Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 6073 

materials, to the Office of the Director 

by overnight courier, for delivery the 

next business day. In order to be timely, 

a request for review shall be received at 

the Office of the Director no later than 

20 calendar days from the date of the 

notice to the agency. 

(k) The United States Trustee shall 

have 30 calendar days from the date of 

the agency’s request for review to 

submit to the Director a written 

response regarding the matters raised in 

the agency’s request for review. The 

United States Trustee shall provide a 

copy of this response to the agency by 

overnight courier, for delivery the next 

business day. 

(l) The Director may seek additional 

information from any party in the 

manner and to the extent the Director 

deems appropriate. 

(m) In reviewing the decision to deny 

an agency’s application or remove an 

agency from the approved list, the 

Director shall determine: 

(1) Whether the denial or removal 

decision is supported by the record; and 

(2) Whether the denial or removal 

decision constitutes an appropriate 

exercise of discretion. 

(n) Except as provided in paragraph 

(o) of this section, the Director shall 

issue a written final decision no later 

than 60 calendar days from the receipt 

of the agency’s request for review, 

unless the agency agrees to a longer 

period of time or the Director extends 

the deadline. The Director’s final 

decision on the agency’s request for 

review shall constitute final agency 

action. 

(o) Whenever the United States 

Trustee provides under paragraph (i) of 

this section that a decision to remove an 

agency from the approved list is 

effective immediately, the Director shall 

issue a written decision no later than 15 

calender days from the receipt of the 

agency’s request for review, unless the 

agency agrees to a longer period of time, 

which decision shall: 

(1) Be limited to deciding whether the 

determination that the removal decision 

should take effect immediately was 

supported by the record and an 

appropriate exercise of discretion; 

(2) Constitute final agency action only 

on the issue of whether the removal 

decision should take effect immediately; 

and 

(3) Not constitute final agency action 

on the ultimate issue of whether the 

agency should be removed from the 

approved list; after issuing the decision, 

the Director shall issue a written final 

decision by the deadline set forth in 

paragraph (n) of this section. 

(p) In reaching a decision under 

paragraphs (n) and (o) of this section, 

the Director may specify a person to act 

as a reviewing official. The reviewing 

official’s duties shall be specified by the 

Director on a case-by-case basis, and 

may include reviewing the record, 

obtaining additional information from 

the participants, providing the Director 

with written recommendations, and 

such other duties as the Director shall 

prescribe in a particular case. 

(q) An agency that files a request for 

review shall bear its own costs and 

expenses, including counsel fees. 

(r) When a decision to remove an 

agency from the approved list takes 

effect, the agency shall: 

(1) Immediately cease providing 

counseling services to clients and shall 

not agree to provide counseling services 

to prospective clients; 

(2) No later than 3 business days after 

the date of removal, issue all certificates 

to all clients who completed counseling 

services prior to the agency’s removal 

from the approved list; and 

(3) No later than 3 business days after 

the date of removal, return all fees to 

clients and prospective clients who had 

paid for counseling services, but had not 

completely received them. 

(s) An agency must exhaust all 

administrative remedies before seeking 

redress in any court of competent 

jurisdiction. 

Dated: January 18, 2008. 

Clifford J. White III, 

Director, Executive Office for United States 

Trustees. 

[FR Doc. E8–1451 Filed 1–31–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4410–40–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Minerals Management Service 

30 CFR Part 256 

[Docket ID: MMS–2007–OMM–0064] 

RIN 1010–AD44 

Bonus or Royalty Credits for 

Relinquishing Certain Leases Offshore 

Florida 

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service 

(MMS), Interior. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The MMS proposes to amend 

its regulations for oil and gas leases on 

the Outer Continental Shelf to 

implement a mandate in the Gulf of 

Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006. 

This proposed rule would (1) provide a 

credit to lessees who relinquish certain 

eligible leases in the Gulf of Mexico; (2) 

define eligible leases as those within 

125 miles of the Florida coast in the 

Eastern Planning Area and certain leases 

within 100 miles of the Florida coast in 

the Central Planning Area; and (3) allow 

lessees to use the credits in lieu of 

monetary payment for either a lease 

bonus bid or royalty due on oil and gas 

production from most other leases in the 

Gulf of Mexico or to transfer the credits 

to other Gulf of Mexico lessees for their 

use. 

DATES: Submit comments by April 1, 

2008. The MMS may not fully consider 

comments received after this date. 

Submit comments to the Office of 

Management and Budget on the 

information collection burden in this 

proposed rule by March 3, 2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Marshall Rose, Chief, Economics 

Division, at (703) 787–1536. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the rulemaking by any of the 

following methods. Please use the 

Regulation Identifier Number (RIN) 

1010–AD44 as an identifier in your 

message. See also Public Availability of 

Comments under Procedural Matters. 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Select ‘‘Minerals 

Management Service’’ from the agency 

drop-down menu, then click ‘‘submit.’’

In the Docket ID column, select MMS–

2007–OMM–0064 to submit public 

comments and to view supporting and 

related materials available for this 

rulemaking. Information on using 

Regulations.gov, including instructions 

for accessing documents, submitting 

comments, and viewing the docket after 

the close of the comment period, is 

available through the site’s ‘‘User Tips’’

link. All comments will be posted to the 

docket. 

• Mail or hand-carry comments to the 

Department of the Interior; Minerals 

Management Service; Attention: 

Regulations and Standards Branch 

(RSB); 381 Elden Street, MS–4024, 

Herndon, Virginia 20170–4817. Please 

reference ‘‘Bonus or Royalty Credits for 

Relinquishing Certain Leases Offshore 

Florida, 1010–AD44’’ in your comments 

and include your name and return 

address. 

• Send comments on the information 

collection in this rule to: Interior Desk 

Officer 1010–AD44, Office of 

Management and Budget; 202–395–6566 

(fax); e-mail: oira_docket@omb.eop.gov. 

