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Secretary of the Interior or the lessee to a penalty of not more than $500 per day for each and every day the terms of the lease, the regulations, or such orders are violated; or to both such penalty and cancellation: Provided, That the lessee shall be entitled to notice and hearing, within 30 days after such notice, with respect to the terms of the lease, regulations, or orders violated, which hearing shall be held by the supervisor, whose findings shall be conclusive unless an appeal be taken to the Secretary of the Interior within 30 days after notice of the supervisor's decision, and the decision of the Secretary of the Interior upon appeal shall be conclusive.

§ 171.23 Mines to be timbered properly.

In mining operations the lessee shall keep the mine well and sufficiently timbered at all points where necessary, in accordance with good mining practice, and in such manner as may be necessary to the proper preservation of the leased property and safety of the workmen.

§ 171.24 Surrender of leased premises in good condition.

On expiration of the term of a lease, or when a lease is surrendered, the lessee shall deliver to the Government the leased ground with the mine workings in good order and condition, and bondsmen will be held for such delivery in good order and condition, unless relieved by the Secretary of the Interior for cause. It shall, however, be stipulated that the machinery necessary to operate the mine is the property of the lessee, but that it may be removed by him only after the condition of the property has been ascertained by inspection by the Secretary of the Interior or his authorized agents, to be in satisfactory condition,

§ 171.25 Fees.

Unless otherwise authorized by the Secretary of the Interior or his authorized representative, each lease, mining permit, sublease, or assignment shall be accompanied at the time of filing by a fee of $10. Such fee will not be required on sand and gravel permits issued to States, counties, or other municipal bodies.

(Sec. 1, 41 Stat. 415, as amended: 25 U.S.C. 413) [24 F.R. 7949, Oct. 2, 1959]

§ 171.26 Assignments and overriding royalties.

(a) Approved leases or any interest therein may be assigned or transferred

only with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, and to procure such approval the assignee must be qualified to hold such lease under existing rules and regulations and shall furnish a satisfactory bond conditioned for the faithful performance of the covenants and conditions thereof: Provided, That in order for such assignment to receive favorable consideration the lessee shall assign either his whole interest or an undivided interest in the whole lease.

(b) No lease or interest therein or the use of such lease shall be assigned, sublet, or transferred, directly or indirectly by working or drilling contract, or otherwise, without the consent of the Secretary of the Interior.

(c) Assignments of leases, and stipulations modifying the terms of existing leases, which stipulations are also subject to the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, shall be filed with the superintendent within 30 days after the date of execution.

(d) Agreements creating overriding royalties or payments out of production on oil and gas leases shall not be considered as interests in the leases as such term is used in this section. Agreements creating overriding royalties or payments out of production are hereby authorized and the approval of the Department of the Interior or any agency thereof shall not be required with respect thereto, but such agreements shall be subject to the condition that nothing in any such agreement shall be construed as modifying any of the obligations of the lessee, including, but not limited to, obligations for diligent development and operation, protection against drainage, compliance with oil and gas operating regulations (30 CFR Part 221), and the requirement for departmental approval before abandonment of any well. All such obligations are to remain in full force and effect, the same as if free of any such royalties or payments. The existence of agreements creating overriding royalties or payments out of production, whether or not actually paid, shall not be considered as justification for the approval of abandonment of any well. Nothing in this paragraph revokes the requirement for approval of assignments and other instruments which is required in this section, but any overriding royalties or payments out of production created by the terms of such assignments or instruments shall be subject to the condition stated above.

Agreements creating overriding royalties or payments out of production need not be filed with the Superintendent unless incorporated in assignments or instruments required to be filed pursuant to this section.

[22 F.R. 10588, Dec. 24, 1957, as amended at 23 F.R. 9738, Dec. 18, 1958]

§ 171.27 Cancellation.

(a) When, in the opinion of the Secretary of the Interior, the lessee has violated any of the terms and conditions of a lease or of the applicable regulations, the Secretary of the Interior shall have the right at any time after 30 days' notice to the lessee specifying the terms and conditions violated, and after a hearing, if the lessee shall so request within 30 days after issuance of the notice, to declare such lease null and void, and the lessor shall then be entitled and authorized to take immediate possession of the land.

(b) On the following conditions, the lessee may, on approval of the Secretary of the Interior, surrender a lease or any part of it:

(1) That he make application for cancellation to the superintendent having jurisdiction over the land.

(2) That he pay a surrender fee of $1 at the time the application is made.

