Maryland Regulatory Program

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 920

Maryland Regulatory Program

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM),

Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: OSM is announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the

Maryland regulatory program (hereinafter referred to as the Maryland

program) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977

(SMCRA). The proposed amendment repeals Maryland's Code of Maryland

Regulations (COMAR) 08.13.02 (Deep-Mining of Coal). Regulations that

existed in the repealed Chapter 02 and are still necessary to regulate

deep-mining are moved to COMAR 08.20 (Surface Coal Mining and

Reclamation Under Federally Approved Program). This proposed amendment

facilitates the codification of Maryland's approved program and is

intended to revise the Maryland program to be consistent with the

corresponding Federal regulations. Minor changes were made to certain

provisions transferred to COMAR 08.20.

This document sets forth the times and locations that the Maryland

program and the proposed amendment to that program are available for

public inspection, the dates and times of the comment period during

which interested persons may submit written comments on the amendment,

and the procedures that will be followed regarding the public hearing,

if one is requested.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before 4 p.m., [e.s.t.]

on April 15, 1994. If requested, a public hearing on the amendment will

be held at 9 a.m., [e.s.t.] on April 11, 1994. Requests to speak at the

hearing must be received on or before 4 p.m., [e.s.t.] on March 31,

1994. Any disabled individual who has need for a special accommodation

to attend a public hearing should contact the individual listed under

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and requests to speak at the hearing should

be mailed or hand delivered to George Rieger, Acting Director,

Harrisburg Field Office, at the first address listed below.

Copies of the Maryland program, the proposed amendment, and all

written comments received in response to this document will be

available for public review at the addresses listed below during normal

business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Each

requestor may receive, free of charge, one copy of the proposed

amendment by contracting OSM's Harrisburg Field Office.

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Harrisburg

Field Office, Harrisburg Transportation Center, Third Floor, suite

3C, 4th and Market Streets, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17101,

Telephone: (717) 782-4036.

Maryland Bureau of Mines, 160 South Water Street, Frostburg,

Maryland 21532, Telephone (301) 689-4136.

A public hearing, if held, will be at the Penn Harris Motor Inn and

Convention Center at the Camp Hill Bypass and U.S. Routes 11 and 15,

Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, or at some other location in the area of

interested parties.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:George Rieger, Acting Director,

Harrisburg Field Office, (717) 782-4036.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the Maryland Program

II. Discussion of the Proposed Amendment

III. Public Comment Procedures

IV. Procedural Determinations

I. Background on the Maryland Program

The Secretary of the Interior approved the Maryland program on

February 18, 1982. Information on the background of the Maryland

program including the Secretary's findings, the disposition of comments

and a detailed explanation of the conditions of approval of the

Maryland program can be found in the February 18, 1982, Federal

Register (47 FR 7214-7217). Subsequent actions concerning amendments to

the Maryland Program are in 30 CFR 920.15 and 30 CFR 920.16.

II. Discussion of the Proposed Amendment

The Maryland Bureau of Mines (Bureau) submitted a program amendment

to OSM on February 25, 1994. The amendment (Administrative Record

Number MD-566.00) repeals Maryland's COMAR 08.13.02 (Deep-Mining of

Coal). Regulations that existed in the repealed Chapter 02 and are

still necessary to regulate deep-mining are moved to COMAR 08.20

(Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Under Federally Approved Program).

These regulations include: COMAR 08.20.02.18 (Deep-Mine Applications),

08.20.13 (Surface Effects of Deep Mines), 08.20.14.13 (Deep-Mine

Bonding Requirements). COMAR 08.20 is a new subtitle that Maryland

developed to streamline the codification of Federally approved program

rules by grouping the provisions by chapter instead of by regulation.

COMAR 08.13.09 (Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation under Federally

Approved Program) or Chapter 09 of Subtitle 13 was transferred by COMAR

Supplement No. 15 to this new Subtitle 20 in May of 1993. Minor

editorial changes were made to certain provisions transferred to COMAR

08.20. Other changes are listed below.

COMAR 08.20.13.04D (Face-Up Areas) is amended to prevent gravity

discharge of water from surface openings of underground coal mines.