Please also send a copy to MMS. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background and Summary of the 

Proposed Rule 

Congress passed, and on December 

20, 2006, the President signed, the Gulf 

of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 

(GOMESA), Public Law No. 109–432. 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS
6074 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 

Section 104(c) of that statute authorizes 

the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) 

to issue a bonus or royalty credit for the 

exchange of certain leases located 

offshore of the State of Florida. The 

statute defines leases eligible for the 

credit as those in existence on the 

enactment date of the GOMESA and 

located both within specified Outer 

Continental Shelf (OCS) planning areas 

and distances from the Florida 

coastline. The statute sets the size of the 

credit as equal to the bonus and rental 

paid for the relinquished eligible lease, 

and limits its use to payments by lessees 

of bonuses and royalties for leases in the 

Gulf of Mexico (GOM) not subject to 

revenue sharing under section 8(g) of 

the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 

(OCSLA) (43 U.S.C. 1337(g)). Finally, 

the statute mandates a regulatory 

process for notifying the Secretary of a 

lessee’s decision to exchange a lease for 

a credit, issuing the credit, allocating 

the credit among multiple lease owners, 

and transferring the credit to other 

parties. 

To implement section 104(c), MMS 

proposes to add a new subpart N to 30 

CFR part 256. Part 256 deals with OCS 

lease administration, including transfer 

and termination of a lease. After briefly 

reviewing the credit issuing process, the 

following discussion explains how 

MMS proposes to handle redemption of 

the credits. 

Issuing Credits 

Section 104, together with the 

definitions in section 102(1), (4), and 

(5), identifies the offshore area in which 

existing leases are located to be eligible 

to be exchanged for the credit. Therein, 

reference is made to parts of the Central 

Planning Area (CPA) and the Eastern 

Planning Area, as designated in the 

Draft Proposed Program Outer 

Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing 

Program 2007–2012, dated February 

2006. However, the area does not 

include all of the CPA in the area 

eligible for the credits. The GOMESA 

limits the included part of the CPA to 

the portion of the CPA within 100 miles 

of the coastline of the State of Florida, 

and to the area that lies either within a 

particular area shown on a map that 

MMS published 10 years ago, or, east of 

a particular coordinate line on the 

Pensacola Official Protraction Diagram. 

The MMS previously delineated the 

area in which leases are eligible for the 

credit using Official Protraction Diagram 

(OPD) designations. The OPD, in 

conjunction with the OCS block 

numbers, uniquely identifies each OCS 

block by a designated numbering 

system. The planning area boundaries 

that were in effect when MMS 

published the referenced maps 

coincided with the OPD boundaries. 

After recent changes MMS made in the 

boundary between its Eastern, Central, 

and Western Planning Areas for the 

GOM, the new planning area boundaries 

do not coincide with the pre-existing 

OPD boundaries. Thus, definitions 

added to §§ 256.5 and 256.90 propose to 

use OPD boundaries to define the 

western extent of the eligible area. The 

northern and eastern extent of the 

eligible area is the seaward boundary of 

the State of Florida. 

The GOMESA defines the southern 

extent of the eligible area by reference 

to the distance from the Florida 

coastline. Parts of three OPDs (Desoto 

Canyon, Destin Dome, and Pensacola) 

are both in the eligible part of the new 

CPA and within the requisite 100 miles 

of the Florida coastline. Other parts of 

these three OPDs, as well as other OPDs, 

are in the new Eastern planning area 

and within the requisite 125 miles of the 

Florida coastline. These areas contain a 

total of 79 still active leases as of the 

end of calendar year 2006. The 

GOMESA makes all of these leases that 

were in effect on December 20, 2006, the 

date of enactment of the GOMESA, 

eligible for this exchange program. The 

MMS seeks comments on whether this 

interpretation of eligibility for the 

credits based on location and lease 

status complies with the requirements 

specified in GOMESA. 

Section 256.91 proposes to grant 

credits equal to the original bonus paid 

for the relinquished lease plus the 

cumulative rental paid on that lease 

since issuance. Because the GOMESA 

explicitly values the credits as equal 

only to the sum of these two costs, no 

authority exists to include 

reimbursement for any other costs. 

Thus, MMS will not credit or value any 

exploration costs incurred in connection 

with eligible leases for purposes of 

issuing credits; nor will MMS include 

time value of money (interest) in 

calculating the amount of a credit. The 

MMS estimates the aggregate value of 

credits available under the statutory 

formula as slightly more than $60 

million. 

The following table lists each lease 

identified under the proposed 

interpretation of GOMESA that is 

eligible for the credit and the amount of 

the credit. MMS seeks comments about 

whether any variations exist between 

the data in this table and the 

information held by the lease owners. 

LEASES AND AMOUNTS ELIGIBLE FOR BONUS OR ROYALTY CREDIT

Lease No. Lease effective date Bid amount Rental paid to 

12/31/2006 Total credit 

G06390 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 $957,000 $86,400 $1,043,400 

G06401 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,103,450 51,265 1,154,715 

G06402 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,106,780 85,825 1,192,605 

G06406 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,607,800 69,120 1,676,920 

G06407 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,308,800 311,040 1,619,840 

G06408 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,106,430 103,105 1,209,535 

G06409 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,213,500 103,105 1,316,605 

G06440 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 918,500 82,032 1,000,532 

G06464 ............................................................................................................ 3/1/1984 1,107,500 57,762 1,165,262 

G06469 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,613,500 75,038 1,688,538 

G06470 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,107,500 75,038 1,182,538 

G06474 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,610,800 75,038 1,685,838 

G06475 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,201,700 75,038 1,276,738 

G06476 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 1,107,500 75,038 1,182,538 

G06477 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1984 908,700 75,038 983,738 

