81 FR 44657 - Information Collection Activities: Oil and Gas Well-Workover Operations; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 131 (July 8, 2016)

To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) is inviting comments on a collection of information that we will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The information collection request (ICR) concerns renewal to the paperwork requirements in the regulations under Subpart F, Oil and Gas Well- Workover Operations.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 131 (Friday, July 8, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44657-44659]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-16206]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

[Docket ID BSEE-2016-0008; OMB Control Number 1014-0001 164E1700D2 
EEEE500000 ET1SF0000.DAQ000]


Information Collection Activities: Oil and Gas Well-Workover 
Operations; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

ACTION: 60-Day notice.

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the 
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) is inviting 
comments on a collection of information that we will submit to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The 
information collection request (ICR) concerns renewal to the paperwork 
requirements in the regulations under Subpart F, Oil and Gas Well-
Workover Operations.

DATES: You must submit comments by September 6, 2016.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods 
listed below.
     Electronically: go to www.regulations.gov and search for

[[Page 44658]]

BSEE-2016-0008. Follow the instructions to submit public comments and 
view all related materials. We will post all comments.
     Email: [email protected]. You may also hand-carry comments to 
the Department of the Interior; BSEE; Regulations and Standards Branch; 
Attention: Kelly Odom; 45600 Woodland Road, Sterling, Virginia 20166. 
Please reference ICR 1014-0001 in your comment and include your name 
and return address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelly Odom, Regulations and Standards 
Branch at (703) 787-1775 to request additional information about this 
ICR.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: 30 CFR part 250, subpart F, Oil and Gas Well-Workover 
Operations.
    OMB Control Number: 1014-0001.
    Abstract: The Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lands Act, as amended 
(43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq. and 43 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), authorizes the 
Secretary of the Interior to prescribe rules and regulations necessary 
for the administration of the leasing provisions of the Act related to 
the mineral resources on the OCS. Such rules and regulations will apply 
to all operations conducted under a lease. Operations on the OCS must 
preserve, protect, and develop mineral resources in a manner that is 
consistent with the need to make such resources available to meet the 
Nation's energy needs as rapidly as possible; to balance orderly energy 
resource development with protection of human, marine, and coastal 
environments; to ensure the public a fair and equitable return on the 
resources of the OCS; and to preserve and maintain free enterprise 
competition.
    Section 5(a) of the OCS Lands Act requires the Secretary to 
prescribe rules and regulations ``to provide for the prevention of 
waste, and conservation of the natural resources of the Outer 
Continental Shelf, and the protection of correlative rights therein'' 
and to include provisions ``for the prompt and efficient exploration 
and development of a lease area.'' These authorities and 
responsibilities are among those delegated to BSEE to ensure that 
operations in the OCS will meet statutory requirements; provide for 
safety and protection of the environment; and result in diligent 
exploration, development, and production of OCS leases. This 
information collection (IC) request addresses the regulations at 30 CFR 
250, subpart F, Oil and Gas Well-Workover Operations, and any 
associated supplementary Notices to Lessees and Operators (NTLs) 
intended to provide clarification, description, or explanation of these 
regulations.
    In addition to the general rulemaking authority of the OCSLA at 43 
U.S.C. 1334, section 301(a) of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty 
Management Act (FOGRMA), 30 U.S.C. 1751(a), grants authority to the 
Secretary to prescribe such rules and regulations as are reasonably 
necessary to carry out FOGRMA's provisions. While the majority of 
FOGRMA is directed to royalty collection and enforcement, some 
provisions apply to offshore operations. For example, section 108 of 
FOGRMA, 30 U.S.C. 1718, grants the Secretary broad authority to inspect 
lease sites for the purpose of determining whether there is compliance 
with the mineral leasing laws. Section 109(c)(2) and (d)(1), 30 U.S.C. 
1719(c)(2) and (d)(1), impose substantial civil penalties for failure 
to permit lawful inspections and for knowing or willful preparation or 
submission of false, inaccurate, or misleading reports, records, or 
other information. Because the Secretary has delegated some of the 
authority under FOGRMA to BSEE, 30 U.S.C. 1751 is included as 
additional authority for these requirements.
    The regulations at 30 CFR 250, Subpart F, Oil and Gas Well-Workover 
Operations are the subject of this collection. Specifically, BSEE uses 
the information collected to:
     Review log entries of crew meetings to verify that safety 
procedures have been properly reviewed.
     Review well-workover procedures relating to hydrogen 
sulfide (H2S) to ensure the safety of the crew in the event of 
encountering H2S.
     Review well-workover diagrams and procedures to ensure the 
safety of well-workover operations.
     Verify that the crown block safety device is operating and 
can be expected to function and avoid accidents.
     Assure that the well-workover operations are conducted on 
well casing that is structurally competent.
    The BSEE will protect proprietary information according to the 
Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and its implementing 
regulations (43 CFR 2); 30 CFR 250.197, Data and information to be made 
available to the public or for limited inspection; and 30 CFR part 252, 
OCS Oil and Gas Information Program. No items of a sensitive nature are 
collected. Responses are mandatory.
    Frequency: On occasion, weekly, monthly, annually, and varies by 
section.
    Description of Respondents: Potential respondents include Federal 
OCS oil, gas, and sulphur lessees and holders of pipeline rights-of-
way.
    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour Burden: The current OMB 
inventory includes 53,156 burden hours for this collection of 
information. This submission requests 2,941 burden hours. The 
adjustment decrease of 50,215 hours is due to the publication of the 
final blowout preventer regulations which moved many of the 
requirements of Subpart F into the new Subpart G regulations, Well 
Operations and Equipment. There is no non-hour cost burden associated 
with this collection. The following chart details the individual 
components and respective hour burden estimates of this ICR. 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.