COMAR 08.20.13.10D (Subsidence Control: Buffer Zone) is amended to

delete the subsidence control waiver option for public bridges subject

to subsidence.

COMAR 08.20.02.18A(4) (Deep Mine Applications) is amended to

require the map scale for the underground workings to be 1 inch equal

to 500 feet or a different scale if clarity is preserved and the

alternate scale is approved by the Bureau.

COMAR 08.20.13.12A (Projection Maps) is revised to require the

projected mining to be submitted at the same scale as the map submitted

under COMAR 08.20.13.18A(4).

III. Public Comment Procedures

In accordance with the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), OSM is now

seeking comments on whether the proposed amendment satisfies the

applicable program approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If the amendment

is deemed adequate, it will become part of the Maryland program.

Written Comments

Written comments should be specific, pertain only to the issues

proposed in this rulemaking, and include explanations in support of the

commenter's recommendations. Comments received after the time indicated

under DATES or at locations other than the Harrisburg Field Office will

not necessarily be considered in the final rulemaking or included in

the Administrative Record.

Public Hearing

Persons wishing to comment at the public hearing should contact the

person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4 p.m., [e.s.t]

on March 31, 1994. If no one requests an opportunity to comment at a

public hearing, the hearing will not be held.

Filing of a written statement at the time of the hearing is

requested as it will greatly assist the transcriber. Submission of

written statements in advance of the hearing will allow OSM officials

to prepare adequate responses and appropriate questions. The public

hearing will continue on the specified date until all persons scheduled

to comment have been heard. Persons in the audience who have not been

scheduled to speak, and who wish to do so, will be heard following

those scheduled. The hearing will end after all persons scheduled to

speak and persons present in the audience who wish to speak have been

heard.

Public Meeting

If only one person requests an opportunity to speak at a hearing, a

public meeting, rather than a public hearing, may be held. Persons

wishing to meet with OSM representatives to discuss the proposed

amendments may request a meeting at the Harrisburg Field Office by

contacting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All

such meetings will be open to the public and, if possible, notices of

meetings will be posted at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. A

written summary of each meeting will be made part of the Administrative

Record.

IV. Procedural Determinations

Executive Order 12866

This proposed rule is exempted from review by the Office of

Management and Budget under Executive Order 12866.

Executive Order 12778

The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required

by section 2 of Executive Order 12778 and has determined that, to the

extent allowed by law, this rule meets the applicable standards of

subsections (a) and (b) of that section. However, these standards are

not applicable to the actual language of State regulatory programs and

program amendments since each such program is drafted and promulgated

by a specific State, not by OSM. Under sections 503 and 505 of SMCRA

(30 U.S.C. 1253 and 1255) and 30 CFR 730.11, 732.15 and 732.17(h)(10),

decisions on proposed State regulatory programs and program amendments

submitted by the States must be based solely on a determination of

whether the submittal is consistent with SMCRA and its implementing

Federal regulations and whether the other requirements of 30 CFR Parts

730, 731, and 732 have been met.

National Environmental Policy Act

No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since

section 702(d) of SMCRA [30 U.S.C. 1292(d)] provides that agency

decisions on proposed State regulatory program provisions do not

constitute major Federal actions within the meaning of section

102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C.

4332(2)(C).

Paperwork Reduction Act

This rule does not contain information collection requirements that

require approval by the Office of Management and Budget under the

Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3507 et seq.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

The Department of the Interior has determined that this rule will

not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small

entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).

The State submittal which is the subject of this rule is based upon

counterpart Federal regulations for which an economic analysis was

prepared and certification made that such regulations would not have a

significant economic effect upon a substantial number of small

entities. Hence, this rule will ensure that existing requirements

previously promulgated by OSM will be implemented by the State. In

making the determination as to whether this rule would have a

significant economic impact, the Department relied upon the data and

assumptions for the counterpart Federal regulations.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 920

Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

Dated: March 10, 1994.

Tim L. Dieringer,

Acting Assistant Director, Eastern Support Center.

[FR Doc. 94-6084 Filed 3-15-94; 8:45 am]

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