G08308 ............................................................................................................ 3/1/1987 2,877,000 77,866 2,954,866 

G08309 ............................................................................................................ 3/1/1987 2,325,000 17,173 2,342,173 

G08310 ............................................................................................................ 3/1/1987 1,165,000 17,173 1,182,173 

G08333 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1988 1,379,000 71,854 1,450,854 

G08334 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1988 1,379,000 71,854 1,450,854 

G08346 ............................................................................................................ 2/1/1988 1,355,000 67,593 1,422,593 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 6075 

LEASES AND AMOUNTS ELIGIBLE FOR BONUS OR ROYALTY CREDIT—Continued 

Lease No. Lease effective date Bid amount Rental paid to 

12/31/2006 Total credit 

G08361 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 1,837,000 59,107 1,896,107 

G08362 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 944,000 59,107 1,003,107 

G08363 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 3,276,000 59,107 3,335,107 

G08364 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 2,377,000 59,107 2,436,107 

G08365 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 1,857,000 59,107 1,916,107 

G08366 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 944,000 59,107 1,003,107 

G08367 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 1,363,000 59,107 1,422,107 

G08368 ............................................................................................................ 8/1/1986 1,117,000 59,107 1,176,107 

G10404 ............................................................................................................ 4/1/1990 157,000 52,100 209,100 

G10405 ............................................................................................................ 4/1/1990 145,000 52,100 197,100 

G10408 ............................................................................................................ 4/1/1990 149,000 52,100 201,100 

G10409 ............................................................................................................ 4/1/1990 187,000 52,100 239,100 

G10410 ............................................................................................................ 4/1/1990 209,000 52,100 261,100 

G10413 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 150,550 51,899 202,449 

G10414 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 150,550 51,899 202,449 

G10415 ............................................................................................................ 4/1/1990 153,000 52,100 205,100 

G10417 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 306,200 64,811 371,011 

G10426 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 150,550 37,199 187,749 

G10427 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 150,550 37,199 187,749 

G10428 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 218,880 115,445 334,325 

G10429 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 155,300 41,827 197,127 

G10430 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 145,000 47,330 192,330 

G10431 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 938,500 41,649 980,149 

G10432 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 330,900 41,649 372,549 

G10433 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 900,600 41,649 942,249 

G10434 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 245,200 41,649 286,849 

G10435 ............................................................................................................ 6/1/1990 376,500 41,649 418,149 

G10436 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 2,102,400 115,445 2,217,845 

G10437 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 910,080 115,445 1,025,525 

G10438 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 155,200 41,747 196,947 

G10439 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 167,200 76,387 243,587 

G10440 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 184,500 80,743 265,243 

G10443 ............................................................................................................ 11/1/1989 560,600 80,743 641,343 

G10446 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 146,000 61,995 207,995 

G10447 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 146,000 61,995 207,995 

G10448 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 146,000 61,995 207,995 

G10449 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 153,000 61,995 214,995 

G10450 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 153,000 61,995 214,995 

G10451 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 145,000 61,995 206,995 

G10452 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 168,000 61,995 229,995 

G10453 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 153,000 61,995 214,995 

G10454 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 168,000 61,995 229,995 

G10455 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 148,500 41,922 190,422 

G10456 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 156,100 41,922 198,022 

G10459 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 181,500 41,922 223,422 

G10460 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 148,700 41,922 190,622 

G10461 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 159,200 41,922 201,122 

G10462 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 196,500 41,922 238,422 

G10463 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 151,700 41,922 193,622 

G10464 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 157,500 41,922 199,422 

G10465 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 147,300 41,922 189,222 

G10466 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 147,300 41,922 189,222 

G10471 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 163,500 41,922 205,422 

G10472 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 195,400 41,922 237,322 

G10473 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 192,600 41,922 234,522 

G10477 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 157,600 41,922 199,522 

G10484 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 145,000 61,995 206,995 

G10485 ............................................................................................................ 10/1/1990 158,000 61,995 219,995 

79 ..................................................................................................................... ........................ $55,458,120 4,944,064 60,402,184 

The process proposed by § 256.92 for 

claiming a credit would begin when all 

parties holding record title interests in 

an eligible lease notify the Regional 

Supervisor for Leasing and Environment 

in the MMS GOM Regional Office of the 

decision to exchange the lease. Parties 

holding record title interest in an 

eligible lease are permitted up to 1 year 

from the effective date of the final rule 

to apply for these credits. After that 

date, MMS will no longer accept 

applications for the credits provided for 

in this rule. In addition to a request for 

a credit, the notification would include: 

(1) The name of a contact for each 

record title holder; (2) the percentage 

record title interest of each owner; (3) a 

list of the bonus and rental payments 

made by, or on behalf of, all current 

owners of the lease; and (4) the form 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS
6076 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 

(Form MMS–152, Relinquishment of 

Federal Oil and Gas Lease) necessary to 

execute relinquishment according to 

§ 256.76. The MMS would confirm the 

percentage interest and payments 

claimed by the current owners and add 

any bonus bid or rental payments made 

by prior owners to determine the credit 

amount. 

Once the adjudication unit in the 

MMS GOM Region has approved the 

exchange, the MMS’ Minerals Revenue 

Management (MRM) office would post 

the credits in the appropriate company 

payor accounts of the record title 

interest owners. The credit would 

become available when MMS sends a 

written certification to the record title 

interest owners of an eligible lease that 

this lease has qualified for a credit of a 

specific amount. 

In the case of multiple record title 

interest owners of an eligible lease, 

§ 256.93 proposes that MMS would 

allocate the credit to each record title 

interest owner based on its percentage 

of total ownership interest in the lease 

at the time the owners submit to MMS 

the request to exchange the lease. 

