OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING
RECLAMATION & ENFORCEMENT

For Release October 29, 1997                          Jerry Childress (202) 209-2719
                                        jchildre@osmre.gov 

           NEW SURFACE COAL MINE RULEMAKING APPROACH
          STARTS WITH OWNERSHIP & CONTROL REGULATIONS

     Kathy Karpan, Director of the Interior Department's Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), today announced a new approach to developing
rules for OSM's most controversial issues, beginning with redesign of the ownership
and control rules that form the basis of the agency's permit-block sanction against coal
mine operators responsible for uncorrected violations of the Surface Mining Control and
Reclamation Act (SMCRA).

     "What we intend to establish is a completely open forum for rulemaking   one
that involves all interested parties at the very earliest stages of the process, way before
OSM decides what goes into a proposed rule," Karpan said.  "The idea is to reach out
to everyone who needs to be involved and everybody who'd like to have a say.  It's
essential that we don't overlook good ideas anywhere they might come from."

     "I am promising OSM stakeholders a no-holds-barred approach in which all
issues within the scope of a rulemaking are addressed and worked through early, rather
than later in the process," Karpan said.

     "We are putting aside any preconceived notions about the best way to keep coal
mine permits out of the hands of violators," Karpan added, "but we're committed to
upholding the surface mining law's permit-blocking requirements and to making sure
that those responsible for uncorrected violations are not allowed to mine again until they
fix the problems they created."

     Karpan said:  "We welcome good ideas from our state partners, the coal
industry, environmental groups, and the public.  That way we can develop regulations
that are legal, effective, and fair, and that will stand up to litigation and survive court
scrutiny, " Karpan added.

     "I decided on the ownership and control rules for the first test of this new
approach because those rules and the computerized Applicant Violator System that
implements them have been controversial and beset by litigation for a decade or more,"
Karpan said.  "By involving everyone at the outset, I'd like to avoid most of those
problems this time around."

     Karpan pointed out that OSM issued interim final regulations covering ownership
and control, the permit application process, and improvidently issued permits on
April 21, 1997, in response to a federal appeals court ruling that invalidated previous
rules.

     "In issuing those rules last April, OSM acknowledged they were intended to be
interim and promised to seek public comment on any subsequent proposed regulatory
changes," Karpan said.  "Now, OSM is seeking to involve the public in advance of
developing a proposed rule."

     In a press conference at OSM headquarters in Washington today, Karpan
described topics and regulatory provisions identified thus far by a team of Interior
Department employees to illustrate the scope of the issues being explored in the
rulemaking.

     Upon request, OSM will hold meetings to solicit comments, concerns, and new
ideas, Karpan said.  OSM also invites written comments regarding the drafting of new
ownership and control regulations.  OSM has prepared a concept/issue paper to assist
those interested in commenting or preparing for the meetings.

     "While the paper summarizes concepts and issues currently under consideration,
we're not limited just to those listed," Karpan said.  "In fact, we're open to new issues for
consideration that are focused on improving the way we implement the permit-block
sanction, " Karpan said.
 
     Written comments and requests for further information, including copies of
concept/issue papers, should be directed to Earl Bandy, Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation and Enforcement, AVS Office, Lexington, Kentucky 40503, telephone,
(800) 643-9748, E-Mail: ebandy@osmre.gov.  The concept/issue paper is also available
on the OSM World Wide Web site (http://www.osmre.gov), and from OSM's 24-hour
Fax On Demand service (202-219-1703).

     OSM will accept written comments, and will meet with interested persons to
solicit comments, until 5:00 p.m. December 15, 1997.  To insure proper arrangements
for meetings, requests should be made prior to December 1, 1997.  OSM staff
members will be available for meetings at sites in Lexington, Kentucky; Washington,
D.C.; Knoxville, Tennessee; Alton, Illinois; and Denver, Colorado.

     OSM will follow up using regular rulemaking procedures, seeking further public
comments and offering public hearings on the proposed rules, once they are developed
and published in the Federal Register.
                              -DOI-