(3) That he pay all royalties and rentals due to the date of such application.

(4) That he make a satisfactory showing that full provision has been made for conservation and protection of the property and that all wells, drilled on the portion of the lease surrendered, have been properly abandoned.

(5) If the lease has been recorded, that he file, with his application, a recorded release of the acreage covered by the application.

(6) If the application is for the cancellation of the entire lease or the entire undivided portion, that he surrender the lease: Provided, That where the application is made by an assignee to whom no copy of the lease was delivered, he will be required to surrender only his copy of the assignment.

(7) If the lease (or portion being surrendered or canceled) if owned in undivided interests by more than one party, then all parties shall join in the application for cancellation.

(8) That all required fees and papers must be in the mail or received on or before the date upon which rents and

royalties become due, in order for the lessee and his surety to be relieved from liability for the payment of such royalties and rentals.

(9) If there has been a contest respecting a lease or leases, the approved, the disapproved, or the canceled parts thereof will be held in the office of the superintendent for 5 days after the Department's decision has been promulgated, by mail or delivery, and will not be delivered, if within that period a motion for review and reconsideration be filed, until such motion is passed upon by the Department.

(10) In the event oil or gas is being drained from the leased premises by wells not covered by a lease; the lease, or any part of it, may be surrendered, only on such terms and conditions as the Secretary of the Interior may determine to be reasonable and equitable.

(c) No part of any advance rental shall be refunded to the lessee nor shall he be relieved, by reason of any subsequent surrender or cancellation of the lease, from the obligation to pay said advance rental when it becomes due.

§ 171.27a Prospecting permits.

With the consent of the tribal authorities the superintendent may issue permits to prospect for minerals other than oil and gas upon tribal lands. Such permits must describe the area to be prospected and definitely state the period of time within which such work is permitted. No ores shall be removed from the reservation under such permits, except samples for assay and experimental purposes. A prospecting permit will not give the permittee any preference right to a lease, unless specifically so stated in the permit, and all permits granting a preference right to a lease must comply with all the laws and regulations applicable to mineral leases on tribal Indian lands.

§ 171.28 Effective date of regulations.

The regulations in this part shall become effective and in full force from and after the date of approval, and shall be subject to change or alteration at any time by the Secretary of the Interior: Provided, That no regulations made after the approval of any lease shall operate to affect the term of the lease, rate of royalty, rental, or acreage unless agreed to by both parties to the lease. All former regulations governing the leasing of tribal lands for mining purposes are

superseded by the regulations in this part.

§ 171.29 Exemption of leases made by organized tribes.

The regulations in this part may be superseded by the provisions of any tribal constitution, bylaw or charter issued pursuant to the Indian Reorganization Act of June 18, 1934 (48 Stat. 984; 25 U.S.C. 461-479), the Alaska Act of May 1, 1936 (49 Stat. 1250; 48 U.S.C. 362, 258a), or the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of June 26, 1936 (49 Stat. 1967; 25 U.S.C., and Sup., 501-509), or by ordinance, resolution or other action authorized under such constitution, bylaw or charter. The regulations in this part, in so far as they are not so superseded, shall apply to leases made by organized tribes if the validity of the lease depends upon the approval of the Secretary of the Interior. § 171.30

Forms.

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Individual tribal assignments excluded.

AUTHORITY: The provisions of this Part 172 issued under 35 Stat. 783, as amended; 25 U.S.C. 396, unless otherwise noted.

SOURCE: The provisions of this Part 172 appear at 22 F.R. 10592, Dec. 24, 1957, unless otherwise noted.

§ 172.1

Definitions.

(a) The term "superintendent" in this part refers to the superintendent or other officer of the Bureau of Indian Affairs or of the Government who may have jurisdiction over the allotments involved.

(b) The term "supervisor” in this part refers to a representative of the Secretary of the Interior, under direction of the Director of the United States Geological Survey, authorized and empowered to supervise and direct operations under oil and gas or other mining leases, to furnish scientific and technical information and advice, to ascertain and record the amount and value of production, and to determine and record rentals and royalties due and paid.

CROSS REFERENCE: For rules and regulations of the Geological Survey, see 30 CFR Chapter II.

§ 172.2

Applications.

Applications for leases should be made to the superintendent having jurisdiction over the lands.

§ 172.3

No leases made to Government employees.

No lease, assignment thereof, or interest therein will be approved to any employee or employees of the United

States Government whether connected with the Bureau or otherwise, and no employee of the Interior Department shall be permitted to acquire any interest in such leases by ownership of stock in corporations having leases or in any other manner.

