# 2026-01566: Mining Cleanup Funds Rules Pushed Back to March 2026

2026-01566, General Reclamation Requirements, is a Federal Register rule from Interior Department, Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement Office published 2026-01-27, effective 2026-03-30 (as of 2026-06-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-01566
- As of: 2026-06-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Document number: 2026-01566
- Title: General Reclamation Requirements
- Type: Rule
- Agencies: Interior Department; Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement Office
- Citation: 91 FR 3374
- Published: 2026-01-27
- Effective: 2026-03-30
- Comments close: not stated
- Significant: no
- Touches household money: no
- Regulation identifier numbers: 1029-AC99
- Last updated: 2026-06-11

## In one line

Mining Cleanup Funds Rules Pushed Back to March 2026

## Summary

The Office of Surface Mining is pushing back the start date for new rules about how States and Tribes use special Treasury funds for land cleanup projects. They’re taking more time to review public feedback before finalizing changes that could affect how money is spent and rules are followed. The new effective date is now March 30, 2026, giving everyone a bit more breathing room.

## Abstract

The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is delaying the effective date of the direct final rule "General Reclamation Requirements," published on November 28, 2025. The direct final rule revised the Federal regulations to rescind language requiring compliance with the regulations when funding reclamation projects with prior balance replacement funds, which are moneys from the United States Treasury's General Fund that replaced State or Tribal share funds that were allocated before October 1, 2007, but never appropriated by Congress. During the comment period, OSM received comments that require further review and consideration to determine whether they are significant adverse comments warranting a response, withdrawal, or modification of the final rule.

## Effects PRIA read

- 60-Day Delay of Rule Effective Date: benefit, low. The Office of Surface Mining delayed the effective date of the November 28, 2025 direct final rule from January 27, 2026 to March 30, 2026. OSM says the 60-day delay lets it review comments received by the December 29, 2025 comment deadline before deciding whether to respond, withdraw, or modify th…
- Planned Rescission of Compliance Requirement: benefit, low. The direct final rule would rescind 30 CFR 874.11(b), which currently clarifies that States and Tribes must follow part 874 when spending prior balance replacement funds (Treasury General Fund moneys that replaced State/Tribal share funds allocated before October 1, 2007). The Department and OSM st…

## Related documents

- [2025-21443](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2025-21443): Rescission of Fee Rates, 2025-11-28
- [2026-17821](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-17821): Montana Regulatory Program, 2026-09-01
- [2026-17333](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-17333): Montana Regulatory Program, 2026-08-25
- [2026-17055](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-17055): Montana Regulatory Program, 2026-08-21
- [2026-16318](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-16318): North Dakota Regulatory Program, 2026-08-11
- [2026-16136](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-16136): Ohio Regulatory Program, 2026-08-07

## Sources
- [2026-01566 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/01/27/2026-01566/general-reclamation-requirements)
- [2026-01566 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-01-27/pdf/2026-01566.pdf)

## Related
- [Previous: 2026-01549, Reflectorization of Rail Freight Rolling Stock; Codifying Existing Waivers](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-01549)
- [Next: 2026-01569, Backfilling and Grading](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-01569)
- [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-01566 (as of 2026-06-11).