United States Department of the Interior Office o f Hearings and Appeals

Interior Board of Land Appeals 801 N . St. , Suit e 30 0

Arlington, V A 2220 3

703-235-3750 703-235-834 9 (fax )

November 19 , 201 5

2015-22 2

CHRISTOPHER HERM O

CAMC 298827, CAM C 29950 2

Mining Clai m Maintenance Fees

Decision Se t Aside and Case Remanded; Petitio n for Stay Denied a s Moo t

ORDER

Christopher (Appellant ) has appeale d fro m an d petitioned for a stay of a June 2015 , decision of the Californi a Stat e Office , Burea u of Land Managemen t (BLM). I n that decision , BLM declared th e Monarc h Rand Annex 4 and Blu e Ribbon unpatented lod e mining claims (CAM C 298827 an d CAM C 299502, respectively) nul l and void because Appellant did not fil e a n affidavi t o f annual assessmen t work (Affidavit) performe d o n or before Decembe r 30 , 2012, for the 201 2 assessment year. Base d o n the followin g analysis , we affir m BLM' s decision. W e also den y Appellant's petition fo r stay a s moot .

The holder of an unpatented minin g clai m i s required to pay a maintenanc e fee fo r each clai m or site on or before Septembe r 1 of each year . 3 0 § 28f(a) (2012); see 43 C.F.R . § Paymen t o f the clai m maintenance fe e i s in lieu o f the assessment work requirement s o f the Minin g Law of 1872, 30 U.S.C. §§ 28-28e (2012) , and the related filin g requirement s o f section 314(a) o f the Federal Lan d Policy and Managemen t Ac t of 1976 (FLPMA) , 43 U.S.C . § 1744(a) (2012), fo r the upcoming assessment year. 3 0 U.S.C. § 28f(a) an d (b ) (2012) ; see 43 C.F.R . § 3834.11(a).

Under the minin g laws , however, th e Secretar y o f the Interio r ha s th e discretion to waive the fe e fo r a claimant who certifies in writing that , o n the dat e th e payment i s due, th e claiman t and al l related parties hol d no t more than 1 0 minin g claims, mil l sites , tunne l sites, o r any combination thereof, o n public lands (Waiver Certification). 3 0 U.S.C. § 28f(d) (2012) . A claimant who files a Waiver Certification i s required to (1 ) perform assessment work durin g the assessment year for whic h th e waiver is granted, an d (2 ) fil e a n Affidavi t o n or before Decembe r 3 0 of

2015-22 2

the calenda r yea r i n which th e assessmen t year ends . 4 3 C.F.R . §§ 3835.12, 3835.15 , 3835.31(a); see Paul Dickison, 18 6 IBL A 69, 7 0 (2015) ; J. Trautner, 16 5 IBL A 265, 26 7 (2005) ; Earl Riggs, 16 5 IBL A 36, 39 (2005) . Th e failure to timely a n Affidavit whe n required unde r th e minin g laws i s "deemed conclusively to constitut e an abandonmen t o f the minin g clai m . . . b y the owner, " thereby renderin g th e clai m void. 4 3 U.S.C . § 1744(c) (2012) ; United States v . Locke, 47 1 U.S. 84, 97-100 (1985) . Neither BL M nor the Boar d has discretio n to waive the maintenanc e fe e requirement s or provide relie f fro m th e consequence s of noncompliance. See A. Parker, Sr., 165 IBL A 300, 303-04 (2005) , and cases cited.

Robert Sanke y locate d th e Monarch-Ran d Annex 4 and Blu e Ribbon claims o n April 1 , an d Apri l 25 , 2011 , respectively. Th e fil e include s locatio n notices fo r the tw o claims, wi th a receipt showin g payment o f the locatio n fee an d initia l maintenance fe e fo r the assessmen t year i n which th e claim s were located . See 43 C.F.R . § 3834.11(a)(1). Thus , fo r the 201 2 assessmen t year, the claiman t wa s required to pay the clai m maintenance fe e o r fil e a qualifyin g Waive r Certification by September 1 , 2011. See 43 C.F.R . § 3835.92(a). Th e record includes a Waiver Certification signe d b y Sankey1 an d file d wi t h BL M o n August 31 , fo r th e 2012 assessmen t year.2

Having file d a qualifying Waive r Certification for the 201 2 assessmen t year, Sankey woul d hav e been required to complete assessmen t work betwee n September 1 , 2011, and noo n o n September 1 , 2012, an d fil e a n Affidavi t o f that work by December 30 , 2012. However , Sanke y conveye d th e subjec t claim s t o Appellant during the fal l o f Th e fil e include s a quitclaim deed showing tha t Sankey transferre d th e Blu e Ribbon claim to Appellant November 5 , Th e for th e Monarc h Rand Annex 4 does not include a deed showing when the clai m wa s conveyed b y Sankey t o Appellant, but in a July 6, 2015 , emai l to BLM's Branch of

Thi s Waiver Certification is also signed b y David Hanna , An n Sankey, an d Harr y Sankey a s "owner(s ) claimant(s) " of the claim s listed , including the Monarc h Rand Annex #4 an d Blu e Ribbon claims. Ther e i s no documentatio n i n the recor d showin g when Davi d Hanna , An n Sankey, an d Harr y Sankey becam e co-owners o f the claims .

