1010-0122 30-day

37482

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 127 / Tuesday, July 1, 2008 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Minerals Management Service
[Docket No. MMS–2008–MRM–0008]

Agency Information Collection
Activities: Submitted for Office of
Management and Budget (OMB)
Review; Comment Request
Minerals Management Service
(MMS), Interior.
ACTION: Notice of an extension of a
currently approved information
collection (OMB Control Number 1010–
0122).

sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES

AGENCY:

SUMMARY: To comply with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(PRA), we are notifying the public that
we have submitted to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) an
information collection request (ICR) to
renew approval of the paperwork
requirements in the regulations under
30 CFR part 243. This notice also
provides the public a second
opportunity to comment on the
paperwork burden of these regulatory
requirements. We changed the title of
this ICR to clarify the regulatory
language we are covering under 30 CFR
part 243. The previous title of this ICR
was ‘‘30 CFR 243—Suspensions
Pending Appeal and Bonding—Minerals
Revenue Management (Forms MMS–
4435, Administrative Appeal Bond;
MMS–4436, Letter of Credit; and MMS–
4437, Assignment of Certificate of
Deposit).’’ The new title of this ICR is
‘‘30 CFR Part 243—Suspensions
Pending Appeal and Bonding—Minerals
Revenue Management.’’
DATES: Submit written comments on or
before July 31, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Submit written comments
by either FAX (202) 395–6566 or e-mail
(OIRA_Docket@omb.eop.gov) directly to
the Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, OMB, Attention: Desk Officer
for the Department of the Interior (OMB
Control Number 1010–0122).
Please submit copies of your
comments to MMS by the following
methods:
• Electronically go to http://
www.regulations.gov. In the ‘‘Comment
or Submission’’ column, enter ‘‘MMS–
2008–MRM–0008’’ to view supporting
and related materials for this ICR. Click
on ‘‘Send a comment or submission’’
link to submit public comments.
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

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comments submitted will be posted to
the docket.
• Mail comments to Armand
Southall, Regulatory Specialist,
Minerals Management Service, Minerals
Revenue Management, P.O. Box 25165,
MS 302B2, Denver, Colorado 80225.
Please reference ICR 1010–0122 in your
comments.
• Hand-carry comments or use an
overnight courier service. Our courier
address is Building 85, Room A–614,
Denver Federal Center, West 6th Ave.
and Kipling Blvd., Denver, Colorado
80225. Please reference ICR 1010–0122
in your comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Armand Southall, telephone (303) 231–
3221, or e-mail
armand.southall@mms.gov. You may
also contact Armand Southall to obtain
copies, at no cost, of (1) the ICR, (2) any
associated forms, and (3) the regulations
that require the subject collection of
information.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: 30 CFR Part 243–Suspensions
Pending Appeal and Bonding—Minerals
Revenue Management.
OMB Control Number: 1010–0122.
Bureau Form Number: Forms MMS–
4435, MMS–4436, and MMS–4437.
Abstract: The Secretary of the United
States Department of the Interior
(Secretary) is responsible for matters
relevant to mineral resource
development on Federal and Indian
lands and the Outer Continental Shelf
(OCS). The Secretary, under the Mineral
Leasing Act of 1920 (30 U.S.C. 1923),
Indian Mineral Development Act of
1982 (Pub. L. 97–382—Dec. 22, 1982),
and the Outer Continental Shelf Lands
Act (43 U.S.C. 1353), is responsible for
managing the production of minerals
from Federal and Indian lands and the
OCS, collecting royalties and other
mineral revenues from lessees who
produce minerals, and distributing the
funds collected in accordance with
applicable laws. The Secretary also has
a trust responsibility to manage Indian
lands and seek advice and information
from Indian beneficiaries. The MMS
performs the mineral revenue
management functions for the Secretary
and assists the Secretary in carrying out
the Department’s trust responsibility for
Indian lands. Public laws pertaining to
mineral revenues are on our Web site at
http://www.mrm.mms.gov/Laws_R_D/
PublicLawsAMR.htm.
Regulations at 30 CFR 243 govern the
suspension of orders or decisions
pending administrative appeal for
Federal and Indian leases. These
regulations require the submission of
information demonstrating financial

