General Reclamation Requirements: Rescission of Obsolete Prior Balance Replacement Fund Language

The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) has confirmed the effective date of March 30, 2026 for a direct final rule originally published in the Federal Register on November 28, 2025. The rule removes outdated regulatory language that required compliance with certain regulations when funding reclamation projects using prior balance replacement funds — moneys drawn from the U.S. Treasury's General Fund that replaced State or Tribal share funds allocated before October 1, 2007 but never appropriated by Congress. These prior balance replacement funds no longer exist in practice, making the associated compliance language functionally obsolete. By rescinding this language, OSM streamlines its regulations and eliminates requirements that have no real-world application, reducing regulatory confusion for states and tribes administering surface mining reclamation programs. During the public comment period, OSM received comments that necessitated additional review. After careful consideration, OSM determined that none of the comments constituted significant adverse comments — meaning they did not raise substantive objections that would require withdrawal or modification of the rule. As a result, the agency confirmed the rule's effective date without changes.

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