an approved exploration or mining plan, the operator shall make a report thereon to the mining supervisor and request inspection for approval. Whenever it is determined by such inspection that backfilling and grading have been carried out in accordance with the established requirements and approved exploration or mining plan, the superintendent shall issue a release of an appropriate amount of the performance bond for the area graded and backfilled. Appropriate amounts of the bond shall be retained to assure that satisfactory planting, if required, is carried out.

(c)(1) Whenever planting is required by an approved exploration or mining plan, the operator shall file a report with the superintendent whenever such planting is completed. The report shall

(i) Identify the permit or lease;

(ii) Show the type of planting or seeding, including mixtures and amounts;

(iii) Show the date of planting or seeding;

(iv) Identify or describe the areas of the lands which have been planted;

(v) Contain such other information as may be relevant.

(2) The superintendent, as soon as possible after the completion of the first full growing season, shall make an inspection and evaluation of the vegetative cover and planting to determine if a satisfactory growth has been established.

(3) If it is determined that a satisfactory vegetative cover has been established and is likely to continue to grow, any remaining portion of the surety bond may be released if all requirements have been met by the operator.

(d)(1) Not less than 30 days prior to cessation or abandonment of operations, the operator shall report to the mining supervisor his intention to cease or abandon operations, together with a statement of the exact number of acres of land affected by his operations, the extent of reclamation accomplished and other relevant information.

(2) Upon receipt of such report an inspection shall be made to determine whether operations have been carried

out in accordance with the approved exploration or mining plan.

§ 216.10 Inspection: Notice of noncompliance: Revocation.

(a) The mining supervisor and superintendent shall have the right to enter upon the lands under a permit or lease. at any reasonable time, for the purpose of inspection or investigation to determine whether the terms and conditions of the permit or lease and the requirements of the exploration or mining plan have been complied with.

(b) If the mining supervisor determines that an operator has failed to comply with the terms and conditions of a permit or lease, or with the requirements of an exploration or mining plan, or with the provisions of applicable regulations, the superintendent shall serve a notice of noncompliance upon the operator by delivery in person to him or his agent or by certified or registered mail addressed to the operator at his last known address.

(c) A notice of noncompliance shall specify in what respects the operator has failed to comply with the terms and conditions of a permit or lease or the requirements of an exploration or mining plan, or the provisions of applicable regulations, and shall specify the action which must be taken to correct the noncompliance and the time limits within which such action must be taken.

(d) Failure of the operator to take action in accordance with the notice of noncompliance shall be grounds for suspension by the mining supervisor of operations or for the initiation of action for the cancellation of the permit or lease and for forfeiture of the surety bond required under § 216.8.

$216.11 Appeals.

An applicant, permittee, lessee, or lessor aggrieved by a decision or order of a mining supervisor or superintendent may appeal such decision or order. An appeal from a decision or order of a superintendent shall be made pursuant to 25 CFR part 2. An appeal from a decision or order of a mining supervisor shall be made pursuant to 30 CFR parts 211 and 231.

$217.1

Definitions.

As used in this part:

Assets means all unadjudicated or unliquidated claims against the United States, all gas, oil, and mineral rights of every kind, and all other assets of the Ute Tribe of Uintah and Ouray Reservation as constituted on August 27, 1954, not distributed in accordance with the terms of the Ute Partition Act.

Business Committee means the Uintah and Ouray Tribal Business Committee, created pursuant to the provisions of the constitution and bylaws of the Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation.

Board of directors means the board of directors of the Ute Distribution Corp., a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of Utah.

Joint manager or joint managers means the business committee and the board of directors, or either of them, as is appropriate, within the context where one of those terms is used. Superintendent means the superintendent of the Uintah and Ouray Agency, Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Secretary means the secretary of the Interior or a subordinate official acting pursuant to authority delegated by said Secretary.

§ 217.2 Authority and purpose.

