§ 1232. Reclamation fee
(a)
Payment; rate
All operators of coal mining operations subject to the provisions of this chapter shall pay to the Secretary of the Interior, for deposit in the fund, a reclamation fee of 31.5 cents per ton of coal produced by surface coal mining and 13.5 cents per ton of coal produced by underground mining or 10 per centum of the value of the coal at the mine, as determined by the Secretary, whichever is less, except that the reclamation fee for lignite coal shall be at a rate of 2 per centum of the value of the coal at the mine, or 9 cents per ton, whichever is less.
(b)
Due date
Such fee shall be paid no later than thirty days after the end of each calendar quarter beginning with the first calendar quarter occurring after August 3, 1977, and ending September 30, 2021.
(c)
Submission of statement
Together with such reclamation fee, all operators of coal mine operations shall submit a statement of the amount of coal produced during the calendar quarter, the method of coal removal and the type of coal, the accuracy of which shall be sworn to by the operator and notarized. Such statement shall include an identification of the permittee of the surface coal mining operation, any operator in addition to the permittee, the owner of the coal, the preparation plant, tripple,[1] or loading point for the coal, and the person purchasing the coal from the operator. The report shall also specify the number of the permit required under section
1256 of this title and the mine safety and health identification number. Each quarterly report shall contain a notification of any changes in the information required by this subsection since the date of the preceding quarterly report. The information contained in the quarterly reports under this subsection shall be maintained by the Secretary in a computerized database.
(d)
Penalty
(1)
Any person, corporate officer, agent or director, on behalf of a coal mine operator, who knowingly makes any false statement, representation or certification, or knowingly fails to make any statement, representation or certification required in this section shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more than $10,000, or by imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.
(2)
The Secretary shall conduct such audits of coal production and the payment of fees under this subchapter as may be necessary to ensure full compliance with the provisions of this subchapter. For purposes of performing such audits the Secretary (or any duly designated officer, employee, or representative of the Secretary) shall, at all reasonable times, upon request, have access to, and may copy, all books, papers, and other documents of any person subject to the provisions of this subchapter. The Secretary may at any time conduct audits of any surface coal mining and reclamation operation, including without limitation, tipples and preparation plants, as may be necessary in the judgment of the Secretary to ensure full and complete payment of the fees under this subchapter.
(e)
Civil action to recover fee
Any portion of the reclamation fee not properly or promptly paid pursuant to this section shall be recoverable, with statutory interest, from coal mine operators, in any court of competent jurisdiction in any action at law to compel payment of debts.
(f)
Cooperation from other agencies
All Federal and State agencies shall fully cooperate with the Secretary of the Interior in the enforcement of this section. Whenever the Secretary believes that any person has not paid the full amount of the fee payable under subsection (a) of this section the Secretary shall notify the Federal agency responsible for ensuring compliance with the provisions of section
4121 of title
26.
(g)
Allocation of funds
(1)
Except as provided in subsection (h) of this section, moneys deposited into the fund shall be allocated by the Secretary to accomplish the purposes of this subchapter as follows:
(A)
50 percent of the reclamation fees collected annually in any State (other than fees collected with respect to Indian lands) shall be allocated annually by the Secretary to the State, subject to such State having each of the following:
(B)
50 percent of the reclamation fees collected annually with respect to Indian lands shall be allocated annually by the Secretary to the Indian tribe having jurisdiction over such lands, subject to such tribe having each of the following:
(2)
In making the grants referred to in paragraph (1)(C) and the grants referred to in paragraph (5), the Secretary shall ensure strict compliance by the States and Indian tribes with the priorities described in section
1233
(a) of this title until a certification is made under section
1240a
(a) of this title.
(3)
Amounts available in the fund which are not allocated to States and Indian tribes under paragraph (1) or allocated under paragraph (5) are authorized to be expended by the Secretary for any of the following:
(A)
For the purpose of section
1257
(c) of this title, either directly or through grants to the States, subject to the limitation contained in section
1231
(c)(9) of this title.
(C)
For the purpose of meeting the objectives of the fund set forth in section
1233
(a) of this title for eligible lands and waters pursuant to section
1234 of this title in States and on Indian lands where the State or Indian tribe does not have an approved abandoned mine reclamation program pursuant to section
1235 of this title.
