,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #dcdf ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,september #ag1 #bjai,mr4 ,lowenthal introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,natural ,resources ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,mineral ,leasing ,act to make certain adjustments to the regulation of surface-disturbing activities and to protect taxpayers from unduly bearing the reclamation costs of oil and gas development1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be referred to as the ,bonding ,reform and ,taxpayer ,protection ,act of #bjai4 #b4 ,surface disturbance and reclamation ,section #ag7;g7 of the ,mineral ,leasing ,act 7#cj ,u4,s4,c4 #bbf7;g77 is amended to read as follows3 7g7 ,bonding requirements 7#a7 ,definitions ,in this subsection3 7,a7 ,interim reclamation plan ,the term ,interim ,reclamation ,plan means an ongoing plan specifying reclamation steps to be taken on all disturbed areas covered by any lease issued under this ,act that are not needed for active operations4 7,b7 ,final reclamation plan ,the term ,final ,reclamation ,plan means a plan describing all reclamation activity to be conducted for all disturbed areas1 including locations1 facilities1 trenches1 rights-of-way1 roads1 and any other surface disturbance covered by a lease issued under this ,act prior to final abandonment4 7#b7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of the ,interior1 or with respect to ,national ,forest lands1 the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 shall regulate all surface-disturbing activities conducted pursuant to any lease issued under this ,act1 and shall determine reclamation and other actions as required in the interest of conservation of surface resources4 7#c7 ,reclamation plans required 7,a7 ,analysis and approval required ,no permit to drill on an oil and gas lease issued under this ,act may be granted without the analysis and approval by the ,secretary concerned of both an interim reclamation plan and a final reclamation plan covering proposed surface-disturbing activities within the lease area4 7,b7 ,plans of operations ,all ,plans of ,operations submitted and approved pursuant to this ,act shall include an ,interim ,reclamation ,plan4 7,c7 ,secretarial ,review ,the relevant ,secretary shall review each ,interim ,reclamation ,plan at regular intervals and shall require such plans to be amended as warranted1 subject to the approval of such ,secretary4 7#d7 ,bonding 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary concerned shall1 by regulation1 require that an adequate bond1 surety1 or other financial arrangement will be established prior to the commencement of surface-disturbing activities on any lease1 to ensure the complete and timely reclamation of the lease tract1 and the restoration of any lands or surface waters adversely affected by lease operations after the abandonment or cessation of oil and gas operations on the lease4 7,b7 ,prohibition ,the ,secretary shall not issue or approve the assignment of any lease under the terms of this section to any person1 association1 corporation1 or any subsidiary1 affiliate1 or person controlled by or under common control with such person1 association1 or corporation1 during any period in which1 as determined by the relevant ,secretary1 such entity has failed or refused to comply in any material respect with the reclamation requirements and other standards established under this section for any prior lease to which such requirements and standards applied4 7,c7 ,notice and opportunity for compliance ,prior to making such determination with respect to any such entity the concerned ,secretary shall provide such entity with adequate notification and an opportunity to comply with such reclamation requirements and other standards and shall consider whether any administrative or judicial appeal is pending4 ,once the entity has complied with the reclamation requirement or other standard concerned an oil or gas lease may be issued to such entity under this ,act4 7,d7 ,limitation on bonds ,a bond1 surety1 or other financial arrangement described in subparagraph 7,a7 shall not be adequate if it is less than-- 7i7 #ej1jjj in the case of an arrangement for an individual surface-disturbing activity of an entity2 7ii7 #bej1jjj in the case of an arrangement for all surface-disturbing activities of an entity in a ,state2 or 7iii7 #a1jjj1jjj in the case of an arrangement for all surface-disturbing activities of an entity in the ,united ,states4 7,e7 ,adjustments for inflation ,in the application of subparagraph 7,b71 the ,secretaries concerned shall jointly at least once every three years adjust the dollar amounts in subparagraph 7,b7 to account for inflation based on the ,consumer ,price ,index for all urban consumer published by the ,department of ,labor4 7#e7 ,standards ,the ,secretary of the ,interior and the ,secretary of ,agriculture shall1 by regulation1 establish uniform standards for all ,interim and ,final ,reclamation ,plans4 ,the goal of such plans shall be the restoration of the affected ecosystem to a condition approximating or equal to that which existed prior to the surface disturbance4 ,such standards shall include restoration of natural vegetation and hydrology1 habitat restoration1 salvage1 storage and reuse of topsoils1 erosion control1 control of invasive species and noxious weeds and natural contouring4 7#f7 ,monitoring ,the ,secretary concerned shall not approve final abandonment and shall not release any bond required by this ,act until the standards and requirement for final reclamation established pursuant to this ,act have been met4 4