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solvency by the person who represents
the appellant, requesting a suspension
without the need to provide a surety.
For Federal leases, the RSFA Section
4(l), ‘‘Stay of Payment Obligation
Pending Review,’’ requires MMS to
evaluate any person, ordered by the
Secretary or a delegated state to pay any
obligation (other than an assessment)
subject to RSFA, to determine whether
that person is entitled to a stay of the
order without bond or other surety
instrument, pending an administrative
or judicial proceeding, based on the
financial solvency of that person. For
those appellants who are not financially
solvent or for appeals involving Indian
leases, MMS requires that a surety
instrument be posted to secure the
financial interest of the public and
Indian lessors during the entire
administrative or judicial appeal
process. This information collection
request covers the burden hours
associated with appellants submitting
financial statements or surety
instruments, subject to annual audit,
required to stay an MMS order.
Minerals produced from Federal and
Indian leases vary greatly in the nature
of occurrence, production, and
processing methods. When a company
or an individual enters into a lease to
explore, develop, produce, and dispose
of minerals from Federal or Indian
lands, that company or individual
agrees to pay the lessor a share in an
amount or value of production from the
leased lands. The lessee is required to
report various kinds of information to
the lessor relative to the disposition of
the leased minerals. Such information is
generally available within the records of
the lessee or others involved in
developing, transporting, processing,
purchasing, or selling such minerals.
The information collected includes data
necessary to ensure that the royalties are
accurately valued and appropriately
paid.
Proprietary information submitted to
MMS under this collection is protected,
and no items of a sensitive nature are
collected. A response is voluntary and
required to obtain the benefit of
suspending compliance of an order
pending appeal.
Stay of Payment Pending Appeal
Title 30 CFR 243.1 states that lessees
or recipients of MMS Minerals Revenue
Management (MRM) orders may
suspend compliance with an order if
they appeal in accordance with 30 CFR
Part 290, Subpart B—Minerals Revenue
Management Appeal Procedures.
Pending appeal, MMS suspends the
payment requirement if the appellant
submits a formal agreement of payment

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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 127 / Tuesday, July 1, 2008 / Notices
in case of default, such as a bond or
other surety, or demonstrates financial
solvency. The MMS accepts the
following surety types: Form MMS–
4435, Administrative Appeal Bond;
Form MMS–4436, Letter of Credit; Form
MMS–4437, Assignment of Certificate of
Deposit; Self-bonding; and U.S.
Treasury Securities.
When one of the surety types is
selected and put in place, appellants
must maintain the surety until
completion of the appeal. If the appeal
is decided in favor of the appellant,
MMS returns the surety to the appellant.
If the appeal is decided in favor of
MMS, then MMS will take action to
collect full royalty payment or draw
down on the surety. The MMS draws
down on a surety if the appellant fails
to comply with requirements relating to
amount due, timeframe, or surety
submission or resubmission. Whenever
MMS must draw down on a surety,
MMS must draw down the total amount
due, which is defined as unpaid
principal plus the interest accrued to
the projected receipt date of the surety
payment. Appellants may refer to the
Surety Instrument Posting Instructions
for each of the five surety types to
submit the respective information.
These instructions for the five surety
types discussed below can also be found
at http://www.mrm.mms.gov/
ReportingServices/PDFDocs/
SuretyInst.pdf.

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Forms and Other Surety Types
Form MMS–4435, Administrative
Appeal Bond
Appellants may file Form MMS–4435,
Administrative Appeal Bond, which
MMS uses to secure the financial
interests of the public and Indian lessors
during the entire administrative and
judicial appeal process. Under 30 CFR
243.4, appellants are required to submit
their contact and surety amount
information on the bond to obtain the
benefit of suspension of an obligation to
comply with an order. The bond must
be issued by a qualified surety company
that is approved by the Department of
the Treasury (see Department of the
Treasury Circular No. 570, revised
periodically in the Federal Register).
The Associate Director for MRM
(Associate Director) or the MRMdelegated bond-approving officer
(officer) maintains these bonds in a
secure facility. Once the appeal has
concluded, MMS may release and return
the bond to the appellant or collect
royalty payment on the bond. If
collection is necessary for a remaining
royalty payment balance, MMS will
issue a demand for payment to the