(4)
(A)
Amounts available in the fund which are not allocated under paragraphs (1), (2), and (5) or expended under paragraph (3) in any fiscal year are authorized to be expended by the Secretary under this paragraph for the reclamation or drainage abatement of lands and waters within unreclaimed sites which are mined for coal or which were affected by such mining, wastebanks, coal processing or other coal mining processes and left in an inadequate reclamation status.
(B)
Funds made available under this paragraph may be used for reclamation or drainage abatement at a site referred to in subparagraph (A) if the Secretary makes either of the following findings:
(i)
A finding that the surface coal mining operation occurred during the period beginning on August 4, 1977, and ending on or before the date on which the Secretary approved a State program pursuant to section
1253 of this title for a State in which the site is located, and that any funds for reclamation or abatement which are available pursuant to a bond or other form of financial guarantee or from any other source are not sufficient to provide for adequate reclamation or abatement at the site.
(ii)
A finding that the surface coal mining operation occurred during the period beginning on August 4, 1977, and ending on or before November 5, 1990, and that the surety of such mining operator became insolvent during such period, and as of November 5, 1990, funds immediately available from proceedings relating to such insolvency, or from any financial guarantee or other source are not sufficient to provide for adequate reclamation or abatement at the site.
(C)
In determining which sites to reclaim pursuant to this paragraph, the Secretary shall follow the priorities stated in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section
1233
(a) of this title. The Secretary shall ensure that priority is given to those sites which are in the immediate vicinity of a residential area or which have an adverse economic impact upon a local community.
(D)
Amounts collected from the assessment of civil penalties under section
1268 of this title are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this paragraph.
(E)
Any State may expend grants made available under paragraphs (1) and (5) for reclamation and abatement of any site referred to in subparagraph (A) if the State, with the concurrence of the Secretary, makes either of the findings referred to in clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (B) and if the State determines that the reclamation priority of the site is the same or more urgent than the reclamation priority for eligible lands and waters pursuant to section
1234 of this title under the priorities stated in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section
1233
(a) of this title.
(F)
For the purposes of the certification referred to in section
1240a
(a) of this title, sites referred to in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph shall be considered as having the same priorities as those stated in section
1233
(a) of this title for eligible lands and waters pursuant to section
1234 of this title. All sites referred to in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph within any State shall be reclaimed prior to such State making the certification referred to in section
1240a
(a) of this title.
(5)
(A)
The Secretary shall allocate 60 percent of the amount in the fund after making the allocation referred to in paragraph (1) for making additional annual grants to States and Indian tribes which are not certified under section
1240a
(a) of this title to supplement grants received by such States and Indian tribes pursuant to paragraph (1)(C) until the priorities stated in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section
1233
(a) of this title have been achieved by such State or Indian tribe. The allocation of such funds for the purpose of making such expenditures shall be through a formula based on the amount of coal historically produced in the State or from the Indian lands concerned prior to August 3, 1977. Funds made available under paragraph (3) or (4) of this subsection for any State or Indian tribe shall not be deducted against any allocation of funds to the State or Indian tribe under paragraph (1) or under this paragraph.
(6)
(A)
Any State with an approved abandoned mine reclamation program pursuant to section
1235 of this title may receive and retain, without regard to the 3-year limitation referred to in paragraph (1)(D), up to 30 percent of the total of the grants made annually to the State under paragraphs (1) and (5) if those amounts are deposited into an acid mine drainage abatement and treatment fund established under State law, from which amounts (together with all interest earned on the amounts) are expended by the State for the abatement of the causes and the treatment of the effects of acid mine drainage in a comprehensive manner within qualified hydrologic units affected by coal mining practices.
(B)
In this paragraph, the term “qualified hydrologic unit” means a hydrologic unit—
(i)
in which the water quality has been significantly affected by acid mine drainage from coal mining practices in a manner that adversely impacts biological resources; and
(ii)
that contains land and water that are—
(I)
eligible pursuant to section
1234 of this title and include any of the priorities described in section
1233
(a) of this title; and
(II)
the subject of expenditures by the State from the forfeiture of bonds required under section
1259 of this title or from other States sources to abate and treat acid mine drainage.
