Notice2026-09581
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Slope and Shaft Sinking Plans (Pertains to the Surface Work Areas of Underground Coal Mines)
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 14, 2026
Issuing agencies
Labor Department
Abstract
The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting this Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA)-sponsored information collection request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). Public comments on the ICR are invited.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 93 (Thursday, May 14, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 93 (Thursday, May 14, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27370-27371]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-09581]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB
Review; Comment Request; Slope and Shaft Sinking Plans (Pertains to the
Surface Work Areas of Underground Coal Mines)
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting this Mine Safety &
Health Administration (MSHA)-sponsored information collection request
(ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and
approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).
Public comments on the ICR are invited.
DATES: The OMB will consider all written comments that the agency
receives on or before June 15, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice to <a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain">www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain</a>. Find this particular
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nicole Bouchet by telephone at 202-
693-0213, or by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0f4b4043505f5d4e505f5a4d43464c4f6b606321686079"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="cd898281929d9f8c929d988f81848e8da9a2a1e3aaa2bb">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 103(h) of the Federal Mine Safety
and Health Act of 1977 (Mine Act), 30 U.S.C. 813, authorizes MSHA to
collect information necessary to carry out its duty in protecting the
safety and health of miners.
Title 30 CFR 77.1900 requires underground coal mine operators to
submit for approval a plan that will provide for the safety of workmen
in each slope or shaft that is commenced or extended from the surface
to the underground coal mine. Each slope or shaft sinking operation is
unique in that each operator uses different methods and equipment and
encounters different geological strata which makes it impossible for a
single set of regulations to ensure the safety of the miners under all
circumstances. This makes an individual slope or shaft sinking plan
necessary. The plan must be consistent with prudent engineering design.
Plans include the name and location of the mine; name and address of
the mine operator; a description of the construction work and methods
to be used in construction of the slope or
[[Page 27371]]
shaft, and whether all or part of the work will be performed by a
contractor; the elevation, depth and dimensions of the slope or shaft;
the location and elevation of the coalbed; the general characteristics
of the strata through which the slope or shaft will be developed; the
type of equipment which the operator proposes to use; the system of
ventilation to be used; and safeguards for the prevention of caving
during excavation.
For additional substantive information about this ICR, see the
related notice published in the Federal Register on January 26, 2026
(91 FR 3224).
Comments are invited on: (1) whether the collection of information
is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the
Department, including whether the information will have practical
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the burden and
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality,
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (4) ways to
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency
generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and
the public is generally not required to respond to an information
collection, unless the OMB approves it and displays a currently valid
OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any other provisions
of law, no person shall generally be subject to penalty for failing to
comply with a collection of information that does not display a valid
OMB Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 1320.6.
DOL seeks PRA authorization for this information collection for
three (3) years. OMB authorization for an ICR cannot be for more than
three (3) years without renewal. The DOL notes that information
collection requirements submitted to the OMB for existing ICRs receive
a month-to-month extension while they undergo review.
Agency: DOL-MSHA.
Title of Collection: Slope and Shaft Sinking Plans (Pertains to the
Surface Work Areas of Underground Coal Mines).
OMB Control Number: 1219-0019.
Affected Public: Private Sector--Businesses or other for-profits.
Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 20.
Total Estimated Number of Responses: 50.
Total Estimated Annual Time Burden: 1,001 hours.
Total Estimated Annual Other Costs Burden: $30.
(Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D))
Nicole Bouchet,
Senior Paperwork Reduction Act Analyst.
[FR Doc. 2026-09581 Filed 5-13-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-P
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