16 Tex. Admin. Code § 12.312 - Procedure for Seeking Release of Performance Bond
(a) Bond release application.
(1) The permittee may file a request with the
Commission for the release of all or part of a performance bond or deposit.
Applications may be filed only at times or during seasons authorized by the
Commission in order to properly evaluate the completed reclamation operations.
The times or seasons appropriate for the evaluation of certain types of
reclamation shall be established in the regulatory program or identified in the
mining and reclamation plan required in Subchapter G of this chapter (relating
to Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Operations Permits and Coal Exploration
Procedures Systems) and approved by the Commission.
(2) Within 30 days after any application for
bond or deposit release has been filed with the Commission, the operator shall
submit a copy of an advertisement placed at least once a week for four
successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the
surface coal mining operation. Such advertisement shall be considered part of
any bond release application and shall contain the permittee's name, a
notification of the precise location of the land affected, the number of acres,
the permit number and date approved, the amount of the bond filed and the
portion sought to be released, and the type and appropriate dates of
reclamation work performed, and a description of the results achieved as they
relate to the operator's approved reclamation plan, and the name and address of
the Commission office to which written comments, objections, or requests for
public hearings and informal conferences on the specific bond release may be
submitted pursuant to §
12.313(d) and (e)
of this title (relating to Criteria and Schedule for Release of Performance
Bond). In addition, as part of any bond release application, the permittee
shall submit copies of letters which he or she has sent to adjoining property
owners, local governmental bodies, planning agencies, sewage and water
treatment authorities, and water companies in the locality in which the surface
coal mining and reclamation activities took place, notifying them of the
intention to seek release from the bond.
(3) The permittee shall include in the
application for bond release a notarized statement which certifies that all
applicable reclamation activities have been accomplished in accordance with the
requirements of the Act, the regulatory program, and the approved reclamation
plan. Such certification shall be submitted for each application or phase of
bond release.
(b)
Inspection by Commission.
(1) Upon receipt of
the bond release application, the Commission shall, within 30 days, or as soon
thereafter as weather conditions permit, conduct an inspection and evaluation
of the reclamation work involved. Such evaluation shall consider, among other
things, the degree of difficulty to complete any remaining reclamation, whether
pollution of surface and subsurface water is occurring, the probability of
future occurrence of such pollution, and the estimated cost of abating such
pollution. The surface owner, agency, or lessee shall be given notice of such
inspection and may participate with the Commission in making the bond release
inspection. The Commission may arrange with the permittee to allow access to
the permit area, upon request by any person with an interest in bond release,
for the purpose of gathering information relevant to the proceeding.
(2) Within 60 days from the filing of the
bond release application, if no public hearing is held pursuant to §
12.313(d) of
this title (relating to Criteria and Schedule for Release of Performance Bond),
or, within 30 days after a public hearing has been held pursuant to
§12.313(d), the Commission shall notify in writing the permittee, the
surety, or other persons with an interest in bond collateral who have requested
notification under §
12.309(l) of
this title (relating to Terms and Conditions of the Bond), and the persons who
either filed objections in writing or objectors who were a party to the hearing
proceedings, if any, of its decision to release or not to release all or part
of the performance bond.
Notes
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
No prior version found.