Coal Mining Program Fees
Coal Mining Program Fees. Environmental Quality Board Meeting July 17, 2012 John J. Stefanko, Deputy Secretary for Active and Abandoned Mining Operations. Coal Mining Program Background. Permits ~1600 Coal Mining Permits Operators ~500 Permittees Program Cost Total ~$21,000,000
Coal Mining Program Fees
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Presentation Transcript
Coal Mining Program Fees Environmental Quality Board Meeting July 17, 2012 John J. Stefanko, Deputy Secretary for Active and Abandoned Mining Operations
Coal Mining Program Background • Permits • ~1600 Coal Mining Permits • Operators • ~500 Permittees • Program Cost • Total ~$21,000,000 • up to 50% Federal Funding
Regulation Development Timeline • Fee Proposal-October 2009 Mining and Reclamation Advisory Board (MRAB) Meeting • Opposition was expressed • Relegated to committee for discussion • MRAB Committee Meetings • November 2009-January 2010 • January 2010 MRAB Recommendations • April 2010 MRAB Recommendation
Regulation Development Timeline • EQB adopted proposed regulations at October 12, 2010 Meeting • Proposed regulations published for comment March 10, 2012 • No Comments were received
IRRC May 9, 2012 IRRC letter: • They had no comments • If the final-form regulation is delivered without changes and the committees take no action then the regulations will be deemed approved.
January 2010 MRAB Recommendationss • Because permit fees have not gone up since 1982, a permit fee increase is reasonable. • Any increase in permit fees should be dedicated to finance the permitting process. • DEP should not discourage remining activities. • It is reasonable to ask industry to contribute to funding some part of the program. • MRAB will continue to advise DEP on permit fee assessment and allocations.
April 2010 MRAB Recommendation • Fee package should include permit application fees • Fees should generate about $400,000 per year
No Changes No changes were made to the rulemaking from proposed to final version
Definitions Added • Permit Application Fee • Major Permit Revisions
Fee Basis • Workload Analysis • Review time for each application type • Personnel costs • Overhead • Proportion needed to generate $400,000 • ~37% of state share of cost for application review
Example Fee Amounts New Bituminous Underground Permit $5,750 Surface Mine Permit Major revision $300 Permit Renewal $250
Periodic Fee Review Every three years the Department will compare the fees collected with program costs and prepare a report for the EQB.
Summary and Recommendation • Final-form regulations are in line with MRAB Recommendations • Estimated to generate about $400,000 per year • The Department is requesting approval of the final-form regulations.
Thank youJohn J. Stefanko, Deputy Secretary for Active and Abandoned Mining Operations