§1711 — Title 30 Mineral Lands and Mining | U.S. Code

Summary

Set up a full system to track, check, and collect money owed for oil and gas. The system must find the correct royalties, interest, fines, fees, deposits, and other payments, and collect and record them on time. The Secretary must have staff who inspect each lease site that produces or is expected to produce a lot of oil or gas at least once a year, and also inspect sites with a record of problems. The Secretary must train those inspectors in the inspection and accounting methods they will use. The Secretary must audit and balance current and past lease accounts when possible, using the same business records the lease holder was required to keep for the audit period. Priority goes to accounts a State or Indian tribe flags as likely underpaid. The Secretary may audit other chosen companies and may hire independent certified public accountants by competitive bidding under the federal procurement rules (chapters 1–11 of title 40 and parts of subtitle I of title 41, with some sections excluded). The Secretary may not hire a firm that treats the lease holder as a primary audit client. All Secretary records needed for these audits must be made available to the auditors.

Title 30, §1711

Mineral Lands and Mining — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary shall establish a comprehensive inspection, collection and fiscal and production accounting and auditing system to provide the capability to accurately determine oil and gas royalties, interest, fines, penalties, fees, deposits, and other payments owed, and to collect and account for such amounts in a timely manner.

(b)The Secretary shall—

(1)establish procedures to ensure that authorized and properly identified representatives of the Secretary will inspect at least once annually each lease site producing or expected to produce significant quantities of oil or gas in any year or which has a history of noncompliance with applicable provisions of law or regulations; and

(2)establish and maintain adequate programs providing for the training of all such authorized representatives in methods and techniques of inspection and accounting that will be used in the implementation of this chapter.

(c)(1)The Secretary shall audit and reconcile, to the extent practicable, all current and past lease accounts for leases of oil or gas and take appropriate actions to make additional collections or refunds as warranted. The Secretary shall conduct audits and reconciliations of lease accounts in conformity with the business practices and recordkeeping systems which were required of the lessee by the Secretary for the period covered by the audit. The Secretary shall give priority to auditing those lease accounts identified by a State or Indian tribe as having significant potential for underpayment. The Secretary may also audit accounts and records of selected lessees and operators.

(2)The Secretary may enter into contracts or other appropriate arrangements with independent certified public accountants to undertake audits of accounts and records of any lessee or operator relating to the lease of oil or gas. Selection of such independent certified public accountants shall be by competitive bidding in accordance with chapters 1 to 11 of title 40 and division C (except section 3302, 3307(e), 3501(b), 3509, 3906, 4710, and 4711) of subtitle I of title 41, except that the Secretary may not enter into a contract or other arrangement with any independent certified public accountant to audit any lessee or operator where such lessee or operator is a primary audit client of such certified public accountant.

(3)All books, accounts, financial records, reports, files, and other papers of the Secretary, or used by the Secretary, which are reasonably necessary to facilitate the audits required under this section shall be made available to any person or governmental entity conducting audits under this chapter.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification In subsec. (c)(2), “chapters 1 to 11 of title 40 and division C (except section 3302, 3307(e), 3501(b), 3509, 3906, 4710, and 4711) of subtitle I of title 41” substituted for “the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 252)” on authority of Pub. L. 107–217, § 5(c), Aug. 21, 2002, 116 Stat. 1303, which Act enacted Title 40, Public Buildings, Property, and Works, and Pub. L. 111–350, § 6(c), Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 3854, which Act enacted Title 41, Public Contracts.

§1711 Duties of Secretary

Summary

Title 30, §1711

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Citations & Metadata