(7)
In complying with the priorities described in section
1233
(a) of this title, any State or Indian tribe may use amounts available in grants made annually to the State or tribe under paragraphs (1) and (5) for the reclamation of eligible land and water described in section
1233
(a)(3) of this title before the completion of reclamation projects under paragraphs (1) and (2) of section
1233
(a) of this title only if the expenditure of funds for the reclamation is done in conjunction with the expenditure before, on, or after December 20, 2006, of funds for reclamation projects under paragraphs (1) and (2) of section
1233
(a) of this title.
(8)
(A)
In making funds available under this subchapter, the Secretary shall ensure that the grant awards total not less than $3,000,000 annually to each State and each Indian tribe having an approved abandoned mine reclamation program pursuant to section
1235 of this title and eligible land and water pursuant to section
1234 of this title, so long as an allocation of funds to the State or tribe is necessary to achieve the priorities stated in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section
1233
(a) of this title.
(h)
Transfers of interest earned by Fund
(1)
In general
(A)
Transfers to Combined Benefit Fund
As soon as practicable after the beginning of fiscal year 2007 and each fiscal year thereafter, and before making any allocation with respect to the fiscal year under subsection (g), the Secretary shall use an amount not to exceed the amount of interest that the Secretary estimates will be earned and paid to the fund during the fiscal year to transfer to the Combined Benefit Fund such amounts as are estimated by the trustees of such fund to offset the amount of any deficit in net assets in the Combined Benefit Fund as of October 1, 2006, and to make the transfer described in paragraph (2)(A).
(B)
Transfers to 1992 and 1993 plans
As soon as practicable after the beginning of fiscal year 2008 and each fiscal year thereafter, and before making any allocation with respect to the fiscal year under subsection (g), the Secretary shall use an amount not to exceed the amount of interest that the Secretary estimates will be earned and paid to the fund during the fiscal year (reduced by the amount used under subparagraph (A)) to make the transfers described in paragraphs (2)(B) and (2)(C).
(2)
Transfers described
The transfers referred to in paragraph (1) are the following:
(A)
United Mine Workers of America Combined Benefit Fund
A transfer to the United Mine Workers of America Combined Benefit Fund equal to the amount that the trustees of the Combined Benefit Fund estimate will be expended from the fund for the fiscal year in which the transfer is made, reduced by—
(i)
the amount the trustees of the Combined Benefit Fund estimate the Combined Benefit Fund will receive during the fiscal year in—
(ii)
the amount the trustees of the Combined Benefit Fund estimate will be expended during the fiscal year to provide health benefits to beneficiaries who are unassigned beneficiaries solely as a result of the application of section
9706
(h)(1) of title
26, but only to the extent that such amount does not exceed the amounts described in subsection (i)(1)(A) that the Secretary estimates will be available to pay such estimated expenditures.
(B)
United Mine Workers of America 1992 Benefit Plan
A transfer to the United Mine Workers of America 1992 Benefit Plan, in an amount equal to the difference between—
(i)
the amount that the trustees of the 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan estimate will be expended from the 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan during the next calendar year to provide the benefits required by the 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan on December 20, 2006; minus
(ii)
the amount that the trustees of the 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan estimate the 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan will receive during the next calendar year in—
(C)
Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan
A transfer to the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan established after July 20, 1992, by the parties that are the settlors of the 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan referred to in subparagraph (B) (referred to in this subparagraph and subparagraph (D) as “the Plan”), in an amount equal to the excess (if any) of—
(i)
the amount that the trustees of the Plan estimate will be expended from the Plan during the next calendar year, to provide benefits no greater than those provided by the Plan as of December 31, 2006; over
(ii)
the amount that the trustees estimated the Plan will receive during the next calendar year in payments paid by Federal agencies in connection with benefits provided by the Plan.
Such excess shall be calculated by taking into account only those beneficiaries actually enrolled in the Plan as of December 31, 2006, who are eligible to receive benefits under the Plan on the first day of the calendar year for which the transfer is made.
(D)
Individuals considered enrolled
For purposes of subparagraph (C), any individual who was eligible to receive benefits from the Plan as of December 20, 2006, even though benefits were being provided to the individual pursuant to a settlement agreement approved by order of a bankruptcy court entered on or before September 30, 2004, will be considered to be actually enrolled in the Plan and shall receive benefits from the Plan beginning on December 31, 2006.