The MMS recognizes that the original 

lessee(s) would have made bonus 

payments. If the original lessee sells its 

record title interest in a lease, the 

financial terms of the sale will have 

compensated the original lessee, in 

some manner satisfactory to it, for the 

bonus payment it made for its record 

title interest. Thus, the current record 

title interest owners made the timely 

and legally binding investment to 

acquire and hold the right to explore for 

and produce the oil and gas that may 

underlie the seabed on that lease. 

Therefore, MMS would allocate current 

record title interest owners the credit 

usable to acquire an interest in another 

lease or to pay royalties on production 

from another lease. Moreover, if the 

terms of any particular operating rights 

assignment imply any right or interest 

in that credit on the part of the assignee, 

then the current record title holder and 

the assignee may resolve that issue 

between themselves. 

Redeeming Credits 

Section 256.94(a) proposes to 

authorize current record title interest 

owners to redeem these credits as either 

payment of bonus bids or royalties paid 

in value. The notice MMS sends 

certifying that a lease has qualified for 

a credit would include the amount of 

the credit and instructions on how to 

apply the credit, either to a bonus 

payment due on a successful bid for 

new leases or to royalties reported due 

on Form MMS 2014—Report of Sales 

and Royalty Remittance for other leases. 

Under section 104(c)(3) of the statute, 

the credit may not be used in lieu of 

payments due under a lease subject to 

the revenue distribution provisions of 

section 8(g) of the OCSLA (43 U.S.C. 

1337(g)). Under section 8(g)(2), the 

Secretary pays 27 percent of bonuses, 

rents, royalties, and other moneys 

collected from leases lying within 3 

nautical miles of the seaward boundary 

of a coastal state to that state (or 27 

percent of the portion of such revenues 

corresponding to the portion of the lease 

that lies within 3 nautical miles of the 

state’s seaward boundary). Proposed 

§ 256.94(a) contains this restriction. 

Provisions in section 105 of the 

GOMESA create certain other revenue 

distribution requirements in addition to 

the 8(g) provisions. Since Congress 

certainly knew of, but did not include, 

these newer revenue distribution 

programs in this exclusion, this 

proposal allows a bonus or royalty 

credit to be used for payments due from 

leases subject to these newer revenue 

distribution provisions. 

Because using a credit to pay a bonus 

or royalty in lieu of payment in cash 

results in the United States receiving 

less money than if the bidder or lessee 

paid in cash, it necessarily follows that 

any distribution of royalty or bonus 

payments to a state or coastal political 

subdivision under GOMESA section 105 

would result in a corresponding 

reduction from what it would have been 

had the entire payment been made in 

cash. However, MMS projects that the 

financial impact of section 105 on the 

coastal states during fiscal years 2007 

through 2016 would be very limited. In 

that time period, under the definition of 

‘‘qualified Outer Continental Shelf 

revenues’’ in GOMESA section 102(9), 

section 105’s distribution requirements 

apply only to revenues derived from 

new leases issued after GOMESA’s 

enactment in the portion of the 181 Area 

located in the Eastern Planning Area 

and to the 181 South Area. Production 

and royalty from such leases will not 

occur anytime soon. Further, MMS 

allocates the portion of qualified Outer 

Continental Shelf revenues paid to Gulf 

producing states between those states 

based on an inverse distance formula. 

Therefore, any financial impact on a 

particular state of a reduction in a 

particular bonus payment for a new 

lease in the subject areas because of use 

of a bonus credit should be very 

minimal. In fact, lessees who obtain 

credits will more likely apply them to 

royalties due under other existing leases 

with no revenue distribution to nonFederal recipients, or transfer them to 

other parties for that purpose, thus 

further reducing the financial impact to 

states and localities from this treatment 

of credit. 

The GOMESA limits the credit to 

monetary payments. The MMS makes 

explicit in proposed § 256.94(b) that the 

credit does not apply to royalty-in-kind 

(RIK) deliveries. Section 102 of the 

statute defines the credit as follows: 

The term ‘‘bonus or royalty credit’’ means 

a legal instrument or other written 

documentation, or an entry in an account 

managed by the Secretary, that may be used 

in lieu of any other monetary [emphasis 

added] payment for—

(A) a bonus bid for a lease on the outer 

Continental Shelf; or 

(B) a royalty due on oil or gas production 

from any lease located on the outer 

Continental Shelf. 

The RIK deliveries are not monetary 

payments. Since the lessee fulfills its 

royalty obligations by delivering a 

volume of oil and gas to MMS, the 

lessee pays no money when paying the 

RIK. Thus, a lessee cannot use a 

monetary credit in lieu of delivering 

RIK. Under current circumstances, 

exclusion of RIK would confine the 

application of a royalty credit under the 

proposed rule to about 30 percent of the 

roughly $4 billion in royalty generated 

annually by GOM producers. Recent 

royalty collections from 8(g) sources in 

the GOM total about 3 percent of all oil 

and gas royalties collected offshore in 

the GOM. Thus, annual royalties 

currently paid in cash, to which credits 

under this proposed rule may apply, 

total over $1 billion under leases on 

tracts in the GOM lying outside the 

‘‘8(g) zone’’—more than 16 times the 

total value of credits that could be 

issued under this rule, even if no credits 

were applied to bonus payments in 

future lease sales. 

Section 256.94(c) proposes to address 

credits that remain unused after 5 years 

from the date MMS issues the credits. 

The section would state that if any 

credit remains unused after 5 years from 

the date MMS issued the credit, the 

MMS reserves the right to apply the 

remaining credit to the credit holder’s 

ongoing obligations at MMS’s 

discretion. 

Section 256.95 proposes to allow 

current record title interest owners to 

transfer credits to other parties. The 

transferee of the credit could use the full 

face amount of the credit. (Any discount 

in a payment from the transferee to the 

transferor of the credit would be a 

matter solely between those two 

parties.) This attribute of the credit 

would largely mitigate any perceived 

limitation imposed by restricting use of 

the credit to future bonus or royalty invalue due. As indicated, the expected 

aggregate size of the credits created 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 6077 

under section 104(c) constitutes only 

about 6 percent of the royalty in-value 

collected annually in the GOM. Thus, 

an ample market should exist for 

companies that wish to transfer rather 

than directly use credits they may 

receive. 

