Notice Terminating the Exclusion of Indian Allotted Leases in the Uintah and Ouray Reservation From Valuation Under 30 CFR 206.172, 10552-10553 [E7-4150]

Download as PDF 10552 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 45 / Thursday, March 8, 2007 / Notices Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (40 CFR 1506.6). All comments that we receive, including names and addresses, will become part of the official administrative record and may be made available to the public. We will evaluate the application, associated documents, and comments submitted thereon to determine whether the application meets the requirements of NEPA regulations and section 10(a) of the Act. If we determine that those requirements are met, we will issue a permit to the District for the incidental take of desert tortoises. We will make our final permit decision no sooner than 60 days from the date of this notice. If you wish to comment on the permit application, draft EA, Plan, or IA you may submit your comments to the address listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document. Our practice is to make comments, including names, home addresses, etc., of respondents available for public review. Individual respondents may request that we withhold their names and/or home addresses, etc., but if you wish us to consider withholding this information, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your comments. In addition, you must provide a rationale demonstrating and documenting that disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy. In the absence of exceptional, documented circumstances, we will release this information. All submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, are available for public inspection in their entirety. Dated: March 2, 2007. Polly Wheeler, Acting Deputy Manager, California/Nevada Operations Office, Sacramento, California. [FR Doc. E7–4138 Filed 3–7–07; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–55–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Minerals Management Service Notice Terminating the Exclusion of Indian Allotted Leases in the Uintah and Ouray Reservation From Valuation Under 30 CFR 206.172 Minerals Management Service, Interior. ACTION: Notice. AGENCY: SUMMARY: The Minerals Management Service (MMS) with Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) concurrence is terminating the exclusion from valuation under the rules at 30 CFR 206.172 for gas produced from the Ute allotted leases in the Uintah and Ouray Reservation (Reservation), Utah. The final rule was published in the Federal Register on August 10, 1999 (64 FR 43506). DATES: Effective Date: May 1, 2007. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Barder, Manager, San Juan Basin Region, Indian Oil and Gas Compliance and Asset Management, Minerals Revenue Management, Minerals Management Service, P.O. Box 25165, MS 396B2, Denver, CO 80225–0165, telephone number (303) 231–3702, fax number (303) 231–3755, e-mail john.barder@mms.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The MMS published in the Federal Register on August 10, 1999 (64 FR 43506), a final rule titled ‘‘Amendments to Gas Valuation Regulations for Indian Leases’’ with an effective date of January 1, 2000. Indian leases in the Reservation were excluded from index-based valuation (§ 206.172). This exclusion was based on the results of a cost benefit analysis MMS performed in 1999. In the 1999 cost benefit analysis, MMS estimated individual Indian mineral owners would receive more revenue under the non-index-based valuation methodology (§ 206.174) than under the index-based valuation methodology (§ 206.172). Effective January 2000, MMS has valued gas production from the Reservation under the non-index-based valuation methodology at § 206.174. However, MMS recently performed a cost benefit analysis for calendar years 2004 through 2005 and estimated that revenues using the index-based valuation formula at § 206.172 exceed the estimated revenues using the nonindex-based valuation method at § 206.174. Therefore, as required under § 206.172(g), MMS received written concurrence from BIA to terminate the exclusion from index-based valuation of gas production from Indian allotted leases in the Reservation. As a result, gas production from Ute allotted leases in the Reservation must be valued under the index-based valuation method (§ 206.172), beginning with production on the first day of the second month following the date MMS publishes notice of its decision in the Federal Register. Lessees must value gas production from Ute allotted leases in the Reservation on the index-based valuation formula at § 206.172(d) using MMS-approved publications and indexes for the Central Rocky Mountain Index Zone to determine the index zone price; or lessees may obtain the indexbased values from the MRM Internet Web site at: https://www.mrm.mms.gov. Approved publications and index pricing points for the Central Rocky Mountain Index Zone are shown in the following table: APPROVED PUBLICATIONS AND INDEX PRICING POINTS FOR THE CENTRAL ROCKY MOUNTAIN INDEX ZONE MMS-approved publications Platts gas daily price guide NGI’s bidweek survey Central Rocky Mountains ................... sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES Index zone X X X X .................... .................... .................... .................... .................... X VerDate Aug<31>2005 18:53 Mar 07, 2007 Jkt 211001 PO 00000 Frm 00064 Index-pricing points Kern River Gas Trans. Co. for Wyoming. Northwest Pipeline Corp. for Rocky Mountains. Questar Pipeline Co. for Rocky Mountains. Colorado Interstate Gas Co. for Rocky Mountains. Rocky Mountains • CIG. • Questar. • Kern River. • Northwest Domestic. Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\08MRN1.SGM 08MRN1 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 45 / Thursday, March 8, 2007 / Notices Dated: January 16, 2007. Lucy Querques Denett, Associate Director for Minerals, Revenue Management. [FR Doc. E7–4150 Filed 3–7–07; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR National Park Service 60-Day Notice of Intention To Request Clearance of Collection of Information; Opportunity for Public Comment Department of the Interior, National Park Service. ACTION: Notice and request for comments. sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES AGENCY: SUMMARY: Under provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and 5 CFR part 1320, Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements, the National Park Service (NPS) invites public comments on an extension of a currently approved collection of information (OMB No. 1024–0236). DATES: Public comments on the proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) will be accepted on or before May 7, 2007. ADDRESSES: Send Comments To: Dr. John G. Dennis, Natural Resources (Room 1160), NPS, 1201 Eye Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005; Phone: 202/513–7174; fax: 202/371–2131; email WASO_NRSS_researchcoll@nps.gov. Also, please send a copy of your comments to Leonard Stowe, Information Collection Clearance Officer, NPS, 1849 C St., NW (2605), Washington, DC 20240, or by e-mail at Leonard_Stowe@nps.gov. All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the request for the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval. All comments will become a matter of public record. