri program'') under the Surface Mining 
Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). The proposed amendment 
consists of a proposed set of revegetation success guidelines and a 
rulemaking that eliminates the reference to an earlier set of 
guidelines that was never approved by OSM. The amendment is intended to 
revise the Missouri program to be consistent with the corresponding 
Federal regulations.

DATES: Written comments must be received by 4:00 p.m., c.s.t., February 
26, 1996. If requested, a public hearing on the proposed amendment will 
be held on February 20, 1996. Requests to speak at the hearing must be 
received by 4:00 p.m., c.s.t., on February 12, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and requests to speak at the hearing should 
be mailed or hand delivered to Brent Wahlquist, Regional Director, Mid-
Continent Regional Coordinating Center, at the address listed below.
    Copies of the Missouri program, the proposed amendment, a listing 
of any scheduled public hearings, 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 Mid-Continent Regional 
Coordinating Center.

Brent Wahlquist, Regional Director, Mid-Continent Regional Coordinating 
Center, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Alton 
Federal Building, 501 Belle Street, Alton, Illinois 62002, Telephone: 
(618) 463-6460.
Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Land Reclamation Program, 205 
Jefferson Street, P.O. Box 176, Jefferson City, Missouri 65102, 
Telephone: (573) 751-4041.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brent Wahlquist, Regional Director, 
Mid-Continent Regional Coordinating Center, Telephone: (618) 463-6460.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background in the Missouri Program

    On November 21, 1980, the Secretary of Interior conditionally 
approved the Missouri program. General background information on the 
Missouri program, including the Secretary's findings, the disposition 
of comments, and the conditions of approval of the Missouri program can 
be found in the November 21, 1980, Federal Register (45 FR 77017). 
Subsequent actions concerning Missouri's program and program amendments 
can be found at 30 CFR 925.12, 925.15, and 925.16.

II. Description of the Proposed Amendment

    By letter dated December 14, 1995 (Administrative Record No. MO-
633), Missouri submitted a proposed amendment to its program pursuant 
to SMCRA. Missouri submitted the proposed amendment in response to the 
required program amendment at 30 CFR 925.16(a). The provisions of the 
Code of State Regulations (CSR) that Missouri proposes to amend are: 10 
CSR 40-3.120(6)(B)2.A-H., Specific revegetation success standards for 
postmining land uses.
    Specifically, Missouri proposes revisions to its approved program 
for evaluating revegetation success. Missouri revises its regulations 
for the specific standards for each of its approved land uses to delete 
the reference to an earlier set of guidelines that had not been 
approved by OSM and reference the guidelines as currently proposed in 
this amendment. The proposed revegetation success guidelines consist of 
eight separate guidance documents that establish the revegetation 
success standards by land use. These documents are titled the: (1) 
Phase II and Phase III revegetation standards for prime farmland; (2) 
Phase III revegetation standards for cropland; (3) Phase III 
revegetation standards for pasture and previously mined areas; (4) 
Phase III revegetation standards for wildlife habitat; (5) Phase III 
revegetation standards for woodland; (6) Phase III success standards 
for industrial/commercial revegetation; (7) Phase III revegetation 
success standards for residential land use; and (8) Phase III 
revegetation success standards for recreation land use. Each set of 
guidelines elaborates by land use type the revegetation success 
standards, measurement frequency, sampling procedures, data submission 
and analysis, maps, and mitigation plan. The guidance documents follow 
the approved Missouri program regulations at 10 CSR 40-3.120(6)/
3.270(6).

III. Public Comment Procedures

    In accordance with the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), OSM is 
seeking comments on whether the proposed amendment satisfies the 
applicable program approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If the amendment 
is deemed adequate, it will become part of the Missouri program.

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 Mid-Continent Regional 
Coordinating Center will not necessarily be considered in the final 
rulemaking or included in the Administrative Record.

Public Hearing

    Persons wishing to speak at the public hearing should contact the 
person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m., 
c.s.t. on February 12, 1996. 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. The location 
and time of the hearing will be arranged with those persons requesting 
the hearing. If no one requests an opportunity to speak 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 speak have been heard. Persons in the audience who 
have not been scheduled to speak, and who wish to do so, will be heard 
following those who have been scheduled. The hearing will end after all 
persons scheduled to speak and persons present in the audience who wish 
to speak have been heard.

Public Meeting

    If only one person requests an opportunity to speak 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 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.

[[Page 2461]]

IV. Procedural Determinations

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).

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, to the extent allowed 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 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 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

    No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since 
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 which 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.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 925

    Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

    Dated: January 18, 1996.
Charles E. Sandberg,
Acting Regional Director, Mid-Continent Regional Coordinating Center.
[FR Doc. 96-1318 Filed 1-25-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-M
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