West Virginia Regulatory Program [WV-120-FOR]

This amendment includes a revision of the West Virginia Federal Lands Cooperative Agreement. West Virginia is now proposing to amend the existing cooperative agreement to reflect the current statutory schemes, regulatory requirements, and agency responsibilities associated with the regulation of coal mining and reclamation activities on Federal lands. Additionally, the revised cooperative agreement would grant the State the authority to regulate all coal exploration activities on Federal lands and would delegate the primary responsibility to review and approve coal mining permits involving federally and privately owned coal. (Approval of this amendment requires signatures from the Governor of WV and the Secretary of the Interior.) PR published in the Federal Register on July 20, 2020, at 85 FR 43761.