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill Commins, NPS, Natural Resources (Room 25), 1201 Eye St., NW., Washington, DC 20005. Phone 202/513– 7166; Fax: 202/317–2131; E-mail: bill_commins@nps.gov. You may obtain additional information about the application and annual reporting forms and existing guidance and explanatory material from the NPS Research Permit and Reporting System Web site at: https://science.nature.nps.gov/research. You are entitled to a copy of the entire ICR package free of charge. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: Research Permit and Reporting System Collection of Information Package: Application for a Scientific VerDate Aug<31>2005 18:53 Mar 07, 2007 Jkt 211001 Research and Collecting Permit: Application for a Science Education Permit; Investigator’s Annual Report. Bureau Form Number(s): Application for a Scientific Research and Collecting Permit: 10–741a; Application for a Science Education Permit: 10–741b; Investigator’s Annual Report: 10–226. OMB Number: 1024–0236. Expiration Date: 6/30/2007. Type of Request: Revision of a previously approved information collection. Description of Need: The currently approved information collection responds to the statutory requirement that NPS preserve park resources and regulate the use of units of the National park System. The information currently collected identifies: (1) Names and business contact information for people who seek a permit to conduct natural or social science research and collection activities in individual units of the National Park System, (2) what activities they wish to conduct, (3) where they wish to conduct the activities, (4) whether or not they wish to collect specimens as part of the activities they propose to conduct, and (5) for applicants who have received a permit, annual summaries of the actual results of their permitted activities. NPS uses the collected information for managing the use and preservation of park resources and for reporting the status of permitted research and collecting activities. NPS is considering proposing to develop the Internet software for, and implement, the Application for a Science Education Permit that OMB reviewed and approved in 2004. NPS is proposing to leave the current Application for a Scientific Research and Collecting Permit and the Investigator’s Annual Report collection of information forms largely unchanged unless responses to this request for comments identify areas in the two collections of information that warrant change. In response to suggestions for changes identified prior to and during the review of this information collection package in 2004, NPS added entries to obtain more specific information about project scope and status, including expected total time span of the project, specific identification of project personnel who will be working in the park, status of processing of collected specimens, planned schedules for the field work phases of the project, and expected end date for the project. NPS also split the Application into two versions to improve the ability to use the Internet to process applications for both scientific research and collecting and scientific education activities, but has PO 00000 Frm 00065 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 10553 not yet modified the Internet software to implement the science education component. NPS changed the scientific research and collecting application to improve the clarity of information provided to, and obtained from, respondents who request use of a nonNPS repository regarding the duty the respondents have for securing acceptance by the proposed non-NPS repository of becoming responsible for collections authorized in the permit. NPS changed the Investigator’s Annual Report to reduce the complexity of the form by assigning responsibility to NPS, not the respondent, for determining the appropriate activity code for each permitted project. NPS also designed the Investigator’s Annual Report to accommodate in a single form progress reports from both science research and collecting and science education permittees. At this time, NPS is not proposing to make any changes to any of these three collections of information. NPS is considering updating some of the guidance documents and specifically is considering creating a separate guidance document regarding science education activities. NPS specifically requests comments on the clarity and utility of the guidance documents and on desired content of a separate guidance document for the science education activities. NPS also is considering whether to create a new component of this collection of information package specifically to offer users of the Internet site an opportunity to provide comments online regarding the usability of the Internet site and working relationships with parks in which permittees conduct science activities. Based on growth in use of this collection of information system over the past six years, NPS is proposing to request an increase in the burden hour budget. At the onset of the system, NPS estimated that there would be approximately 3,000 applications and 3,000 Investigator’s Annual Reports submitted each year. The average numbers reported for 2004 and 2005 permitted activities, which are the latest two years with complete information for numbers of active permits and submitted Investigator’s Annual Reports, show 4,472 studies per year under permit, 5,046 active permits per year, and 3,657 Investigator’s Annual Reports. Experience with using this system shows that, for a variety of reasons related to both applicants and parks, a number of studies apply for and obtain more than one permit per year for the same study while other studies receive permits that are active for more than one year at a time. These situations E:\FR\FM\08MRN1.SGM 08MRN1

