Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement April 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) proposes to amend the regulations related to notifying a State regulatory authority of a possible violation of any requirement of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). The proposed rule would also amend the Federal regulations regarding corrective actions for State regulatory program issues. Together, the proposed updates to these two areas of the Federal regulations would amend the overall ``ten-day notice'' (TDN) process. Although a final rule covering these topics went into effect in 2020 (2020 TDN Rule), the rule has proven to delay our consideration of some possible SMCRA violations. In 2021, the Department of the Interior undertook a reexamination of the 2020 TDN Rule and decided to engage in this rulemaking effort. The primary goals of this rulemaking are to reduce burdens for citizens to engage in the TDN process, establish procedures for OSMRE to properly evaluate and process citizen allegations about possible SMCRA violations, clearly set forth the regulatory requirements for the TDN process, and continue to minimize the duplication of inspections, enforcement, and administration of SMCRA. In addition, we will continue to afford our State regulatory authority partners due deference during the TDN process to an extent that is appropriate under SMCRA. The proposed rule would ensure that possible SMCRA violations are properly identified and addressed in a timely fashion. When OSMRE obtains adequate proof of an imminent harm, OSMRE would immediately conduct a Federal inspection, outside of the TDN process, as SMCRA requires. Overall, we believe that this proposed rule would align more closely than the 2020 TDN Rule with SMCRA's requirements.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), are proposing to renew an information collection.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), are proposing to renew an information collection.