Proposed Rule2025-15985
Montana Regulatory Program
Primary source
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Published
August 21, 2025
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentSurface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement Office
Abstract
We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Montana regulatory program (the Montana program) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Montana submitted this proposed amendment to us, on its own initiative, following the passage of Montana House Bill 633 (HB 633) during the 2025 legislative session. Montana proposes several changes to the Montana Code Annotated (MCA). Montana proposes that objections to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality's (DEQ) decisions are limited to issues previously raised in a comment or written objection submitted during the relevant comment period. The submittal also requires cumulative hydrologic impact assessments to be published along with DEQ's acceptability determination. Also, Montana adds contingencies in HB 633 that will not be codified into law but that will apply to the proposed amendment: "Saving clause," "Severability," "Contingent voidness," and "Effective date."
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 160 (Thursday, August 21, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 160 (Thursday, August 21, 2025)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 40790-40791]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-15985]
[[Page 40790]]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
30 CFR Part 926
[SATS No. MT-049-FOR; Docket ID: OSM-2025-0022; S1D1S SS08011000
SX064A000 256S180110; S2D2S SS08011000 SX064A000 25XS501520]
Montana Regulatory Program
AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public
hearing on proposed amendment.
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SUMMARY: We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
(OSMRE), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Montana
regulatory program (the Montana program) under the Surface Mining
Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Montana
submitted this proposed amendment to us, on its own initiative,
following the passage of Montana House Bill 633 (HB 633) during the
2025 legislative session. Montana proposes several changes to the
Montana Code Annotated (MCA). Montana proposes that objections to the
Montana Department of Environmental Quality's (DEQ) decisions are
limited to issues previously raised in a comment or written objection
submitted during the relevant comment period. The submittal also
requires cumulative hydrologic impact assessments to be published along
with DEQ's acceptability determination. Also, Montana adds
contingencies in HB 633 that will not be codified into law but that
will apply to the proposed amendment: ``Saving clause,''
``Severability,'' ``Contingent voidness,'' and ``Effective date.''
DATES: We will accept written comments on this amendment until 4:00
p.m., Mountain Daylight Time (M.D.T.) September 22, 2025. If requested,
we may hold a public hearing or meeting on the amendment on September
15, 2025. We will accept requests to speak at a hearing until 4:00
p.m., M.D.T. on September 5, 2025.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by SATS No. MT-049-FOR,
by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Mail/Hand Delivery: OSMRE, Attn: Jeffrey Fleischman, P.O.
Box 11018, 100 East B Street, Room 4100, Casper, Wyoming 82602.
<bullet> Fax: (307) 261-6552.
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: The amendment has been
assigned Docket ID: OSM-2025-0022. If you would like to submit
comments, go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Follow the instructions
for submitting comments.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name
and docket number for this rulemaking. For detailed instructions on
submitting comments and additional information on the rulemaking
process, see the ``Public Comment Procedures'' heading of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
Docket: For access to the docket to review copies of the Montana
program, this amendment, a listing of any scheduled public hearings or
meetings, and all written comments received in response to this
document, you must go to the address listed below during normal
business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. The full
text of the program amendment is available for you to read at
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>. Or you may receive one free copy of the amendment
by contacting OSMRE's Casper Field Office: Attn: Jeffrey Fleischman,
Field Office Director, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and
Enforcement, 100 East B Street, Casper, Wyoming 82602, Telephone: (307)
261-6550, Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f59f9399909c86969d98949bb59a86988790db929a83"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="ee8488828b879d8d86838f80ae819d839c8bc0898198">[email protected]</span></a>.
In addition, you may review a copy of the amendment during regular
business hours at the following location: Attn: Eric Dahlgren, Bureau
Chief, Mining Bureau, Montana Department of Environmental Quality, 2401
Colonial Drive, Helena, MT 59601-0901, Telephone: (406) 444-5245,
Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#b0d5d4d1d8dcd7c2d5def0ddc49ed7dfc6"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="325756535a5e5540575c725f461c555d44">[email protected]</span></a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Attn: Jeffrey Fleischman, Field Office
Director, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 100
East B Street, Casper, Wyoming 82602, Telephone: (307) 261-6550, Email:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0369656f666a70606b6e626d436c706e71662d646c75"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="85efe3e9e0ecf6e6ede8e4ebc5eaf6e8f7e0abe2eaf3">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background on the Montana Program
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
III. Public Comment Procedures
IV. Procedural Determinations
I. Background on the Montana Program
Subject to OSMRE's oversight, section 503(a) of the Act permits a
State to assume primacy for the regulation of surface coal mining and
reclamation operations on non-Federal and non-Indian lands within its
borders by demonstrating that its approved, State program includes,
among other things, State laws and regulations that govern surface coal
mining and reclamation operations in accordance with the Act and
consistent with the Federal regulations. See 30 U.S.C. 1253(a)(1) and
(7).
On the basis of these criteria, the Secretary of the Interior
conditionally approved the Montana program on April 1, 1980. You can
find background information on the Montana program, including the
Secretary's findings, the disposition of comments, and conditions of
approval of the Montana program in the April 1, 1980, Federal Register
(45 FR 21560). You can also find later actions concerning the Montana
program and program amendments at 30 CFR 926.15.
