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Oklahoma Administrative Code (Last Updated: March 11, 2021) |
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TITLE 460. Department of Mines |
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Chapter 20. The Permanent Regulations Governing the Coal Reclamation Act of 1979 |
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Subchapter 11. State Processes for Designating Areas Unsuitable for Surface Mining Operations |
SECTION 460:20-11-4. Initial processing, recording, and notification
Latest version.
- (1) Within 30 days of receipt of a petition, the Department shall notify the petitioner by certified mail whether or the petition is complete under Section 460:20-11-3(b) or (c). Complete, for a designation or termination petition, means that the information required under Section 460:20-11-3(b) or (c) has been provided.(2) The Department shall determine whether any identified coal resources exits in the area covered by the petition, without requiring any showing from the petitioner. If the Department finds there are not any identified coal resources in that area, it shall return the petition to the petitioner with a statement of the findings.(3) If the Department determines that the petition is incomplete, frivolous, or that the petitioner does not meet the requirements of Section 460:20-11-3(a), it shall return the petition to the petitioner with a written statement of the reasons for the determination and the categories of information needed to make the petition complete. A frivolous petition is one in which the allegations of harm lack serious merit.(4) When considering a petition for an area which was previously and unsuccessfully proposed for designation, the Department shall determine if the new petition presents significant new allegations of facts with evidence which tends to establish the allegations If the new petition does not contain such material, the Department may choose not to consider the petition and may return the petition to the petitioner, with a statement of its findings and a reference to the record of the previous designation proceeding where the facts were considered.(5) The Department shall notify the person who submits a petition of any application for a permit received which includes any area covered by the petition.(6) The Department may determine not to process any petition received insofar as it pertains to lands for which an administratively complete permit application has been filed and the first newspaper notice has been published. Based on such determination, the Department may issue a decision on a complete and accurate permit application and shall inform the petitioner why this Chapter cannot consider the part of the petition pertaining to the proposed permit area.(b) Notification.(1) Promptly after a petition is received, the Department shall notify the general public of the receipt of the petition by newspaper advertisement placed in the locale of the area covered by the petition, in the newspaper providing broadest circulation in the region of the petitioned area, and in any official State registry of public notices. The Department shall make copies of the petition available to the public and shall provide copies of the petition to other interested government agencies, interveners, persons with ownership interests of record in the property. Proper notice shall comply with the requirements of applicable State law.(2) The Department may provide for a hearing or a period of written comments on the completeness of petitions. If a hearing or comment period on the completeness is provided, the Department shall inform interested governmental agencies interveners, persons with an ownership interest of record in the property, and other persons, known to the Department to have an interest in the property of the opportunity to request to participate in such a hearing or to provide written comments. Proper notice to persons with an ownership interest of record in the property shall comply with the requirements of applicable State law. Notice of such hearing shall be made by a newspaper advertisement placed in the locale of the area covered by the petition, in the newspaper providing broadest circulation in the region of the petitioned area, and in any official State registry of public notices. The Department shall notify the petitioner of such a hearing by certified mail. On the basis of the Departmental review as well as consideration of all comments, the Department shall determine whether the petition is complete.(3) Promptly after the determination that a petition is complete, the Department shall request submissions from the general public of relevant information by a newspaper advertisement placed once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in the locale of the area covered by the petition, in the newspaper providing the largest circulation in the region of the petitioned area, and in any official State register of public notices.(c) Interveners. Until three days before the Departments holds a hearing under Section 460:20-11-5, any person may intervene in the proceedings by filing allegations of facts describing how the designation determination directly affects the intervener, supporting evidence, a short statement identifying the petition to which the allegations pertain, and the intervener's name, address, and telephone number.(d) Recordkeeping. Beginning immediately after a complete petition is filed, the Department shall compile and maintain a record consisting of all documents relating to the petition filed with or prepared by the Department. The Department shall make the record available for public inspection free of charge and for copying at reasonable costs during all normal hours at a central location of the county or multi-county area in which the land petitioned is located, and at the main office of the Department of Mines, 2915 N. Classen Blvd., Suite 213, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73106.