Department of the Interior 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) are proposing to renew an information collection.

A request for nominations was published by the Department of the Interior in the Federal Register on April 29, 2021, for specific positions on the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Public Advisory Committee (Committee). This Committee advises the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council (Trustee Council) on decisions related to the planning, evaluation, funds allocation, and conduct of injury assessment and restoration activities related to the T/V Exxon Valdez oil spill of March 1989.

We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Wyoming regulatory program (hereinafter, the Wyoming program) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Wyoming proposes revisions to its program, which includes rules regarding the disposal of decommissioned wind turbine blades and towers as backfill, in response to legislative changes made during the 2020 legislative session. In addition, revisions were made to Chapter 2: Permit Application Requirements for Surface Coal Mining Operations, to correct grammatical errors and provide consistency with the Secretary of State's Rules on Rules. The revised rules address several national, state, and local issues associated with wind energy generation, maintenance, and upgrades, as well as the resulting stockpile of decommissioned wind turbine blades and towers. This document gives the times and locations that the Wyoming 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.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the availability of the Draft Recovery Plan for White Bluffs Bladderpod (Physaria douglasii subsp. tuplashensis), listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, and endemic to Franklin County, Washington. We request review and comment on this draft recovery plan from Federal, State, and local agencies; Native American Tribes; and the public.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 12-month determination on a petition to revise critical habitat for the Mount Graham red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus grahamensis) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The petition requests that the Service expand the subspecies' critical habitat designation to include currently occupied mixed conifer habitat and all historically occupied habitat outside the current critical habitat designation. Our 12-month determination is that we intend to assess revisions to the subspecies' critical habitat after a species status assessment and revised recovery plan for the Mount Graham red squirrel are completed.

The Secretary of the Interior, as requested by the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), proposes to withdraw 953.06 acres of public lands from settlement, sale, location, or entry, under all of the general land laws, including the mining laws, and 309.56 acres of National Forest System lands from location and entry under the mining laws, and reserve them for use by the BOR in connection with the McPhee Dam and Reservoir, for a period of 100 years. This notice advises the public of an opportunity to comment on the withdrawal and to request a public meeting.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are extending the comment period on our June 1, 2021, proposed rule to list two distinct population segments (DPSs) of the lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus), a grassland bird known from southeastern Colorado, western Kansas, eastern New Mexico, western Oklahoma, and the Texas Panhandle under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We are extending the proposed rule's comment period for 30 days to give all interested parties an additional opportunity to comment on the proposed rule. Comments previously submitted need not be resubmitted as they are already incorporated into the public record and will be fully considered in the final rule.

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, the Department of the Interior (DOI) is rescinding 11 system of records notices from its existing inventory. These systems were managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and are no longer in use, or have been superseded by Government-wide, Department-wide, or other BLM system of records notices; however, they have not been formally rescinded. This notice formally rescinds the 11 system of records notices identified below.

This notice provides the semiannual agenda of Department of the Interior (Department) rules scheduled for review or development between Spring 2021 and Spring 2022. The Regulatory Flexibility Act and Executive Order 12866 require publication of the agenda.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce our intention to conduct a 5-year status review under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, for the Eskimo curlew. A 5-year status review is based on the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of the review. We are requesting submission of any new information that has become available since the last review of the species in 2016.

This notice publishes the approval of the Amendment to the Tribal-State Compact for the Conduct of Class III Gaming between the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana (Tribe) and the State of Louisiana (State).

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received applications for permits to conduct activities intended to enhance the propagation and survival of endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. We invite the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on these applications. Before issuing the requested permits, we will take into consideration any information that we receive during the public comment period.

This notice informs the public of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's (BOEM's) issuance of an executed, noncompetitive lease, Renewable Energy Lease No. OCS-P 0560, to Oregon State University for marine hydrokinetic research activities offshore Oregon and defines the size of the lease area. This notice is issued under BOEM's regulations.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), are proposing to renew an information collection.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972, the National Park Service is hereby giving notice that the Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument Advisory Council (Council) will meet as indicated below.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is confirming the interim final rule published on May 24, 2021, updating regulations governing Tribal Energy Resource Agreements (TERAs) between the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) and Indian Tribes. The interim final rule added the statutory requirement that that any application for a Tribal Energy Development Organization (TEDO) be submitted by the Tribe and corrected cross-references.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce 90- day findings on two petitions to add species to the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants and one petition to remove a species (``delist'') under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Based on our review, we find that the petitions to list the Alexander Archipelago wolf (Canis lupus ligoni) and western ridged mussel (Gonidea angulata) present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this document, we announce that we plan to initiate status reviews of these species to determine whether the petitioned actions are warranted. We find that the petition to delist the golden-cheeked warbler (Dendroica chrysoparia) does not present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating the petitioned action may be warranted. Therefore, we are not initiating a status review of the species. To ensure that the status reviews are comprehensive, we are requesting scientific and commercial data and other information regarding the species and factors that may affect their status. Based on the status reviews, we will issue 12-month petition findings, which will address whether or not the petitioned actions are warranted, in accordance with the Act.

Consistent with the regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), BSEE intends to prepare a PEIS to inform future decisions on applications for the decommissioning of oil and gas pipelines, platforms, and other facilities offshore of Southern California on the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is assisting BSEE in the preparation of this environmental analysis.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Bureau of Trust Funds Administration (BTFA), are proposing to renew an information collection.

The University of Denver Museum of Anthropology, in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, has determined that the cultural items listed in this notice meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects. Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to claim these cultural items should submit a written request to the University of Denver Museum of Anthropology. If no additional claimants come forward, transfer of control of the cultural items to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

The U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Alaska State Office (BLM) has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects, in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and present-day Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of these human remains and associated funerary objects should submit a written request to the BLM. If no additional requestors come forward, transfer of control of the human remains and associated funerary objects to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology has completed an inventory of human remains, in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and present-day Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of these human remains should submit a written request to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. If no additional requestors come forward, transfer of control of the human remains to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

This final rule amends the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) regulations that set maximum daily civil penalty (MDCP) amounts for violations of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act (FOGRMA). The amended BOEM regulations will cross-reference regulations of the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) that also set MDCP amounts for FOGRMA violations. This cross-reference will ensure consistency between BOEM's FOGRMA MDCP amounts and ONRR's FOGRMA MDCP amounts. It will also ensure consistent compliance with the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (Inflation Adjustment Act) and related Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance, while reducing unnecessary duplication of effort and costs to BOEM.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing a new information collection in use without Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval.

The boundary of Acadia National Park is modified to include one parcel of land totaling 0.88 acres, more or less, and will exclude one parcel of land totaling 0.20 acres, more or less, both parcels are located in Bar Harbor, Hancock County, Maine.