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surety company with a notice to the
appellant. The MMS will also include
all interest accrued on the affected bill.
Form MMS–4436, Letter of Credit
Appellants may choose to file Form
MMS–4436, Letter of Credit, with no
modifications. Requirements of 30 CFR
243.4 continue to apply. The Associate
Director or officer maintains the Letter
of Credit (LOC) in a secure facility. A
bank must notarize and issue the LOC
for appellants in which the bank has a
minimum Fitch rating of ‘‘C’’ for an LOC
of less than $1 million, ‘‘B/C’’ for an
LOC between $1 million and $10
million, or ‘‘B’’ for an LOC over $10
million. The LOC must have a minimum
coverage period of 1 year and be
automatically renewable for up to 5
years.
The appellant is responsible for
verifying that the bank provides a
current rating to MMS. If the issuing
bank’s rating falls below the minimum
acceptable level, a satisfactory
replacement surety must be submitted
within 14 days, or MMS will draw
down the existing LOC. If the bank
issuing the LOC chooses not to renew
the existing LOC, it must provide MMS
with a notice of its decision not to
renew 30 days prior to expiration of the
LOC. Once the appeal has been
concluded, MMS may release and return
the LOC to the appellant or collect
royalty payment on the LOC. If
collection is necessary for a remaining
royalty payment balance, MMS will
issue a demand for payment, which
includes all interest assessed on the
affected bill, to the bank with a notice
to the appellant.
Form MMS–4437, Assignment of
Certificate of Deposit
Appellants may choose to secure their
debts by requesting to use a Certificate
of Deposit (CD) from their bank and
submitting Form MMS–4437,
Assignment of Certificate of Deposit.
Requirements of 30 CFR 243.4 continue
to apply. Appellants must file the
request with MMS prior to the invoice
due date. The MMS will accept a bookentry CD that explicitly assigns the CD
to the Associate Director. A bank must
issue the CD in which the bank has a
minimum Fitch rating or is confirmed
by a bank with an acceptable rating. The
acceptable ratings for a CD are the same
as for an LOC. If collection of the CD is
necessary for a royalty payment balance,
MMS will return unused CD funds to
the appellant after total settlement of the
appealed issues, including applicable
interest charges.

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37483

Self-Bonding
For Federal oil and gas leases, RSFA
Section 4(l), as promulgated at 30 CFR
243.201, provides that no surety
instrument is required when a person
representing the appellant periodically
demonstrates, to the satisfaction of
MMS, that guarantor or appellant is
financially solvent or otherwise able to
pay the obligation. Appellants must
submit a written request to ‘‘self-bond’’
every time a new appeal is filed. To
evaluate the financial solvency and
exemption from requirements of
appellants to maintain a surety related
to an appeal, MMS requires appellants
to submit a consolidated balance sheet,
subject to annual audit. In some cases,
MMS also requires copies of the most
recent tax returns—up to 3 years—filed
by appellants.
In addition, appellants must annually
submit financial statements, subject to
annual audit, to support their net worth.
The MMS uses the consolidated balance
sheet or business information supplied
to evaluate the financial solvency of a
lessee, designee, or payor seeking a stay
of payment obligation pending review.
If appellants do not have a consolidated
balance sheet documenting their net
worth, or if they do not meet the $300
million net worth requirement, MMS
selects a business information or credit
reporting service to provide information
concerning an appellant’s financial
solvency. We charge the appellant a $50
fee each time we need to review data
from a business information or credit
reporting service. The fee covers our
costs in determining an appellant’s
financial solvency.
U.S. Treasury Securities
Appellants may choose to secure their
debts by requesting to use a U.S.
Treasury Security (TS). Appellants must
file the letter of request with MMS prior
to the invoice due date. The TS must be
a U.S. Treasury note or bond with
maturity equal to or greater than 1 year.
The TS must equal 120 percent of the
appealed amount plus 1 year of
estimated interest (necessary to protect
MMS against interest rate fluctuations).
The MMS accepts only a book-entry TS.
Request to OMB
The MMS is requesting OMB’s
approval to continue to collect this
information. Not collecting this
information would limit the Secretary’s
ability to discharge his/her duties and
may also result in loss of royalty
payments.
Frequency: Annually and on occasion.
Estimated Number and Description of
Respondents: 140 Federal/Indian
appellants.

