BOEMRE Information Collection Activity: 1010-0106, Oil Spill Financial Responsibility for Offshore Facilities, Extension of a Collection; Submitted for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Review; Comment Request

AGENCY:

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE), Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of extension of an information collection (1010-0106).

SUMMARY:

To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we are notifying the public that we have submitted to OMB an information collection request (ICR) to renew approval of the paperwork requirements in the regulations under 30 CFR part 253, “Oil Spill Financial Responsibility for Offshore Facilities,” and related documents. This notice also provides the public a second opportunity to comment on the paperwork burden of these regulatory requirements.

DATES:

Submit written comments by October 7, 2010.

ADDRESSES:

Submit comments by either fax (202) 395-5806 or e-mail (OIRA_DOCKET@omb.eop.gov) directly to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior (1010-0106). Please also submit a copy of your comments to BOEMRE by any of the means below.

• Electronically: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. In the entry titled “Enter Keyword or ID,” enter docket ID MMS-2010-OMM-0020 then click search. Follow the instructions to submit public comments and view supporting and related materials available for this collection. The BOEMRE will post all comments.
• E-mail cheryl.blundon@boemre.gov. Mail or hand-carry comments to: Department of the Interior; Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement; Attention: Cheryl Blundon; 381 Elden Street, MS-4024; Herndon, Virginia 20170-4817. Please reference ICR 1010-0106 in your comment and include your name and return address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cheryl Blundon, Regulations and Standards Branch, (703) 787-1607. You may also contact Cheryl Blundon to obtain a copy, at no cost, of the regulations and forms that require the subject collection of information.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: 30 CFR 253, Oil Spill Financial Responsibility for Offshore Facilities.

Forms: MMS-1016, MMS-1017, MMS-1018, MMS-1019, MMS-1020, MMS-1021, MMS-1022.

OMB Control Number: 1010-0106.

Abstract: Title I of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA) (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), as amended by the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104-324), provides at section 1016 that oil spill financial responsibility (OSFR) for offshore facilities be established and maintained according to methods determined acceptable to the President. Section 1016 of OPA supersedes the offshore facility oil spill financial responsibility provisions of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lands Act Amendments of 1978. These authorities and responsibilities are among those delegated to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) under which BOEMRE issues regulations governing oil and gas and sulphur operations in the OCS.

This ICR addresses the regulations at 30 CFR part 253, Oil Spill Financial Responsibility for Offshore Facilities, including any supplementary notices to lessees and operators (NTLs) that provide clarification, description, or explanation of these regulations, and forms MMS-1016 through MMS-1022.

Regulations implementing these responsibilities are under 30 CFR 253. Responses are mandatory. No questions of a sensitive nature are asked. The BOEMRE protects information considered proprietary according to the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and its implementing regulations (43 CFR 2).

The BOEMRE will use the information collected under 30 CFR part 253 to verify compliance with section 1016 of OPA. The information is necessary to confirm that applicants can pay for cleanup and damages from oil-spill discharges from Covered Offshore Facilities (COFs). The information will be used routinely: (a) To establish approval and eligibility of applicants for an OSFR certification; and (b) as a reference source for cleanup and damage claims associated with oil-spill discharges from COFs; the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of owners, operators, and guarantors; designated U.S. agents for service of process; and persons to contact. To collect most of the information, BOEMRE developed standard forms. The forms and their purposes are:

Cover Sheet: The forms will be distributed in a package that includes a cover sheet that displays the required OMB Control Number, Expiration Date, and Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) statement. This cover sheet will accompany the forms as part of a package or will be included with any copies of a particular form that respondents may request.

Form MMS-1016, Designated Applicant Information Certification: The designated applicant uses this form to provide identifying information (company legal name, BOEMRE company number and region, address, contact name and title, telephone and fax numbers) and to summarize the OSFR evidence. This form is required for each new or renewed OSFR certification application.

Form MMS-1017, Designation of Applicant: When there is more than one responsible party for a COF, they must select a designated applicant. Each responsible party, as defined in the regulations, must use this form to notify BOEMRE of the designated applicant. This form is also used to designate the U.S. agent for service of process for the responsible party(ies) should claims from an oil-spill discharge exceed the amount evidenced by the designated applicant; to identify and provide pertinent information about the responsible party(ies); and to list the COFs for which the responsible party is liable for OSFR certification. The form identifies each COF by State or OCS region; lease, permit, right of use and easement or pipeline number; aliquot section; area name; and block number. This form must be submitted with each new OSFR application or with an assignment involving a COF in which there is at least one responsible party who is not the designated applicant for a COF.