When MMS receives the necessary 

transfer information, MRM will adjust 

the financial accounts of the transferor 

and transferee accordingly. The credit 

becomes available when the MMS sends 

a written confirmation to the transferee. 

Rather than create a standard form that 

must be executed to effect a credit 

transfer, this rule proposes to rely on a 

‘‘Letter of Agreement’’ signed by an 

authorized official of both the transferor 

and transferee companies to transfer a 

bonus or royalty credit. A more formal 

process does not appear warranted by 

the few companies involved, all of 

which have other Gulf of Mexico 

activities, and the size of the credits 

relative to authorized uses. The MMS 

seeks comments on whether a high 

volume of transfers would warrant a 

more formal credit transfer process like 

that used for lease assignments. 

To summarize, this proposed rule 

would offer credits equal to past bonus 

and rental payments made in 

connection with 79 offshore leases near 

Florida in exchange for relinquishment 

of these leases. The necessary 

restrictions that MMS proposes for the 

use of those credits would not 

compromise their value because the 

credits would have no expiration date, 

are transferable, and in aggregate are 

quite small in magnitude relative to the 

bonus or royalty-in-value payment 

obligations to which they can be 

applied. The credits may be used to 

meet future bonus or royalty-in-value 

payments for leases in the GOM outside 

the 8(g) zone. 

Procedural Matters 

Regulatory Planning and Review 

(Executive Order (E.O.) 12866) 

This proposed rule is not a significant 

rule as determined by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) and is 

not subject to review under E.O. 12866. 

(1) This proposed rule would not have 

an annual effect of $100 million or more 

on the economy. It would not adversely 

affect in a material way the economy, 

productivity, competition, jobs, the 

environment, public health or safety, or 

State, local, or tribal governments or 

communities. The total value of the 

credit is defined by statute as bonuses 

and rental paid on the leases in the 

eligible area. The MMS records show 79 

leases are eligible. Total bonuses and 

rentals paid in connection with these 

leases is about $60 million. 

(2) This proposed rule would not 

create a serious inconsistency or 

otherwise interfere with an action taken 

or planned by another agency because 

the credit is confined to leases in 

Federal offshore waters that lie outside 

the coastal jurisdiction of State and 

other local agencies. 

(3) This proposed rule would not alter 

the budgetary effects of entitlements, 

grants, user fees or loan programs, or the 

rights or obligations of their recipients. 

(4) This proposed rule would not raise 

novel legal or policy issues. The 

proposed rule would implement a 

statutory program that exchanges a 

credit against future obligations for the 

return of old, largely inactive leases in 

a sensitive area. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Department of the Interior 

certifies that this proposed rule would 

not have a significant economic effect 

on a substantial number of small entities 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601 et seq.). 

This proposed rule applies to the 

lessees holding record title interests in 

the 79 offshore leases located near the 

coastline of the State of Florida. These 

lessees fall under the Small Business 

Administration’s North American 

Industry Classification System (NAICS) 

code 211111, Crude Petroleum and 

Natural Gas Extraction. Under this 

NAICS code, companies with less than 

500 employees are considered small 

businesses. Only one of the current 

record title owners of these 79 leases 

has less than 500 employees. Moreover, 

this rule provides a clear benefit to the 

lessees. It specifies a valuable credit and 

a simple process for claiming a benefit 

for relinquishing a lease which the 

owners have had trouble operating due 

to access limitations. 

This proposed rule would create a 

relatively small amount of total credits 

in exchange for certain leases through a 

relinquishment process that all OCS 

lessees are accustomed to using. The 

credits could be used to fulfill any of a 

relatively large pool of routine bonus or 

royalty in-value OCS obligations under 

leases located in the GOM. The credits 

also would be freely transferable or 

assignable, and would have no time 

limit on use. Thus, should a small entity 

obtain a credit through a transfer, it 

would be able to use the credit for 

routine obligations or it could exchange 

the credit for approximately equivalent 

value in a potentially large market of 

other users. The provisions of this 

proposed rule would not have a 

significant adverse economic effect on 

offshore lessees and operators, 

including those that are classified as 

small businesses. 

Your comments are important. The 

Small Business and Agriculture 

Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman 

and 10 Regional Fairness Boards were 

established to receive comments from 

small businesses about Federal agency 

enforcement actions. The Ombudsman 

will annually evaluate the enforcement 

activities and rate each agency’s 

responsiveness to small business. If you 

wish to comment on the actions of 

MMS, call 1–888–734–3247. You may 

comment to the Small Business 

Administration without fear of 

retaliation. Disciplinary action for 

retaliation by an MMS employee may 

include suspension or termination from 

employment with the DOI. 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act 

This proposed rule is not a major rule 

under the Small Business Regulatory 

Enforcement Fairness Act (5 U.S.C. 

804(2)). This proposed rule: 

a. Would not have an annual effect on 

the economy of $100 million or more. 

This proposed rule would offer credits 

worth approximately $60 million for the 

exchange of 79 leases in a sensitive area. 

Not all companies may choose to 

relinquish their leases for the credit 

offered. Even if all the credits were 

redeemed in 1 year, it would not have 

an annual effect on the economy of $100 

million. 

b. Would not cause a major increase 

in costs or prices for consumers, 

individual industries, Federal, State, 

local government agencies, or 

geographic regions. The credit 

represents only a transfer of previous 

payments back to lessees. The relatively 

small amount returned by these credits 

would have little effect on markets, 

agencies, or regions. 

c. Would 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. 