In accordance with the Ute Partition Act approved August 27, 1954 (68 Stat. 868; 25 U.S.C. 677-677aa), as amended by the Act of August 2, 1956 (70 Stat. 936), and the Act of September 25, 1962 (76 Stat. 597), assets shall be managed jointly by the business committee and the board of directors. These regulations set out the procedures for exercising such joint management.

§ 217.3 Referral of questions by superintendent.

The superintendent shall refer all questions and problems related to the management of the assets as they come to his attention, together with his analysis of alternative solutions to each question or problem, to the business committee and to the board of directors for resolution. Such referrals shall be in writing and shall be addressed to the joint managers at such addresses as they furnish to the superintendent and to each other from time to time.

$217.4 Referral of questions by the joint managers.

The business committee and the board of directors must refer to each other for resolution any questions or problems related to joint management of the assets which they from time to time determine need to be resolved together with the submitting party's proposal, if any, for solution. Such referrals shall be in writing, addressed to the other joint manager at the address furnished in accordance with §217.3 of this part. Copies of all such referrals shall also be furnished to the superintendent. Either of the parties may request an analysis of alternative solutions of each question or problem referred pursuant to this section, and the superintendent will furnish such analysis within ten working days, or within such longer period as he may notify the parties is required to prepare such analysis.

$217.5 Management decisions.

In arriving at management decisions concerning the assets, the business committee shall be entitled to cast 72.83814 votes and the board of directors shall be entitled to cast 27.16186 votes. Any total number of votes cast exceeding 50 shall be sufficient to determine an issue submitted to the joint managers for resolution. A majority of votes cast will decide an issue.

$217.6 Method of casting votes.

Within 30 days after an issue and any analysis provided for in §§ 217.4 and 217.5 have been submitted to the joint managers for resolution, they shall each notify the superintendent in writing of the number of votes cast for and against the proposed or alternative solutions. If either of the joint managers fails or refuses to cast his votes and to notify the superintendent thereof within the time specified, the superintendent may conclude that such joint managers' votes have been cast against the proposed solution or solutions; or, if no solutions have been proposed, for the maintenance of the status quo. At the time they notify the superintendent of the votes cast on an issue, each joint manager shall furnish to the superintendent a certified copy of a resolution of the business committee or the board of directors, as the case may be, authorizing such vote.

$217.7 Implementation of decision.

The Secretary shall issue such documents as are necessary or expendient to implement the decisions of the joint managers, insofar as such issuance is authorized by law, and he shall execute and/or approve such documents for and on behalf of the joint managers, or either of them, and on behalf of the United States, as necessary. If it becomes necessary for the Secretary to execute an instrument on behalf of one or both of the joint managers and to approve the same instrument as trustee, two different officials having delegated authority from the Secretary shall serve as executing and approving officers, respectively.

(IMDA). These regulations are applicable to the lands or interests in lands of any Indian tribe, individual Indian or Alaska native the title to which is held in trust by the United States or is subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States. These regulations are intended to ensure that Indian mineral owners are permitted to enter into minerals agreements that will allow the Indian mineral owners to have more responsibility in overseeing and greater flexibility in disposing of their mineral resources, and to allow development in the manner which the Indian mineral Owners believe will maximize their best economic interest and minimize any adverse environmental or cultural impact resulting from such development. Pursuant to section 4 of the IMDA (25 U.S.C. 2103(e)), as part of this greater flexibility, where the Secretary has approved a minerals agreement in compliance with the provisions of 25 U.S.C. chap. 23 and any other applicable provision of law, the United States shall not be liable for losses sustained by a tribe or individual Indian under such minerals agreement. However, as further stated in the IMDA, the Secretary continues to have a trust obligation to ensure that the rights of a tribe or individual Indian are protected in the event of a violation of the terms of any minerals agreement, and to uphold the duties of the United States as derived from the trust relationship and from any treaties, executive orders, or agreements between the United States and any Indian tribe.