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37484

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 127 / Tuesday, July 1, 2008 / Notices

Estimated Annual Reporting and
Recordkeeping ‘‘Hour’’ Burden: 140
hours.

The following chart shows the
estimated annual burden hours by CFR
section and paragraph. We have not
included in our estimates certain

requirements performed in the normal
course of business and considered usual
and customary.

RESPONDENTS’ ESTIMATED ANNUAL BURDEN HOURS
Citation 30 CFR 243

Reporting and recordkeeping requirement

Hour burden

Average number of annual
responses

Annual
burden
hours

Subpart A—General Provisions
243.4(a)(1) ...........................

How do I suspend compliance with an order?
(a) If you timely appeal an order, and if that order or portion of that order: (1) Requires you to make a payment, and you want to suspend compliance with that
order, you must post a bond or other surety instrument or demonstrate financial solvency * * *

1 hour

75 surety instruments (including Forms MMS–
4435, MMS–4436, and
MMS–4437, or TS).

243.6 ....................................

When must I or another person meet the bonding or financial solvency requirements under this part?
If you must meet the bonding or financial solvency requirements under § 243.4(a)(1), or if another person is
meeting your bonding or financial solvency requirements, then either you or the other person must post
a bond or other surety instrument or demonstrate financial solvency within 60 days after you receive the
order or the Notice of Order.

Burden hours covered under § 243.4(a)(1).

243.7(a) ...............................

What must a person do when posting a bond or other
surety instrument or demonstrating financial solvency
on behalf of an appellant?
If you assume an appellant’s responsibility to post a
bond or other surety instrument or demonstrate financial solvency * * * (a) Must notify MMS in writing
* * * that you are assuming the appellant’s responsibility * * *.

Burden hours covered under § 243.4(a)(1).

243.8(a)(2) and (b)(2) ..........

When will MMS suspend my obligation to comply with
an order?
(a) Federal leases. * * * (2) If the amount under appeal
is $10,000 or more, MMS will suspend your obligation
to comply with that order if you:
(i) Submit an MMS-specified surety instrument under
subpart B of this part within a time period MMS prescribes; or
(ii) Demonstrate financial solvency under subpart C.
(b) Indian leases. * * * (2) If the amount under appeal is
$1,000 or more, MMS will suspend your obligation to
comply with that order if you submit an MMS-specified
surety instrument under subpart B of this part within a
time period MMS prescribes.

Burden hours covered under § 243.4(a)(1).

75

Subpart B—Bonding Requirements
243.101(b) ...........................

How will MMS determine the amount of my bond or
other surety instrument?
* * * (b) If your appeal is not decided within 1 year from
the filing date, you must increase the surety amount to
cover additional estimated interest for another 1-year
period. You must continue to do this annually * * *.

Burden hours covered under § 243.4(a)(1).

Subpart C—Financial Solvency Requirements

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243.200(a) and (b) ..............

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How do I demonstrate financial solvency?
(a) To demonstrate financial solvency under this part,
you must submit an audited consolidated balance
sheet, and, if requested by the MMS bond-approving
officer, up to 3 years of tax returns to the MMS, * * *.
(b) You must submit an audited consolidated balance
sheet annually, and, if requested, additional annual tax
returns on the date MMS first determined that you
demonstrated financial solvency as long as you have
active appeals, or whenever MMS requests. * * *

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1 hour

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65 self-bonding submissions
(demonstration of financial solvency).

