Minerals Cost Recovery

Issuing agencies

Abstract

The Forest Service proposes regulations to impose new fees to recover the agency's costs for processing proposals related to mineral activity on National Forest System lands. This would include costs for actions such as environmental review and analysis, monitoring authorized activities, and other processing-related costs. The proposed rule would establish a fee schedule based on categories of Federal hours needed to complete processing for most mineral-related actions and charge a fixed fee for low-volume mineral material disposals. This proposal to recover costs is based on statutory authority, which authorizes Federal agencies to charge for work it performs to provide a service or benefit to identifiable entities and on policy guidance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) which directs charging these fees. This rulemaking also responds to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommendation made in an audit report that the Forest Service recover costs for processing locatable mineral plans of operation. The Forest Service invites written comments on this proposed rule and its supporting economic analysis of impacts to small businesses.