a lease without waiting for the advice of the Attorney General.

(h) Information submitted to the authorized officer to comply with this section shall be treated as confidential and proprietary data if marked “confidential" by the reporting company. Such information should be submitted to the authorized officer in a sealed envelope and transmitted in that form to the Attorney General.

§ 3422.4 Award of lease.

(a) After the authorized officer has accepted a high qualified bid, and the Attorney General has not objected to lease issuance or the procedures in § 3422.3-4(f)(2) of this title have been completed, the authorized officer shall send four copies of the lease form to the successful bidder. These forms shall be completed, signed, and returned within 30 days of receipt. In addition, the successful bidder shall, within the 30-day period: pay the balance of the bonus bid, if required; pay the first year's rental; pay the cost of publishing the notice of sale; and file a lease bond as required by Subpart 3474 of this chapter. Upon receipt of the above, the authorized officer shall execute the lease.

(b) If the successful bidder dies before the lease is issued, the provisions found in § 3472.2-4 of this title shall apply.

(c) At least half of the acreage offered for competitive lease in any 1 year shall be offered on a deferred bonus payment basis. In a deferred bonus payment, the lessee shall pay the bonus payment in 5 equal installments; the first installment shall be submitted with the bid. The balance shall be paid in equal annual installments due and payable on the next. four anniversary dates of the lease. If a lease is relinquished or otherwise cancelled or terminated, the unpaid remainder of the bid shall be immediately payable to the United States.

(d) If the successful bidder fails to comply with the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section, the deposit on the successful bid shall be forfeited to the United States.

Application for a lease covering lands subject to leasing (43 CFR 3400.2) shall be filed in the Bureau of Land Management State Office having jurisdiction over the lands or minerals involved (43 CFR Subpart 1821).

§ 3425.1-2 Contents of application.

No specific form of application is required. Three copies of the application, including preliminary and other data required by this subpart shall be filed. The lands applied for shall be described in accordance with Subpart 3471 of this title. The application must be accompanied by the filing fee (43 CFR 3473.2).

§ 3425.1-3 Qualifications of the applicant. Any applicant for a lease shall meet the qualifications required of a lessee as specified in Subpart 3472 of this title.

§ 3425.1-4 Emergency leasing.

(a) An emergency lease sale may be held in response to an application

under this subpart if the applicant shows:

(1) That the application involves an existing mining operation that has been producing coal for at least two years before the date of application, and either: (i) The Federal coal is needed within three years to maintain an existing mining operation at the current average annual level of production, or new contracted level of production to supply coal for contracts signed prior to the effective date of these regulations, as substantiated by a complete copy of the supply or delivery contract, or both; or (ii) if the coal deposits are not leased they shall be bypassed in the reasonably foreseeable future, and if leased, some portion of the tract applied for shall be used within three years, as substantiated by the proposed production levels stated in a mining sequence plan submitted as part of the application for lease; and

(2) That the need for the coal deposits shall have resulted from circumstances that were beyond the control of the applicant or that he could not have reasonably foreseen and planned for in time to allow for consideration of leasing the tract under the provisions of § 3420.4 of this title.

(b) The extent of any lease issued under this section shall not exceed 8 years of recoverable reserves at the rate of production under which the applicant qualifies in paragraph (a)(1) of this section.

(c) No lease shall be issued under this section if:

(1) The applicant holds an existing lease issued under this section;

(2) Such an existing lease and the application are related to the same mining operation; and

(3) The number of years of reserves (at the calculated rate of production) leased in accordance with paragraph (b) of this section is greater than the number of years that have passed since the issuance of such an existing lease.

§ 3425.1-5 Leasing outside coal production regions.

A lease sale may be held in response to an application under this subpart if

the application covers coal deposits which are:

(a) Outside a coal production region identified under § 3420.3-1(a)(1) of this title; or

(b) Within any part of an eastern coal production region designated to be subject to this subpart under § 3420.3-1(a)(2) of this title.

§ 3425.1-6 Hardship leases.

The Secretary may issue a lease under this subpart based on any application listed by serial number in the modified court order in NRDC v. Hughes, 454 F. Supp. 148 (D.D.C. 1978).

§ 3425.1-7 Preliminary data.

(a) Any application for a lease shall contain preliminary data to assist the authorized officer in conducting an environmental analysis as described in § 3425.3 of this title.

(b) Such preliminary data shall include:

(1) A map, or maps, (which may be available from state or Federal sources) showing the topography, physical features and natural drainage patterns, existing roads, vehicular trails, and utility systems; the location of any proposed exploration operations, including seismic lines and drill holes; to the extent known, the location of any proposed mining operations and facilities, trenches, access roads or trails, and supporting facilities including the approximate location and extent of the areas to be used for pits, overburden, and tailings; and the location of water sources or other resources that may be used in the proposed operations and facilities.