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[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 45 (Thursday, March 8, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10552-10553]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-4150]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


Notice Terminating the Exclusion of Indian Allotted Leases in the 
Uintah and Ouray Reservation From Valuation Under 30 CFR 206.172

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Minerals Management Service (MMS) with Bureau of Indian 
Affairs (BIA) concurrence is terminating the exclusion from valuation 
under the rules at 30 CFR 206.172 for gas produced from the Ute 
allotted leases in the Uintah and Ouray Reservation (Reservation), 
Utah. The final rule was published in the Federal Register on August 
10, 1999 (64 FR 43506).

DATES: Effective Date: May 1, 2007.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Barder, Manager, San Juan Basin 
Region, Indian Oil and Gas Compliance and Asset Management, Minerals 
Revenue Management, Minerals Management Service, P.O. Box 25165, MS 
396B2, Denver, CO 80225-0165, telephone number (303) 231-3702, fax 
number (303) 231-3755, e-mail john.barder@mms.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The MMS published in the Federal Register on 
August 10, 1999 (64 FR 43506), a final rule titled ``Amendments to Gas 
Valuation Regulations for Indian Leases'' with an effective date of 
January 1, 2000. Indian leases in the Reservation were excluded from 
index-based valuation (Sec.  206.172). This exclusion was based on the 
results of a cost benefit analysis MMS performed in 1999. In the 1999 
cost benefit analysis, MMS estimated individual Indian mineral owners 
would receive more revenue under the non-index-based valuation 
methodology (Sec.  206.174) than under the index-based valuation 
methodology (Sec.  206.172).
    Effective January 2000, MMS has valued gas production from the 
Reservation under the non-index-based valuation methodology at Sec.  
206.174. However, MMS recently performed a cost benefit analysis for 
calendar years 2004 through 2005 and estimated that revenues using the 
index-based valuation formula at Sec.  206.172 exceed the estimated 
revenues using the non-index-based valuation method at Sec.  206.174. 
Therefore, as required under Sec.  206.172(g), MMS received written 
concurrence from BIA to terminate the exclusion from index-based 
valuation of gas production from Indian allotted leases in the 
Reservation.
    As a result, gas production from Ute allotted leases in the 
Reservation must be valued under the index-based valuation method 
(Sec.  206.172), beginning with production on the first day of the 
second month following the date MMS publishes notice of its decision in 
the Federal Register. Lessees must value gas production from Ute 
allotted leases in the Reservation on the index-based valuation formula 
at Sec.  206.172(d) using MMS-approved publications and indexes for the 
Central Rocky Mountain Index Zone to determine the index zone price; or 
lessees may obtain the index-based values from the MRM Internet Web 
site at: https://www.mrm.mms.gov.
    Approved publications and index pricing points for the Central 
Rocky Mountain Index Zone are shown in the following table:

            Approved Publications and Index Pricing Points for the Central Rocky Mountain Index Zone
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                MMS-approved publications
                                              ----------------------------
                  Index zone                    Platts gas       NGI's              Index-pricing points
                                                daily price     bidweek
                                                   guide        survey
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Central Rocky Mountains......................            X   ............  Kern River Gas Trans. Co. for
                                                                            Wyoming.
                                                         X   ............  Northwest Pipeline Corp. for Rocky
                                                                            Mountains.
                                                         X   ............  Questar Pipeline Co. for Rocky
                                                                            Mountains.
                                                         X   ............  Colorado Interstate Gas Co. for Rocky
                                                                            Mountains.
                                               ............            X   Rocky Mountains
                                                                            CIG.
                                                                            Questar.
                                                                            Kern River.
                                                                            Northwest Domestic.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



[[Page 10553]]

    Dated: January 16, 2007.
Lucy Querques Denett,
Associate Director for Minerals, Revenue Management.
 [FR Doc. E7-4150 Filed 3-7-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P
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