Productive activities have been 

restricted on the leases that would be 

returned, and the monetary credit 

received in exchange would be too 

small to have a perceptible effect. 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

This proposed rule would not impose 

an unfunded mandate on State, local, or 

tribal governments or the private sector 

of more than $100 million per year. The 

proposed rule would not have a 

significant or unique effect on State, 

local, or tribal governments or the 

private sector. A statement containing 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS
6078 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 

the information required by the 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (2 

U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) is not required. 

Takings Implication Assessment (E.O. 

12630) 

Under the criteria in E.O. 12630, this 

proposed rule does not have significant 

takings implications. The proposed rule 

is not a governmental action capable of 

interference with constitutionally 

protected property rights. A takings 

implication assessment is not required. 

Federalism (E.O. 13132) 

Under the criteria in E.O. 13132, this 

proposed rule does not have sufficient 

federalism implications to warrant the 

preparation of a Federalism Assessment. 

As noted above, the potential revenue 

sharing effects are excluded either 

explicitly or implicitly by virtue of the 

treatment of the expected credit 

redemptions. This proposed rule would 

not substantially and directly affect the 

relationship between the Federal and 

State governments. To the extent that 

State and local governments have a role 

in OCS activities, this proposed rule 

would not affect that role. A Federalism 

Assessment is not required. 

Civil Justice Reform (E.O. 12988) 

This rule complies with the 

requirements of E.O. 12988. 

Specifically, this rule: 

(a) Meets the criteria of section 3(a) 

requiring that all regulations be 

reviewed to eliminate errors and 

ambiguity and be written to minimize 

litigation; and 

(b) Meets the criteria of section 3(b)(2) 

requiring that all regulations be written 

in clear language and contain clear legal 

standards. 

Consultation With Indian Tribes (E.O. 

13175) 

Under the criteria in E.O. 13175, we 

have evaluated this proposed rule and 

determined that it has no potential 

effects on federally recognized Indian 

tribes. There are no Indian or tribal 

lands on the OCS. 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 

This proposed rule contains a 

collection of information that will be 

submitted to OMB for review and 

approval under § 3507(d) of the PRA. 

This proposed rule also refers to, but 

does not change, information collection 

burdens already covered and approved 

under OMB Control Number 1010–0006. 

As part of our continuing effort to 

reduce paperwork and respondent 

burdens, MMS invites the public and 

other Federal agencies to comment on 

any aspect of the reporting and 

recordkeeping burden. You may submit 

your comments on the information 

collection aspects of this rule directly to 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB), Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs, OMB Attention: 

Desk Officer for the Department of the 

Interior via OMB e-mail: 

(OIRA_DOCKET@omb.eop.gov); or by 

fax (202) 395–6566; identify with 1010–

AD44. Send a copy of your comments to 

the Regulations and Standards Branch 

(RSB), Attn: Comments; 381 Elden 

Street, MS–4024; Herndon, Virginia 

20170–4817. Please reference ‘‘Bonus or 

Royalty Credits for Relinquishing 

Certain Leases Offshore Florida’’—AD44 

in your comments. You may obtain a 

copy of our submission to OMB for the 

new collection of information by 

contacting the Bureau’s Information 

Collection Clearance Officer at (202) 

208–7744. 

The 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. 

The OMB is required to make a decision 

concerning the collection of information 

contained in these proposed regulations 

between 30 to 60 days after publication 

of this document in the Federal 

Register. Therefore, a comment to OMB 

is best assured of having its full effect 

if OMB received it by March 3, 2008. 

This does not affect the deadline for the 

public to comment to MMS on the 

proposed regulations. The title of the 

information collection is ‘‘30 CFR Part 

256, Bonus or Royalty Credits for 

Relinquishing Certain Leases Offshore 

Florida.’’

Respondents are those from the 

approximately 130 Federal oil and gas 

lessees who may earn or trade for the 

bonus or royalty credit. This rulemaking 

affects those companies that own record 

title interests in 79 leases. Responses to 

this collection are required to obtain 

benefits. The frequency of response is 

on occasion. The information collection 

(IC) does not include questions of a 

sensitive nature. The IC involves 

requests for a bonus or royalty credit in 

exchange for relinquishing certain 

leases or the transfer of such credit to 

another entity. The MMS will use this 

information to track the possession and 

redemption of these special bonus or 

royalty credits. 

The OMB approved the collection of 

information required by the current 30 

CFR part 256 regulations under OMB 

Control Number 1010–0006 (17,058 

burden hours, expiration 5/31/2010). 

When the final regulations take effect, 

MMS will consolidate the information 

collection burden approved for this 

proposed rulemaking into the primary 

30 CFR part 256 information collection 

under 1010–0006. 

The following table shows the two 

new paperwork burden estimates for 

this proposed rulemaking. We estimate 

a total of 45 burden hours, including the 

time for gathering the information and 

submitting the request to MMS for 

review. It should be noted that this 

rulemaking concerns only 79 current 

leases and will not affect future leases. 

Therefore, the associated information 

collection would be a one-time only 

burden should respondents holding 

eligible leases elect to take advantage of 

the bonus or royalty credits for 

relinquishing these leases. 

Citation 30 CFR part 256 

subpart N Reporting & recordkeeping requirement Hour burden 

Average No. 

of annual responses 

Annual burden 

hours 

92(a) ................................ Request a bonus or royalty credit and submit supporting documentation.1 30 30 

92(a)(5) ............................ Submit a request to relinquish lease according to § 256.76 ......... Burden currently approved under 1010–0006.* 

95 ..................................... Request approval to transfer bonus or credit to another party 

with supporting information.

1 15 15 

TOTAL BURDEN 45 45 

* 240 hours for this requirement are already approved under 1010–0006. 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 6079 

The MMS specifically solicits 

comments on the following questions: 

(a) Is the proposed collection of 

information necessary for MMS to 

properly perform its 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 those 

who are to respond, including the use 

of appropriate automated electronic, 

mechanical, or other forms of 

information technology? 