(2) A narrative statement, including: (i) The anticipated scope, method, and schedule of exploration operations, including the types of exploration equipment to be used;

(ii) The method of mining anticipated, including the best estimate of the mining sequence and production rate to be followed;

(iii) The relationship between the mining operations anticipated on the lands applied for and existing or planned mining operations, or support

facilities on adjacent Federal or nonFederal lands;

(iv) A brief description, including maps or aerial photographs, as appropriate, of: the existing land use or uses within and adjacent to the lands applied for; known geologic, visual, cultural, paleontological or archaeological features; wetlands and floodplains; and known habitat of fish and wildlife-particularly threatened and endangered species-any of which may be affected by the proposed or anticipated exploration or mining operations and related facilities;

(v) A brief description of the proposed measures to be taken to control or prevent fire and to mitigate or prevent soil erosion, pollution of surface and ground water, damage to fish and wildlife or other natural resources, air and noise pollution, adverse impacts to the social and infrastructure systems of local communities, and hazards to public health and safety; reclaim the surface; and meet other applicable laws and regulations. The applicant may submit other pertinent information that the applicant wishes to have considered by the authorized officer;

(vi) A statement which describes the intended use of the coal covered by the emergency application; and

(vii) Any other information which will show that the application meets the requirements of this subpart.

(c) The applicant may engage in casual use of the land in the application, but shall not undertake any exploration without prior authorization by exploration license, or undertake any mining operations until lease issu

ance.

(d) The authorized officer, after reviewing the preliminary data contained in an application, and at any time during an environmental assessment may request additional information from the applicant. Where the surface of the land is held by a qualified surface owner (§ 3400.0-5) and the mining method to be used is other than underground mining techniques, the authorized officer shall obtain documents necessary to show ownership of the surface. The applicant shall submit evidence of written consent from any qualified surface owner(s). (See 43 CFR Subpart 3427).

§ 3425.1-8 Rejection of applications.

(a) An application for a lease shall be rejected in total or in part when the authorized officer determines that: (1) The application is not consistent with the applicable regulations; (2) issuance of the lease would violate the integrity of the normal leasing process; or (3) leasing of the lands covered by the application, for environmental or other sufficient reasons, would be contrary to the public interest.

(b) Any application subject to rejection under paragraph (a) of this section shall not be rejected until the applicant is given written notice of the opportunity to provide requested missing information and fails to do so within the time specified in the decision issued for that purpose.

§ 3425.2 Land use plans.

No lease shall be issued under this subpart unless the lands have been included in a comprehensive land use plan or a land use analysis, as required in § 3420.1-5 of this title. The decision to hold a lease sale shall be consistent with the appropriate comprehensive land use plan or land use analysis.

§ 3425.3 Environmental analysis.

(a) Before a lease sale may be held under this subpart the authorized officer shall prepare an environmental assessment of the proposed lease area.

(1) The environmental assessment shall include:

(i) An evaluation of direct and indirect potential impacts including cumulative impacts of coal leasing and development upon the physical and socio-economic environment of the proposed lease area and adjacent areas that may be affected;

(ii) An evaluation of the technical and natural potential for successful reclamation on the proposed lease area; and

(iii) An evaluation of all reasonable alternatives to leasing the area or to any known plans of operation for the proposed area.

(2) The environmental assessment shall contain recommendations and special stipulations regarding:

(i) Lands that should be excluded from the proposed areas to avoid unac

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ceptable environmental or special impacts, including those lands to be excluded as identified through the application of the unsuitability criteria in Subpart 3461 of this title.

(ii) Any specific measures required to avoid or mitigate adverse impacts to, or to reclaim areas that may be acceptable for further consideration for leasing including measures to assure appropriate post-mining land use and measures to prevent irreparable damage or destruction of unique environmental values that are identified either through the application of the unsuitability criteria in Subpart 3461 of this title or in the comprehensive land use plan or land use analysis.

(3) If, based upon the environmental assessment prepared under paragraph (a)(2) of this section the authorized officer determines that an environmental impact statement is required under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, either a statement shall be prepared in accordance with the provisions of 40 CFR Part 1500, or the authorized officer may determine that, because of critical environmental considerations or limitations, including reclamation potential, the application shall be rejected pursuant to § 3425.1-8 of this title.

(4) If, based upon the environmental assessment prepared under paragraph (a)(2) of this section, the authorized officer determines that an environmental impact statement is not required under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, a finding of no significant impact shall be prepared and issued in accordance with 40 CFR 1501.4 and 1506.6.

