§ 1711. — Duties of Secretary.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 30USC1711]
TITLE 30--MINERAL LANDS AND MINING
CHAPTER 29--OIL AND GAS ROYALTY MANAGEMENT
SUBCHAPTER I--FEDERAL ROYALTY MANAGEMENT AND ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 1711. Duties of Secretary
(a) Establishment of inspection, collection, and accounting and auditing
system
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) Annual inspection of lease sites; training
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) Audit and reconciliation of lease accounts; contracts with certified
public accountants; availability of books, accounts, records,
etc., necessary for audit
(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 the
Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 \1\ (41 U.S.C.
252), 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ See References in Text note below.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(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.
(Pub. L. 97-451, title I, Sec. 101, Jan. 12, 1983, 96 Stat. 2449.)
References in Text
The Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949,
referred to in subsec. (c)(2), is act June 30, 1949, ch. 288, 63 Stat.
377, as amended. Except for title III of the Act, which is classified
generally to subchapter IV (Sec. 251 et seq.) of chapter 4 of Title 41,
Public Contracts, the Act was repealed and reenacted by Pub. L. 107-217,
Secs. 1, 6(b), Aug. 21, 2002, 116 Stat. 1062, 1304, as chapters 1 to 11
of Title 40, Public Buildings, Property, and Works.