(b) The regulations in this part shall become effective and in full force on April 29, 1994, and shall be subject to amendment at any time by the Secretary; Provided, that no such regulation that becomes effective after the date of approval of any minerals agreement shall operate to affect the duration of the minerals agreement, the rate of royalty or financial consideration, rental, or acreage unless agreed to by all parties to the minerals agreement.

(c) The regulations of the Bureau of Land Management, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, and the Minerals Management Service that are referenced in §§ 225.4,

225.5, and 225.6 are supplemental to these regulations, and apply to minerals agreements for development of Indian mineral resources unless specifically stated otherwise in this part or in other Federal regulations. To the extent the parties to a minerals agreement are able to provide reasonable provisions satisfactorily addressing the issues of valuation, method of payment, accounting, and auditing, governed by the Minerals Management Service regulations, the Secretary may approve alternate provisions in a minerals agreement.

(d) Nothing in these regulations is intended to prevent Indian tribes from exercising their lawful governmental authority to regulate the conduct of persons, businesses, or minerals operations within their territorial jurisdiction.

duties described in 30 CFR part 750 and 25 CFR part 216.

Gas means any fluid, either combustible or noncombustible, that is produced in a natural state from the earth and that maintains a gaseous or rarefied state at ordinary temperature and pressure conditions.

Geothermal resources means: (1) All products of geothermal processes, including indigenous steam, hot water, and hot brines;

(2) Steam and other gases, hot water, and hot brines, resulting from water, gas, or other fluids artificially introduced into geothermal formations;

(3) Heat or other associated energy found in geothermal formations; and (4) Any by-product derived therefrom.

In the best interest of the Indian mineral owner refers to the standards to be applied by the Secretary in considering whether to take administrative action affecting the interests of an Indian mineral owner. In considering whether it is "in the best interest of the Indian mineral owner" to take a certain action (such as approval of a minerals agreement or a unitization or communitization agreement) the Secretary shall consider any relevant factor, including, but not limited to: economic considerations, such as date of lease or minerals agreement expiration; probable financial effects on the Indian mineral owner; need for change in the terms of the existing minerals agreement; marketability of mineral products; and potential environmental, social and cultural effects.

Indian lands means any lands or interests in lands owned by any individual Indian or Alaska Native, Indian tribe, band, nation, pueblo, community, rancheria, colony, or other group, the title to which is held in trust by the United States or is subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States.

Indian mineral owner means any individual Indian or Alaska Native, or Indian tribe, band, nation, pueblo, community, rancheria, colony, or other group that owns a mineral interest in oil and gas, geothermal resources or solid minerals, title to which is held in trust by the United States or is subject

to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States.

Indian surface owner means any individual Indian or Alaska Native, or Indian tribe, band, nation, pueblo, community, rancheria, colony, or other group that owns the surface estate in land the title to which is held in trust by the United States or is subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States.

Indian tribe means any Indian tribe. band, nation, pueblo, community. rancheria, colony, or other group that owns land or interests in land the title to which is held in trust by the United States or is subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States.

Individual Indian means any indi

vidual Indian or Alaska Native who owns land or interests in land the title to which is held in trust by the United States or is subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States.

Minerals includes both metalliferous and non-metalliferous minerals; all hydrocarbons, including oil and gas, coal and lignite of all ranks; geothermal resources; and includes but is not limited to sand, gravel, pumice, cinders, granite, building stone, limestone, clay, silt, or any other energy or non-energy mineral.

Minerals agreement means any joint venture, operating, production sharing, service, managerial, lease (other than a lease entered into pursuant to the Act of May 11, 1938, or the Act of March 3. 1909), contract, or other minerals agreement; or any amendment, supplement or other modification of such minerals agreement, providing for the exploration for, or extraction, processing, or other development of minerals in which an Indian mineral owner owns a beneficial or restricted interest. or providing for the sale or other disposition of the production or products of such minerals.

Minerals Management Service official means any employee of the Minerals Management Service authorized by law or by lawful delegation of authority to perform the duties described in 30 CFR chapter II, subchapters A and C.

Mining means the science, technique, and business of mineral development.