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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 127 / Tuesday, July 1, 2008 / Notices

37485

RESPONDENTS’ ESTIMATED ANNUAL BURDEN HOURS—Continued
Citation 30 CFR 243

Reporting and recordkeeping requirement

Hour burden

243.201(c)(1), (c)(2)(i) and
(c)(2)(ii) and
243.201(d)(2).

How will MMS determine if I am financially solvent?
* * * (c) If your net worth, minus the amount we would
require as surety under subpart B for all orders you
have appealed is less than $300 million, you must
submit * * *:
(1) A written request asking us to consult a business-information, or credit-reporting service or program to determine your financial solvency; and
(2) A nonrefundable $50 processing fee:
(i) You must pay the processing fee * * *;
(ii) You must submit the fee with your request * * * and
then annually on the date we first determined that you
demonstrated financial solvency, as long as you are
not able to demonstrate financial solvency * * * and
you have active appeals.
(d) * * * (2) For us to consider you financially solvent,
the business-information or credit-reporting service or
program must demonstrate your degree of risk as low
to moderate: * * *

Burden hours covered under §§ 243.4(a)(1) and
243.200(a) and (b).

243.202(c) ...........................

When will MMS monitor my financial solvency?
* * * (c) If our bond-approving officer determines that
you are no longer financially solvent, you must post a
bond or other MMS-specified surety instrument under
subpart B.

Burden hours covered under § 243.4(a)(1).

Total Burden ...........................................................................................................................................

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Average number of annual
responses

Estimated Annual Reporting and
Recordkeeping ‘‘Non-hour’’ Cost
Burden: There are no additional
recordkeeping costs associated with this
information collection. However, MMS
estimates 15 appellants will pay MMS a
$50 fee to obtain credit data from a
business information or credit reporting
service as a ‘‘non-hour’’ cost burden
over the next three years, or 5 appellants
per year, for a total of $250 per year (5
appellants per year × $50 = $250).
Public Disclosure Statement: The PRA
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) 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.
Comments: Before submitting an ICR
to OMB, PRA section 3506(c)(2)(A)
requires each agency ‘‘* * * to provide
notice * * * and otherwise consult
with members of the public and affected
agencies concerning each proposed
collection of information * * *.’’
Agencies must specifically solicit
comments to: (a) Evaluate whether the
proposed collection of information is
necessary for the agency to perform its
duties, including whether the
information is useful; (b) evaluate the
accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the
burden of the proposed collection of
information; (c) enhance the quality,
usefulness, and clarity of the

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information to be collected; and (d)
minimize the burden on the
respondents, including the use of
automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
To comply with the public
consultation process, we published a
notice in the Federal Register on August
13, 2007 (72 FR 45264), announcing that
we would submit this ICR to OMB for
approval. The notice provided the
required 60-day comment period. We
received no comments in response to
the notice.
If you wish to comment in response
to this notice, you may send your
comments to the offices listed under the
ADDRESSES section of this notice. The
OMB has up to 60 days to approve or
disapprove the information collection
but may respond after 30 days.
Therefore, to ensure maximum
consideration, OMB should receive
public comments by July 31, 2008.
Public Comment Policy: We will post
all comments in response to this notice
on our Web site at http://
www.mrm.mms.gov/Laws_R_D/InfoColl/
InfoColCom.htm. We will also make
copies of the comments available for
public review, including names and
addresses of respondents, during regular
business hours at our offices in
Lakewood, Colorado. Before including
your address, phone number, e-mail
address, or other personal identifying

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Annual
burden
hours

140 ......................................

140

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 view, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
MMS Information Collection
Clearance Officer: Arlene Bajusz (202)
208–7744.
Date April 24, 2008.
Richard J. Adamski,
Acting Associate Director for Minerals
Revenue Management.
[FR Doc. E8–14894 Filed 6–30–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
National Register of Historic Places;
Notification of Pending Nominations
and Related Actions
Nominations for the following
properties being considered for listing
or related actions in the National
Register were received by the National
Park Service before June 14, 2008.
Pursuant to § 60.13 of 36 CFR Part 60
written comments concerning the
significance of these properties under

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