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
By letter dated June 6, 2025 (Administrative Record No. MT-049-01),
Montana sent us an amendment to its program under SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1201
et seq.). We found Montana's proposed amendment to be administratively
complete on June 9, 2025. Montana submitted this proposed amendment to
us, on its own initiative, following the passage of Montana House Bill
633 (HB 633) during the 2025 legislative session.
Montana first proposes changes to procedures for contested case
hearings at 82-4-206(1) of the MCA. Montana proposes that for an
applicant, permittee, or person otherwise adversely affected by a DEQ
decision to request a hearing with the Board of Environmental Review,
that party must have submitted comments or written objections during
the relevant comment period.
Second, at 82-4-231(8)(e), Montana proposes that where DEQ requires
a cumulative hydrologic impact assessment, DEQ must publish a draft of
that assessment along with DEQ's determination that the application is
administratively complete and acceptable for review.
Third, at 82-4-231(9), Montana proposes that an applicant,
permittee, landowner, or person adversely affected by DEQ's permit
decision may request a hearing with the Board of Environmental Review
only if they submitted a written objection pursuant to 82-4-231(8).
Furthermore, the hearing must be limited to issues raised in written
objections and issues not addressed by DEQ in its notice of
determination published in accordance with 82-4-231(8)(e).
Finally, HB 633 adds four contingencies that affect the amended
sections above, but that are not codified into the MCA. This includes a
``Saving'' clause that does not allow HB 633 to affect the rights and
duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, or proceedings that
were begun before the effective date; a ``Severability'' clause
[[Page 40791]]
that would allow valid parts to remain effective if other parts are
found invalid; a ``Contingent voidness'' clause that would void any
portion of the act disapproved by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior;
and an ``Effective date'' clause, which makes HB 633 effective the date
in which it is passed and approved.
The full text of the program amendment is available for you to read
at the locations listed above under ADDRESSES or at
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>.
III. Public Comment Procedures
Under the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), we are seeking your
comments on whether the amendment satisfies the applicable program
approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If we approve the amendment, it
will become part of the State program.
Electronic or Written Comments
If you submit written or electronic comments on the proposed rule
during the 30-day comment period, they should be specific, confined to
issues pertinent to the proposed regulations, and explain the reason
for any recommended change. We appreciate any and all comments, but
those most useful and likely to influence decisions on the final
regulations will be those that either involve personal experience or
include citations to and analyses of SMCRA, its legislative history,
its implementing regulations, case law, other pertinent State or
Federal laws or regulations, technical literature, or other relevant
publications.
We cannot ensure that comments received after the close of the
comment period (see DATES) or sent to an address other than those
listed (see ADDRESSES) will be included in the docket for this
rulemaking and considered.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, email 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.
Public Hearing
If you wish to speak at the public hearing, contact the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m., M.D.T. on
September 5, 2025. If you are disabled and need reasonable
accommodations to attend a public hearing, contact the person listed
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. We will arrange the location and
time of the hearing with those persons requesting the hearing. If no
one requests an opportunity to speak, we will not hold a hearing.
To assist the transcriber and ensure an accurate record, we
request, if possible, that each person who speaks at the public hearing
provide us with a written copy of his or her comments. The public
hearing will continue on the specified date until everyone scheduled to
speak has been given an opportunity to be heard. If you are in the
audience and have not been scheduled to speak and wish to do so, you
will be allowed to speak after those who have been scheduled. We will
end the hearing after everyone scheduled to speak and others present in
the audience who wish to speak, have been heard.
Public Meeting
If only one person requests an opportunity to speak, we may hold a
public meeting rather than a public hearing. If you wish to meet with
us to discuss the amendment, please request a meeting by contacting the
person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All such meetings
are open to the public and, if possible, we will post notices of
meetings at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. We will make a
written summary of each meeting a part of the administrative record.
IV. Procedural Determinations
Executive Order (E.O.) 12866--Regulatory Planning and Review and E.O.
13563--Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review
E.O. 12866 provides that the Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will review all
significant rules. Pursuant to OMB guidance, dated October 12, 1993,
the approval of State program is exempted from OMB review under
E.O.12866. E.O. 13563 reaffirms and supplements E.O. 12866.
Other Laws and E.O.s Affecting Rulemaking
When a State submits a program amendment to OSMRE for review, our
regulations at 30 CFR 732.17(h) require us to publish a notice in the
Federal Register indicating receipt of the proposed amendment, its text
or a summary of its terms, and an opportunity for public comment. We
conclude our review of the proposed amendment after the close of the
public comment period and determine whether the amendment should be
approved, approved in part, or not approved. At that time, we will also
make the determinations and certifications required by the various laws
and E.O.s governing the rulemaking process and include them in the
final rule.
List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 926
Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.
Marcelo Calle,
Exercising the Delegated Authority of the Regional Director,Unified
Regions 5, 7-11.
[FR Doc. 2025-15985 Filed 8-20-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-P
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