Indiana Regulatory Program

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 914

[SPATS No. IN-132-FOR; State Program Amendment No. 95-10]

Indiana Regulatory Program

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

Interior.

[[Page 15379]]

ACTION: Final rule; approval of amendment.

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SUMMARY: OSM is approving a proposed amendment to the Indiana

regulatory program (hereinafter referred to as the ``Indiana program'')

under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA).

The amendment consists of the recodification of the Indiana Surface

Coal Mining and Reclamation Act, and it represents the Indiana

Legislative Services Agency's effort to streamline and simplify Indiana

natural resources law placing all such provisions in Title 14.

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 8, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Roger W. Calhoun, Director, Indianapolis Field Office, Office of

Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Minton-Capehart Federal

Building, 575 North Pennsylvania Street, Room 301, Indianapolis,

Indiana 46204-1521, Telephone (317) 226-6700.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the Indiana Program

II. Submission of the Proposed Amendment

III. Director's Findings

IV. Summary and Disposition of Comments

V. Director's Decision

VI. Procedural Determinations

I. Background on the Indiana Program

On July 29, 1982, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally

approved the Indiana program. Background information on the Indiana

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

comments, and the conditions of approval can be found in the July 26,

1982, Federal Register (47 FR 32107). Subsequent actions concerning the

conditions of approval and program amendments can be found at 30 CFR

914.10, 914.15, and 914.16.

II. Submission of the Proposed Amendment

By letter dated September 11, 1995 (Administrative Record No. IND-

1508), Indiana submitted a proposed amendment to its program pursuant

to SMCRA. Indiana submitted the proposed amendment at its own

initiative. Indiana proposed recodification of the Indiana Surface Coal

Mining and Reclamation Act (ISCMRA), Title 13 of the Indiana Code (IC)

13-4.1, as enacted by the Indiana General Assembly under 1995 House

Enrolled Act 1047 (HEA 1047). HEA 1047 was signed into law by Governor

Evan Bayh on May 10, 1995. HEA repealed IC 13-4.1 and recodified its

substantive provisions at Title 14 of the Indiana Code (IC) 14-34.

Editorial changes, including minor structural and grammatical changes,

were made throughout the recodified statutes. Indiana, also, submitted

IC 14-8 which contains several definitional sections, including some

previously contained in IC 13-4.1, and savings provisions which state

that HEA 1047 is not intended to enact a substantive change to pre-

existing law, nor affect any rules promulgated, or rights or

liabilities accrued, under the authority of prior law. There were no

substantive revisions proposed by Indiana.

OSM announced receipt of the proposed amendment in the January 22,

1996, Federal Register (61 FR 1546), and in the same document opened

the public comment period and provided an opportunity for a public

hearing on the adequacy of the proposed amendment. The public comment

period closed on February 21, 1996.

III. Director's Findings

Set forth below, pursuant to SMCRA and the Federal regulations at

30 CFR 732.15 and 732.17, is the Director's finding concerning the

proposed amendment.

Indiana's proposed amendment concerns the recodification of the

Indiana Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Act (SCMRA), Title 13 of

the Indiana Code (IC) 13-4.1, as enacted by the Indiana General

Assembly under 1995 House Enrolled Act 1047 (HEA 1047). HEA 1047 was

signed into law by Governor Evan Bayh on May 10, 1995. HEA repealed IC

13-4.1 and recodified its substantive provisions at Title 14 of the

Indiana Code (IC) 14-8 and 14-34. Indiana's proposed recodification of

its statutes is nonsubstantive in nature, and the Director finds that

the recodification does not render its statutes less stringent than

SMCRA.

IV. Summary and Disposition of Comments

Public Comments

The Director solicited public comments and provided an opportunity

for a public hearing on the proposed amendment. No public comments were

received, and because no one requested an opportunity to speak at a

public hearing, no hearing was held.

Federal Agency Comments

Pursuant to 30 CFR 732.17(h)(11)(i), the Director solicited

comments on the proposed amendment from various Federal agencies with

an actual or potential interest in the Indiana program. Responding by

letter, the Natural Resources Conservation Service stated it had

reviewed the proposed amendment and had no comments (Administrative

Record No. IND-1516). No other comments were received.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Pursuant to 30 CFR 732.17(h)(11)(ii), OSM is required to obtain the

written concurrence of the EPA with respect to those provisions of the

proposed program amendment that relate to air or water quality

standards promulgated under the authority of the Clean Water Act (33

U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) or the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.).

None of the revisions that Indiana proposed to make in this amendment

pertain to air or water quality standards. Therefore, OSM did not

request EPA's concurrence.

Pursuant to 732.17(h)(11)(i), OSM solicited comments on the

proposed amendment from EPA (Administrative Record No. Ind-1513). It

did not respond to OSM's request.

State Historical Preservation Officer (SHPO) and the Advisory Council

on Historic Preservation (ACHP)

Pursuant to 30 CFR 732.17(h)(4), OSM is required to solicit

comments on proposed amendments which may have an effect on historic

properties from the SHPO and ACHP. OSM solicited comments on the

proposed amendment from the SHPO and ACHP (Administrative Record No.

Ind-1513). Neither SHPO nor ACHP responded to OSM's request.

V. Director's Decision

Based on the above finding, the Director approves the proposed

amendment as submitted by Indiana on September 11, 1995.

The Federal regulations at 30 CFR part 914, codifying decisions

concerning the Indiana program, are being amended to implement this

decision. This final rule is being made effective immediately to

expedite the State program amendment process and to encourage States to

bring their programs into conformity with the Federal standards without

undue delay. Consistency of State and Federal standards is required by

SMCRA.

VI. Procedural Determinations

Executive Order 12866

This rule is exempted from review by the Office of Management and

Budget (OMB) under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and

Review).

Executive Order 12778

The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required

by section 2 of Executive Order 12778 (Civil Justice Reform) and has

determined that, to the extent allowed by law, this rule meets the

applicable standards of subsections (a) and (b) of

[[Page 15380]]

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 OMB 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

corresponding 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. Accordingly, 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 corresponding Federal regulations.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR part 914

Intergovernmental regulations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

Dated: March 29, 1996.

Brent Wahlquist,

Regional Director, Mid-Continent Regional Coordinating Center.

For the reasons set out in the preamble, Title 30, Chapter VII,

Subchapter T, part 914 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as

set forth below:

PART 914--INDIANA

1. The authority citation for Part 914 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.

2. Section 914.15 is amended by adding paragraph (ooo) to read as

follows:

Sec. 914.15 Approval of regulatory program amendments.

* * * * *

(ooo) Recodification of Indiana's statutes from IC 13-4.1 to IC 14-

8 and IC 14-34 as submitted to OSM on September 11, 1995, is approved

effective April 8, 1996.

[FR Doc. 96-8630 Filed 4-5-96; 8:45 am]

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