(b) For lease applications involving lands in the National Forest System, the authorized officer shall submit the lease application to the Secretary of Agriculture for consent, for completion or consideration of an environmental assessment and for the attachment of appropriate lease stipulations, and for the making of any other findings prerequisite to lease issuance. (43 CFR 3400.3, 3461.1(a).)

§ 3425.4 Consultation and sale procedures. (a) (1) Prior to holding any lease sale in response to any application under this subpart, a public hearing or hear

ings shall be held on the proposed sale to allow public comment on and discussion of the potential effects of mining the proposed lease, including impacts on the environment, agriculture and other economic activities and community or regional services. The hearing on an environmental impact statement prepared under § 3425.3 of this title, if one is prepared, may satisfy the hearing requirement.

(2) Prior to holding any lease sale under this subpart, the Secretary shall consult with the entities and individuals listed in § 3420.5-2 through 3420.5-5 of this title.

(3) No notice of sale shall be published in response to an application under this subpart for any lands subject to § 3427.1 of this title unless and until the authorized officer has received written consent from the qualified surface owner(s).

(b) (1) Subpart 3422 of this title applies in full to any sale to be held in response to an application filed under Subpart 3425 of this title.

(2) In addition to the requirements set forth in § 3422.2 of this title, in any sale authorized under § 3425.1-4 of this title, the successful bidder shall meet the criteria in § 3425.1-4 of this title. § 3425.5 Lease terms.

The terms of a lease issued under this subpart shall be consistent with the terms established for all competitive coal leases (43 CFR Part 3470).

Subpart 3427—Split Estate Leasing § 3427.0-1

Purpose.

The purpose of this subpart is to set out the protection that shall be afforded qualified surface owners of split estate lands (43 CFR 3400.0-5).

§ 3427.0-3 Authority.

(a) These regulations are issued under the authority of the statutes cited in § 3400.0-3 of this title.

(b) These regulations primarily implement section 714 of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1304), as construed in Solicitor's Opinion M-36909, 86 I.D. 28 (1979).

(a) (1) Each written consent, or evidence of written consent shall be filed with the appropriate Bureau of Land Management State Office (43 CFR Subpart 1821) at least 30 working days prior to the publication of the lease sale notice of the lands to which it applies. It shall be the responsibility of parties intending to file consents to be aware of pending coal lease sale notice dates. Generally, these dates shall be as published in the final regional sale schedule (43 CFR 3420.7).

(2) Statement of refusal to consent shall be filed with the appropriate Bureau of Land Management State Office, but such statement shall be accepted for filing only during activity planning.

(b) Written consent, evidence of written consent, or statement of refusal to consent may be filed by any private person or persons with a potential interest in the lease sale of split estate lands.

(c) Such filing shall, at a minimum, contain the present legal address of the qualified surface owner, and the name, ownership, interest, if any, and legal address of the party making the filing, and if it is a written consent or evidence thereof, a copy of the written consent or evidence thereof.

(d) At each stage in the tract delineation, ranking and scheduling in that

region, split estate lands that would be mined by other than underground mining techniques, covered by written consents that are filed with the appropriate State Office before the final decision on the pending regional lease sale schedule, shall be given priority over such split estate lands where there is no written consent from the qualified surface owner.

(e) Within 15 working days after the filing of a written consent, evidence thereof, or a statement of refusal to consent, the State Office shall verify that the written consent or evidence of such consent meets all of the following requirements, and that the statement of refusal to consent meets the requirements of paragraphs (e)(2) and (3) of this section:

(1) The right to enter and commence mining is transferable to whoever makes the successful bid in a lease sale for a tract which includes the lands to which the consent applies. A written consent shall be considered transferable only if, at a minimum, it allows that after the lease sale for the tract to which the consent applies (i) the payment for the consent may be made by the successful bidder or (ii) the successful bidder may reimburse the party that first obtained the consent for the purchase price of the consent;

(2) The named surface owner is a qualified surface owner as defined in § 3400.0-5 of this title; and

(3) The title for all split estate lands described in the filing is held by the named qualified surface owners.

(f) Upon receipt of a filing from anyone other than the named qualified surface owner, the authorized officer shall contact the named qualified surface owner and request his confirmation in writing that the filed, transferable, written consent or evidence thereof to enter and commence mining has been granted, and that the filing fully discloses all of the terms of the written consent, or that the refusal to consent is accurate.

(g) The conditions of paragraphs (e) and (f) of this section shall be met prior to publication of the sale notice.

(h) The State Director shall in all cases notify the person or persons filing the written consent, evidence of written consent, or statement of refus