(R. S. 2078; 25 U. S. C. 68)

§ 172.4 Sale of oil and gas leases.

(a) At such times and in such manner as he may deem appropriate, the superintendent shall publish notices at least thirty days prior to the sale, unless a shorter period is authorized by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, that oil and gas leases on specific tracts, each of which shall be in a reasonably compact body, will be offered to the highest responsible bidder for a bonus consideration, in addition to stipulated rentals and royalties. Each bid must be accompanied by a cashier's check, certified check, or postal money order, payable to the payee designated in the invitation to bid, in an amount not less than 25 percent of the bonus bid. Within 30 days after notification of being the successful bidder, said bidder must remit the balance of the bonus, the first year's rental, and his share of the advertising costs, and shall file with the superintendent the lease in completed form. The superintendent may, for good and sufficient reasons, extend the time for the completion and submission of the lease form, but no extension shall be granted for remitting balance of monies due. If the successful bidder fails to pay the full consideration within said period, or fails to file the completed lease within said period or extension thereof, or if the lease is disapproved through no fault of the lessor or the Department of the Interior, 25 percent of the bonus bid will be forfeited for the use and benefit of the Indian lessor.

(b) All notices or advertisements of sales of oil and gas leases shall reserve to the Secretary of the Interior the right to reject all bids when in his judgment the interests of the Indians will be best served by so doing, and that if no satisfactory bid is received, or if the accepted bidder fails to complete the lease, or if the Secretary of the Interior shall determine that it is unwise in the interests of the Indians to accept the highest bid, the Secretary may readvertise such lease for sale, or if deemed advisable, with the consent of the Indian owners, a lease may be made by private negotiations.

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[24 F.R. 1568, Mar. 3, 1959]

§ 172.6 Leases for minerals other than oil and gas.

Leases for minerals other than oil and gas shall be advertised for bids as prescribed in § 172.4 unless the Commissioner grants to the Indian owners written permission to negotiate for a lease. Negotiated leases, accompanied by proper bond and other supporting papers, shall be filed with the Superintendent of the appropriate Indian Agency within 30 days after such permission shall have been granted by the Commissioner to negotiate the lease. The appropriate Area Director is authorized in proper cases to grant a reasonable extension of this period prior to its expiration. The right is reserved to the Secretary of the Interior to direct that negotiated leases be rejected and that they be advertised for bids. All leases shall be approved by the Secretary of the Interior or his duly authorized representative (35 Stat. 783; 25 U.S.C. 396).

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(b) Lists of officers, principal stockholders, and directors, with post-office addresses and number of shares held by each.

(c) A sworn statement of the proper officer showing:

(1) The total number of shares of the capital stock actually issued and the amount of cash paid into the treasury on each share sold; or, if paid in property, the kind, quantity, and value of the same paid per share.

(2) Of the stock sold, how much remains unpaid and subject to assessment. (3) The amount of cash the company has in its treasury and elsewhere.

(4) The property, exclusive of cash, owned by the company and its value.

(5) The total indebtedness of the company and the nature of its obligations.

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(a) If the allottee is deceased and the heirs to or devisees of any interest in the allotment have not been determined, or, if determined, some or all of them cannot be located, mining leases of such interests may be executed by the Superintendent, provided that such leases have been offered for sale to the highest responsible qualified bidder, at public auction, or on sealed bids, after at least 30 days notice and advertisement unless a shorter period is authorized by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.

(b) If the heirs include a life tenant, the lease must be accompanied by an agreement between such life tenant and the remaindermen, providing for the division of the rents and royalties subject to approval of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs or his authorized representative.

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(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (b), (d) and (f) of this section, all rents, royalties and other payments due under leases which have been or may be approved in accordance with this part shall be paid by check or bank draft to the order of the Treasurer of the United States and transmitted through the supervisor to the Superintendent for deposit to the credit of the various lessors. When lessees and purchasers are instructed, in writing, by the Superintendent, which instructions shall be complete as to lessors for each lease, separate remittances for each payment due each lessor shall be made to the Superintendent. Any payments under this paragraph, covering lands or interests therein from which supervision by the Secretary of the Interior has been relinquished may continue to be made in the manner provided by this paragraph until ten days after notice of such relinquishment of supervision has been mailed to the lessee.

(b) The Superintendent may, in his discretion, whenever it appears to be in the best interest of any lessor, authorize and direct the lessee to pay directly to the lessor, the legal guardian of any

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