In addition, the PRA requires agencies 

to estimate the total annual reporting 

and recordkeeping ‘‘non-hour cost’’

burden resulting from the collection of 

information. We have not identified 

any, and we solicit your comments on 

this item. For reporting and 

recordkeeping only, your response 

should split the cost estimate into two 

components: (a) Total capital and startup cost component and (b) annual 

operation, maintenance, and purchase 

of services component. 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 start-up 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: 

(1) Before October 1, 1995; 

(2) To comply with requirements not 

associated with the information 

collection; 

(3) For reasons other than to provide 

information or keep records for the 

Government; or 

(4) As part of customary and usual 

business or private practices. 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA) of 1969 

We have analyzed this proposed rule 

in accordance with the criteria of the 

National Environmental Policy Act and 

the Department Manual at 516 DM. We 

determined this proposed rule does not 

constitute a major Federal action 

significantly affecting the quality of the 

human environment. This proposed rule 

deals with financial matters and has no 

direct effect on MMS decisions on 

environmental activities; hence, an 

environmental impact statement is not 

required. Pursuant to Department 

Manual 516 DM 2.3A (2), Section 1.10 

of 516 DM 2, Appendix 1 excludes from 

documentation in an environmental 

assessment or impact statement 

‘‘policies, directives, regulations and 

guidelines of an administrative, 

financial, legal, technical or procedural 

nature; or the environmental effects of 

which are too broad, speculative or 

conjectural to lend themselves to 

meaningful analysis and will be subject 

later to the NEPA process, either 

collectively or case-by-case.’’ Section 

1.3 of the same appendix clarifies that 

royalties and audits are considered 

routine financial transactions that are 

subject to categorical exclusion from the 

NEPA process. No exception to the 

categorical exclusion applies. 

Data Quality Act 

In developing this rule we did not 

conduct or use a study, experiment, or 

survey requiring peer review under the 

Data Quality Act (Pub. L. 106–554). 

Effects on the Energy Supply (E.O. 

13211) 

This rule is not a significant energy 

action under the definition in E.O. 

13211. A Statement of Energy Effects is 

not required. 

Public Availability of Comments 

Before including your address, phone 

number, email address, or other 

personal identifying information in your 

comment, you should be aware that 

your entire comment—including your 

personal identifying information—may 

be made publicly available at any time. 

While you can ask us in your comment 

to withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Clarity of This Regulation 

We are required by E.O. 12866, E.O. 

12988, and by the Presidential 

Memorandum of June 1, 1998, to write 

all rules in plain language. This means 

that each rule we publish must: 

(a) Be logically organized; 

(b) Use the active voice to address 

readers directly; 

(c) Use clear language rather than 

jargon; 

(d) Be divided into short sections and 

sentences; and 

(e) Use lists and tables wherever 

possible. 

If you feel that we have not met these 

requirements, send us comments by one 

of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES

section. To better help us revise the 

rule, your comments should be as 

specific as possible. For example, you 

should tell us the numbers of the 

sections or paragraphs that you find 

unclear, which sections or sentences are 

too long, the sections where you feel 

lists or tables would be useful, etc. 

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 256 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Continental shelf, 

Government contracts, Mineral 

royalties, Oil and gas exploration, 

Public lands—mineral resources, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

Dated: January 16, 2008. 

C. Stephen Allred, 

Assistant Secretary—Land and Minerals 

Management. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, the Minerals Management 

Service (MMS) proposes to amend 30 

CFR part 256 as follows: 

PART 256—LEASING OF SULPHUR OR 

OIL AND GAS IN THE OUTER 

CONTINENTIAL SHELF 

1. The authority citation for part 256 

is revised to read as follows: 

Authority: 31 U.S.C. 9701, 42 U.S.C. 6213, 

43 U.S.C. 1334, P. L. No. 109–432. 

2. Section 256.5 is amended by 

adding definitions for ‘‘Bonus or royalty 

credit,’’ ‘‘Central planning area,’’

‘‘Coastline,’’ ‘‘Desoto Canyon OPD,’’

‘‘Destin Dome OPD,’’ ‘‘Eastern planning 

area,’’ and ‘‘Pensacola OPD’’ to read as 

follows: 

§ 256.5 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

(m) Bonus or royalty credit means a 

legal instrument or other written 

documentation, or an entry in an 

account managed by the Secretary that 

a bidder or lessee may use in lieu of any 

other monetary payment for—

(1) A bonus due for a lease on the 

outer Continental Shelf; or 

(2) A royalty due on oil or gas 

production from any lease located on 

the outer Continental Shelf. 

(n) Central planning area means the 

Central Gulf of Mexico Planning Area of 

the outer Continental Shelf, as 

designated in the document entitled 

‘‘Draft Proposed Program Outer 

Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing 

Program 2007–2012,’’ dated February 

2006. 

(o) Coastline means the line of 

ordinary low water along that portion of 

the coast in direct contact with the open 

sea and the line marking the seaward 

limit of inland waters. 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS
6080 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Proposed Rules 

(p) Desoto Canyon OPD means the 

official protraction diagram designated 

as Desoto Canyon which has a western 

edge located at the universal transverse 

mercator (UTM) X coordinate 1,346,400 

in the North American Datum of 1927 

(NAD 27). 

(q) Destin Dome OPD means the 

official protraction diagram designated 

as Destin Dome which has a western 

edge located at the universal transverse 

mercator (UTM) X coordinate 1,393,920 

in the NAD 27. 

(r) Eastern planning area means the 

Eastern Gulf of Mexico Planning Area of 

the outer Continental Shelf, as 

designated in the document entitled 

‘‘Draft Proposed Program Outer 

Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing 

Program 2007–2012’’, dated February 

2006. 

