OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION & ENFORCEMENT
For Release April 8, 1993
Alan Cole (202) 208-2719

INTERIOR FISCAL 1994 BUDGET INCLUDES $303,228,000 FOR FEDERAL AND
STATE SURFACE MINING PROGRAMS

The Interior Department today announced that President Clinton's
Fiscal Year 1994 budget request for the Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) includes $303,228,000 for state
and federal programs to protect the environment during coal mining,
and to assure the prompt reclamation and clean-up of abandoned mine
lands (AML).

The budget request, $2,392,000 more than fiscal 1993, will support
OSM's regulatory and AML reclamation programs, plus those of the 24
coal states and 3 Indian Tribes receiving federal Interior
Department funds for their surface coal mining programs, according
to OSM. The majority of the increase is to correct the budget to
reflect actual operational costs for federal reclamation program
operations.

OSM's fiscal 1994 budget request includes $111,599,000 for surface
mining regulation and technology programs, plus $19 1,629,000 for
the agency's AML component.

Regulatory program grants to states are budgeted at $51.6 million
in the fiscal 1994 request, no change from fiscal 1993. The funds
are for OSM grants that match state expenses dollar for dollar to
operate programs for issuing coal mine permits, inspecting surface
coal mines, enforcing environmental standards, and assuring
reclamation of surface coal mines.

Funds for state and Indian AML reclamation grants are budgeted at
$134.9 million, no change from fiscal 1993. This will provide
funding for states to start new reclamation projects and complete
ongoing ones, as well as handle AML emergencies. Through AML
grants, OSM pays 100 percent of state and tribal costs for
reclaiming abandoned coal mine lands that were left unreclaimed or
inadequately reclaimed before enactment of the 1977 Surface Mining
Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA).

The AML program, Including AML grants to states and Tribes, is
funded by production fees of 35 cents per ton of surface mined
coal, 15 cents per ton of coal mined underground, and 10 cents per
ton of lignite, which OSM collects from coal producers. Proceeds go
to a specially earmarked U.S. Treasury interest-bearing fund until
Congress makes appropriations for AML work.

OSM administers national standards requiring environmental
protection during coal mining and land reclamation afterward, and
OSM reclaims abandoned mine lands. The agency provides support and
oversight for approved state regulatory and reclamation programs,
and directly carries out such activities on federal and Indian
lands. OSM was established in the Interior Department under
authority of SMCRA.

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