Department of the Interior September 30, 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Louisiana regulatory program (Louisiana program) and the Louisiana abandoned mine land reclamation plan (Louisiana plan) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). The proposed amendment consists of revisions, additions, and deletions of regulations pertaining to definitions; lands eligible for remining; general provisions for review of permit application information and entry of information into AVS; review of applicant, operator, and ownership and control information; review of permit history; review of compliance history; permit eligibility determination; unanticipated events or conditions at remining sites; eligibility for provisionally issued permits; written findings for permit application approval; initial review and finding requirements for improvidently issued permits; suspension or rescission requirements for improvidently issued permits; who may challenge ownership or control listings and findings; how to challenge an ownership or control listing or finding; burden of proof for ownership or control challenges; written agency decision on challenges to ownership or control listings or findings; post-permit issuance requirements for regulatory authorities and other actions based on ownership, control, and violation information; post-permit issuance information requirements for permittees; transfer, assignment, or sale of permit rights; certifying and updating existing permit application information; providing applicant and operator information; providing permit history information; providing violation information; backfilling and grading: previously mined areas; and cessation orders; and contractor eligibility. The amendment is intended to revise the Louisiana program to be no less effective than the corresponding Federal regulations and the Louisiana plan to be consistent with the Federal regulations. This document gives the times and locations that the Louisiana program, Louisiana plan, and this proposed amendment are available for your inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written comments on the amendment, and the procedures that we will follow for the public hearing, if one is requested.

We are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Utah regulatory program (hereinafter, the ``Utah program'') under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (``SMCRA'' or ``the Act''). Utah proposes revisions to and additions of rules about Valid Existing Rights (``VER''). Utah intends to revise its program to be consistent with the corresponding Federal regulations. This document gives the times and locations that the Utah program and proposed amendment to that program are available for your inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written comments on the amendment, and the procedures that we will follow for the public hearing, if one is requested.

Under the provisions of the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) received a petition for reinstatement from U.S. Ore Corp. for the renewal of oil and gas lease WYW146099 for land in Fremont County, Wyoming. The petition was filed on time and was accompanied by all the rentals due since the date the lease terminated under the law.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 12-month finding on a petition to list the pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. After review of all available scientific and commercial information, we find the listing of the pygmy rabbit is not warranted at this time. However, we ask the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the threats to the pygmy rabbit or its habitat at any time.