Form MMS-1018, Self-Insurance or Indemnity Information: This form is used if the designated applicant is self-insuring or using an indemnity for OSFR evidence. As appropriate, either the designated applicant or the designated applicant's indemnitor completes the form to indicate the amount of OSFR coverage as well as effective and expiration dates. The form also provides pertinent information about the self-insurer or indemnitor and is used to designate a U.S. agent for service of process for claims up to the evidenced amount. This form must be submitted each time new evidence of OSFR is submitted using either self-insurance or an indemnification.

Form MMS-1019, Insurance Certificate: The designated applicant (representing himself as a direct purchaser of insurance) or his insurance agent or broker and the named insurers complete this form to provide OSFR evidence using insurance. The number of forms to be submitted will depend upon the number of layers of insurance to evidence the total amount of OSFR required. One form is required for each layer of insurance. The form provides pertinent information about the insurer(s) and designates a U.S. agent for service of process. This form must be submitted at the beginning of the term of the insurance coverage for the designated applicant's COFs or at the time COFs are added, with the scheduled option selected, to OSFR coverage.

Form MMS-1020, Surety Bond: Each bonding company that issues a surety bond for the designated applicant must complete this form indicating the amount of surety and effective dates. The form provides pertinent information about the bonding company and designates a U.S. agent for service of process for the amount evidenced by the surety bond. This form must be submitted at the beginning of the term of the surety bond for the named designated applicant.

Form MMS-1021, Covered Offshore Facilities: The designated applicant submits this form to identify the COFs for which the OSFR evidence applies. The form identifies each COF by State or OCS region; lease, permit, right of use and easement or pipeline number; aliquot section; area name; block number; and potential worst case oil-spill discharge. This form is required to be submitted with each new or renewed OSFR certification application that includes COFs.

Form MMS-1022, Covered Offshore Facility Changes: During the term of the issued OSFR certification, the designated applicant may submit changes to the current COF listings, including additions, deletions, or changes to the worst case oil-spill discharge for a COF. This form must be submitted when identified changes occur during the term of an OSFR Certification.

Frequency: On occasion, annual.

Description of Respondents: Respondents are holders of leases, permits, and rights of use and easement in the OCS and in State coastal waters who will appoint designated applicants. Other respondents will be the designated applicants' insurance agents and brokers, bonding companies, and indemnitors. Some respondents may also be claimants. Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour Burden: The estimated annual hour burden for this information collection is a total of 21,319 hours. The following chart details the individual components and estimated hour burdens. In calculating the burdens, we assumed that respondents perform certain requirements in the normal course of their activities. We consider these to be usual and customary and took that into account in estimating the burden.

Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Non-Hour Cost Burden: We have identified no paperwork non-hour cost burdens associated with the collection of information.

Public Disclosure Statement: The PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq.) provides that an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Until OMB approves a collection of information, you are not obligated to respond.

Comments: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq.) requires each agency “* * * to provide notice * * * and otherwise consult with members of the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of information * * *” Agencies must specifically solicit comments to: (a) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the agency to perform its duties, including whether the information is useful; (b) evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) minimize the burden on the respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

To comply with the public consultation process, on April 26, 2010, we published a Federal Register notice (75 FR 21648) announcing that we would submit this ICR to OMB for approval. The notice provided the required 60-day comment period. In addition, § 253.5 and the PRA statement on the cover sheet for the OSFR forms explain that BOEMRE will accept comments at any time on the information collection requirements and burdens of our 30 CFR part 253 regulations and associated forms. The regulation and the OSFR cover sheet also inform the public that they may comment at any time on the collection of information and provides the address to which they should send comments. We have received no comments in response to these efforts.

If you wish to comment in response to this notice, you may send your comments to the offices listed under the ADDRESSES section of this notice. The OMB has up to 60 days to approve or disapprove the information collection but may respond after 30 days. Therefore, to ensure maximum consideration, OMB should receive public comments by October 7, 2010.

Public Availability of Comments: Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

BOEMRE Information Collection Clearance Officer: Arlene Bajusz (703) 787-1025.