                                                Burden Breakdown
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                   Annual burden
  Citation 30 CFR 250, Subpart F     Reporting requirement     Hour burden    Average number of        hours
             and NTL                                                           annual reponses       (rounded)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
600-620..........................  General departure and     Burden covered under 1014-0022.                   0
                                    alternative compliance
                                    requests not
                                    specifically covered
                                    elsewhere in Subpart F
                                    regulations.
                                                            -------------------------------------
611..............................  Document results weekly              1.5  351 workovers x 3             1,580
                                    of traveling-block                        results = 1,053.
                                    safety device in the
                                    operations log.
612..............................  Request establishment/                 5  23 requests........             115
                                    amendment/cancellation
                                    of field well-workover
                                    rules.
                                                            -------------------------------------

[[Page 44659]]

 
613; 616(a)(4); 619(f)...........  These sections contain    Burden covered under 1014-0026.                   0
                                    references to
                                    information, approvals,
                                    requests, payments,
                                    etc., which are
                                    submitted with an APM,
                                    the burdens for which
                                    are covered under its
                                    own information
                                    collection.
                                                            -------------------------------------
613(d)...........................  Submit to District        Burden covered under 1014-0018.                   0
                                    Manager on Form BSEE-
                                    0125, End of Operations
                                    Report, an operation
                                    resulting in the
                                    initial recompletion of
                                    a well into a new zone,
                                    include a new schematic
                                    of the tubing
                                    subsurface equipment if
                                    subsurface equipment
                                    has been changed.
                                                            -------------------------------------
614(b)...........................  Post number of stands of            0.75  306 postings.......             230
                                    drill pipe or workover
                                    string and drill
                                    collars that may be
                                    pulled prior to filling
                                    the hole and equivalent
                                    well-control fluid
                                    volume.
NTL..............................  Notify BSEE if sustained               2  508 notifications..           1,016
                                    casing pressure is
                                    observed on a well.
                                                            ----------------------------------------------------
    Total Burden.................  ........................  ..............  1,890 Responses....           2,941
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Non-Hour Cost Burden: We have 
identified no non-hour cost burdens associated with this 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: Before submitting an ICR to OMB, PRA section 
3506(c)(2)(A) 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 
collection is necessary or useful; (b) evaluate the accuracy 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 
technology.
    Agencies must also estimate the non-hour paperwork cost burdens to 
respondents or recordkeepers resulting from the collection of 
information. Therefore, if you have other than hour burden costs to 
generate, maintain, and disclose this information, you should comment 
and provide your total capital and startup cost components or annual 
operation, maintenance, and purchase of service components. For further 
information on this burden, refer to 5 CFR 1320.3(b)(1) and (2), or 
contact the Bureau representative listed previously in this notice.
    We will summarize written responses to this notice and address them 
in our submission for OMB approval. As a result of your comments, we 
will make any necessary adjustments to the burden in our submission to 
OMB.
    Public Comment Procedures: 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.
    BSEE Information Collection Clearance Officer: Nicole Mason (703) 
787-1607.

    Dated: June 30, 2016.
Robert W. Middleton,
Deputy Chief, Office of Offshore Regulatory Programs.
[FR Doc. 2016-16206 Filed 7-7-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-VH-P