December 4, 2025 - In a bid to modernize federal coal mining regulation, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) has finalized the repeal of 14 legacy rules, calling them outdated, redundant, or no longer aligned with today’s oversight systems. The regulatory clean-up will soon be published in the Federal Register and is part of a broader strategy to simplify federal mining compliance and shift agency focus to active enforcement and reclamation.

According to OSMRE, the move is expected to reduce administrative burdens and eliminate obsolete language stemming from older funding structures under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA). These repealed regulations primarily covered outdated procedures for abandoned mine lands (AML), as well as duplicative or superseded requirements related to mine subsidence, backfilling, and sedimentation controls.

Director Lanny Erdos noted that the effort is designed to reallocate resources toward meaningful compliance monitoring and land restoration, not to roll back environmental safeguards. “We’re streamlining processes, not weakening oversight,” the agency emphasized in its public statement.

What the Regulatory Rollback Means for Operators and States

For coal operators, the repeal may reduce compliance costs tied to non-active provisions—especially where federal rules conflicted with or duplicated state-level frameworks. With fewer outdated steps to follow, companies could see improved efficiency in permitting, reporting, and funding eligibility—though core environmental performance standards remain untouched.

State and Tribal reclamation programs, which manage much of the country’s AML work, are expected to be among the most impacted. The repealed provisions, drawn from sections of 30 CFR 870 through 887, relate to funding formulas, reporting requirements, and legacy structures that have already been updated or replaced through SMCRA amendments. Their removal should clarify the active regulatory language in use today.

The regulatory cleanup supports broader Interior Department policies under Secretary’s Order 3421, which requires agencies to offset new regulatory costs by removing or modifying unnecessary rules. While environmental groups are likely to continue monitoring for any erosion of oversight, OSMRE insists that the action reinforces—not relaxes—the intent of SMCRA by allowing more targeted enforcement.

Operators navigating workforce shifts, rising reclamation costs, and long-term viability concerns may benefit from the increased predictability of a more current regulatory framework. At the same time, with SMCRA’s core land and water protections untouched, the agency is positioning this rollback as a modernization—not deregulation—of federal mining oversight.