(3)
Adjustment
If, for any fiscal year, the amount of a transfer under subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (2) is more or less than the amount required to be transferred under that subparagraph, the Secretary shall appropriately adjust the amount transferred under that subparagraph for the next fiscal year.
(4)
Additional amounts
(A)
Previously credited interest
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any interest credited to the fund that has not previously been transferred to the Combined Benefit Fund referred to in paragraph (2)(A) under this section—
(B)
Previously allocated amounts
All amounts allocated under subsection (g)(2) before December 20, 2006, for the program described in section
1236 of this title, but not appropriated before December 20, 2006, shall be available to the Secretary to make the transfers described in paragraph (2).
(5)
Limitations
(A)
Availability of funds for next fiscal year
The Secretary may make transfers under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (2) for a calendar year only if the Secretary determines, using actuarial projections provided by the trustees of the Combined Benefit Fund referred to in paragraph (2)(A), that amounts will be available under paragraph (1), after the transfer, for the next fiscal year for making the transfer under paragraph (2)(A).
(B)
Rate of contributions of obligors
(i)
In general
(I)
Rate
A transfer under paragraph (2)(C) shall not be made for a calendar year unless the persons that are obligated to contribute to the plan referred to in paragraph (2)(C) on the date of the transfer are obligated to make the contributions at rates that are no less than those in effect on the date which is 30 days before December 20, 2006.
(ii)
Initial contributions
(I)
In general
From December 20, 2006, through December 31, 2010, the persons that, on December 20, 2006, are obligated to contribute to the plan referred to in paragraph (2)(C) shall be obligated, collectively, to make contributions equal to the amount described in paragraph (2)(C), less the amount actually transferred due to the operation of subparagraph (C).
(II)
First calendar year
Calendar year 2006 is the first calendar year for which contributions are required under this clause.
(C)
Phase-in of transfers
For each of calendar years 2008 through 2010, the transfers required under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (2) shall equal the following amounts:
(i)
For calendar year 2008, the Secretary shall make transfers equal to 25 percent of the amounts that would otherwise be required under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (2).
(i)
Funding
(1)
In general
Subject to paragraph (3), out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the plans described in subsection (h)(2) such sums as are necessary to pay the following amounts:
(A)
To the Combined Fund (as defined in section
9701
(a)(5) of title
26 and referred to in this paragraph as the “Combined Fund”), the amount that the trustees of the Combined Fund estimate will be expended from premium accounts maintained by the Combined Fund for the fiscal year to provide benefits for beneficiaries who are unassigned beneficiaries solely as a result of the application of section
9706
(h)(1) of title
26, subject to the following limitations:
(B)
On certification by the trustees of any plan described in subsection (h)(2) that the amount available for transfer by the Secretary pursuant to this section (determined after application of any limitation under subsection (h)(5)) is less than the amount required to be transferred, to the plan the amount necessary to meet the requirement of subsection (h)(2).
(C)
To the Combined Fund, $9,000,000 on October 1, 2007, $9,000,000 on October 1, 2008, $9,000,000 on October 1, 2009, and $9,000,000 on October 1, 2010 (which amounts shall not be exceeded) to provide a refund of any premium (as described in section
9704
(a) of title
26) paid on or before September 7, 2000, to the Combined Fund, plus interest on the premium calculated at the rate of 7.5 percent per year, on a proportional basis and to be paid not later than 60 days after the date on which each payment is received by the Combined Fund, to those signatory operators (to the extent that the Combined Fund has not previously returned the premium amounts to the operators), or any related persons to the operators (as defined in section
9701
(c) of title
26), or their heirs, successors, or assigns who have been denied the refunds as the result of final judgments or settlements if—
(2)
Payments to States and Indian tribes
Subject to paragraph (3), out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary of the Interior for distribution to States and Indian tribes such sums as are necessary to pay amounts described in paragraphs (1)(A) and (2)(A) of section
1240a
(h) of this title.
(3)
Limitations
(A)
Cap
The total amount transferred under this subsection for any fiscal year shall not exceed $490,000,000.
[1] So in original. Probably should be “tipple,”.
[2] So in original. Probably should be capitalized.