(s) Pensacola OPD means the official 

protraction diagram designated as 

Pensacola which has a western edge 

located at the universal transverse 

mercator (UTM) X coordinate 1,393,920 

in the NAD 27. 

3. A new subpart N consisting of 

§§ 256.90 through 256.95 are added to 

read as follows: 

Subpart N—Bonus or Royalty Credits 

for Exchange of Certain Leases 

Sec. 

256.90 Which leases may I exchange for a 

bonus or royalty credit? 

256.91 How much bonus or royalty credit 

will MMS grant in exchange for a lease? 

256.92 What must I do to obtain a bonus or 

royalty credit? 

256.93 How is the bonus or royalty credit 

allocated among multiple lease owners? 

256.94 How may I use the bonus or royalty 

credit? 

256.95 How do I transfer a bonus or royalty 

credit to another person? 

§ 256.90 Which leases may I exchange for 

a bonus or royalty credit? 

You may exchange a lease for a bonus 

or royalty credit if it: 

(a) Was in effect on December 20, 

2006, and 

(b) Is located in: 

(1) The Eastern planning area and 

within 125 miles of the coastline of the 

State of Florida, or 

(2) The Central planning area and 

within the Desoto Canyon OPD, the 

Destin Dome OPD, or the Pensacola 

OPD and within 100 miles of the 

coastline of the State of Florida. 

§ 256.91 How much bonus or royalty credit 

will MMS grant in exchange for a lease? 

The amount of the bonus or royalty 

credit for an exchanged lease equals the 

sum of: 

(a) The amount of the bonus payment; 

and 

(b) All rental paid for the lease as of 

the date the lessee submits the request 

to exchange the lease under § 256.92 to 

MMS. 

§ 256.92 What must I do to obtain a bonus 

or royalty credit? 

(a) To obtain the bonus or royalty 

credit, all of the record title interest 

owners in the lease must submit the 

following to the MMS Regional 

Supervisor for Leasing and Environment 

for the Gulf of Mexico on or before 

[INSERT THE DATE THAT IS 1 YEAR 

AFTER THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE 

FINAL RULE IN THE Federal Register]: 

(1) A written request to exchange the 

lease for the bonus or royalty credit, 

signed by all record title interest owners 

in the lease. 

(2) The name and contact information 

for a person who will act as a contact 

for each record title interest owner. 

(3) Documentation of each record title 

interest owner’s percentage share in the 

lease. 

(4) A list of all bonus and rental 

payments for that lease made by, or on 

behalf of, each of the current record title 

owners. 

(5) A written relinquishment of the 

lease as described in § 256.76. 

Notwithstanding § 256.76, the 

relinquishment will become effective 

when the credit becomes effective under 

paragraph (b) of this section. 

(b) The credit becomes effective when 

MMS issues a certification to the record 

title interest owners that the lease has 

qualified for the credit. 

§ 256.93 How is the bonus or royalty credit 

allocated among multiple lease owners? 

The MMS will allocate the bonus or 

royalty credit for an exchanged lease to 

the current record title interest owners 

in the same percentage share as each 

owner has in the lease as of the date of 

the request to exchange the lease. 

§ 256.94 How may I use the bonus or 

royalty credit? 

(a) You may use a credit issued under 

this part in lieu of a monetary payment 

due under any lease in the Gulf of 

Mexico not subject to the revenue 

distribution provisions of section 8(g)(2) 

of the OCSLA (43 U.S.C. 1337(g)(2)) for 

either: 

(1) A bonus for acquisition of an 

interest in a new lease; or 

(2) Royalty due on oil and gas 

production after [INSERT THE DATE 

THAT IS 30 DAYS AFTER THE 

PUBLICATION DATE OF THE FINAL 

RULE IN THE Federal Register]. 

(b) You may not use a bonus or 

royalty credit in lieu of delivering oil or 

gas taken as royalty-in-kind. 

(c) If you have any credit that remains 

unused after 5 years from the date MMS 

issued the credit, MMS reserves the 

right to apply the remaining credit to 

your ongoing obligations at its 

discretion. 

§ 256.95 How do I transfer a bonus or 

royalty credit to another person? 

(a) You may transfer your bonus or 

royalty credit to any other person by 

submitting to the MMS Adjudication 

Unit for the Gulf of Mexico two 

originally executed transfer letters of 

agreement. 

(b) Authorized officers of all 

companies involved in transferring and 

receiving the credit must sign the 

transfer letters of agreement as indicated 

on the qualification card filed with 

MMS. 

(c) A transfer letter of agreement must 

include: 

(1) The effective date of the transfer, 

(2) The OCS–G number for the lease 

that originally qualified for the credit, 

(3) The amount of the credit being 

transferred, 

(4) Company names punctuated 

exactly as filed on the qualification card 

at MMS, and 

(5) A corporate seal, only if MMS 

used a corporate seal qualification 

process for your corporation. 

(d) The transferee of a credit 

transferred under this section may use 

it in accordance with § 256.94 as soon 

as MMS sends a confirmation of the 

transfer to the transferee. 

[FR Doc. E8–1860 Filed 1–31–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P 

ARCHITECTURAL AND 

TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS 

COMPLIANCE BOARD 

36 CFR Parts 1190 and 1191 

RIN 3014–AA22 

Emergency Transportable Housing 

Advisory Committee 

AGENCY: Architectural and 

Transportation Barriers Compliance 

Board. 

ACTION: Notice of meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Architectural and 

Transportation Barriers Compliance 

Board (Access Board) has established an 

advisory committee to make 

recommendations for possible revisions 

to the Americans with Disabilities Act 

(ADA) and Architectural Barriers Act 

(ABA) Accessibility Guidelines to 

include provisions for emergency 

transportable housing. This notice 

announces the dates, time, and location 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with PROPOSALS