Als o on Aug. 31 , Sanke y file d Affidavit s fo r the tw o claims, stating tha t th e assessment work was don e for the assessment year endin g Sept . 1 , Thes e Affidavits wer e no t require d fo r the assessment year, being the assessmen t year i n which th e claim s were located . See 43 C.F.R . § 3835.31(b) ("Yo u do not need to complete assessmen t work in the assessment year whe n you located your claim . (For example, i f you locate a clai m on September 2, 2002, you first nee d to perform assessment work sometim e betwee n Septembe r 2, 2003 , an d Septembe r 1 , 2004.").

IBLA 2015-22 2

Adjudication, Sanke y indicate s tha t he transferre d th e Monarc h Rand Annex 4 clai m to Appellant on October 2,

The regulation at 43 C.F.R . § 3835.20, captioned "Transferring , selling, inheriting, o r otherwise conveying mining claim s or sites already subjec t t o a waiver," provides:

(a) I f you purchase, inherit , o r otherwise obtain mining claims or sites that are subjec t t o a waiver, you must also qualif y fo r the waiver in orde r for BLM to continue to apply the waiver to the minin g claims you hav e receive d in the transfer ; o r

(b) I f you purchase, inherit , o r otherwise obtain mining claims or sites that ar e subjec t t o a waiver and you do not qualify fo r the waiver, you must pay the annua l maintenanc e fe e b y the Septembe r 1 following th e dat e the transfe r becam e effective under stat e law.

There is no indication in the recor d that Appellant does not qualify fo r a small miner waiver. Appellan t paid maintenance fee s on the two claims on August 27, H e also paid maintenance fee s on the two claims on August 23, 2013.

Since Appellant did qualify fo r the smal l miner waiver, the Board' s holdin g in Frank E. Sieglitz, IBL A 286, 288 (2006) , makes clea r that BL M was correc t in declaring the two claims null an d voi d because there was n o Affidavit file d b y December 30 , 2012, for the 2012 assessment year. Th e Board stated :

The regulation at 43 CF R 3835.20(a) i s quite clear that , when a n individual purchases, inherits, or otherwise obtains a clai m subject t o a waiver, tha t person "mus t also qualif y fo r the waiver in order fo r BL M to continue to apply the waiver to the minin g afte r th e transfer. See Dan 16 9 IBL A [13, ] 15 [(2006)] . tha t person qualifie s for the waive r at the time of transfer, th e assessment work fo r the assessment year fo r which th e waiver was sough t an d obtained mus t be performed, as require d by the Minin g La w of 1872, and thereafter , a s require d by section 314(a ) o f FLPMA, the affidavi t o f having performed tha t work mus t be file d wit h BL M on or befor e December 3 0 followin g th e en d o f that assessment year. Da n Adelmann, 169 IBL A at 16-17 .

On th e othe r hand , i n accordance wit h 4 3 CF R 3835.20(b), i f that person doe s not qualify fo r the waiver at the tim e of transfer , he/she must pay the maintenanc e fe e fo r the assessment year fo r whic h the transfero r obtaine d the waiver by the Septembe r 1 following th e

3

IBLA 2015-22 2

date the transfe r becam e effective under stat e law. 4 3 CF R 3835.20(b); see Dan Adelmann, IBL A at 16 . Thus , the obligation s of the transferee o f a mining clai m tha t is , at the time of transfer, subjec t t o a waiver ar e dependen t upo n whether o r not the transfere e qualifie s for a waiver. A transferee wh o qualifies for the waiver does not have th e option o f paying the maintenance fee .

IBL A at 291 . Th e Board held that because the claimant s qualifie d fo r the small miner waiver, they did "not have th e optio n o f paying the maintenanc e fees " pursuant t o 43 C.F.R . § 3835.20(b).

Under the term s o f § 3835.20(a), there was a n obligatio n to complete th e assessment work requirement s an d fil e a n Affidavi t b y December 30 , 2012, for the 2012 assessment year. A s the Boar d emphasized i n Sieglitz, "th e requiremen t to fil e an affidavi t o f assessment work i s taken fro m th e assessment work requirement of section 314(a) o f FLPMA, not the maintenanc e fe e waive r requirement o f 30 U.S.C. § 28f(d ) (2000), " and "[f]ailur e t o fil e a n affidavi t o f assessment work i s a violation of the FLPM A requirement, an d no t the 3 0 U.S.C. § 28(d) (2000 ) waiver requirement, an d result s i n abandonment o f the clai m under sectio n of FLPMA." See also Dan Adelmann, 16 9 IBL A at 16-17 .

We conclude tha t BL M properly declared th e subjec t claim s abandoned an d void because no Affidavi t wa s file d b y December 30 , 2012, for the 201 2 assessment year.

Therefore, pursuan t t o the authorit y delegated t o the Boar d of Land Appeals by the Secretar y o f the Interior , 43 C.F.R . § 4.1, the decisio n is affirmed an d th e petition fo r a stay is denied a s moot .

I concur :