ABSTRACT
The Constitution of the United States specified the powers of the national government and reserved all other powers to the states or the people. Local governments in the United States, being subdivisions of the states or organized as "home rule" entities under provisions of state constitutions, exercise powers of the state, not the national government. In the United States, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) has national responsibility for regulating environmental effects of surface mining pursuant to the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. The regulatory authority distributes a copy of the permit application to internal offices and to other appropriate government agencies for review. Communication and participation between the permitting and inspection staffs of the regulatory authority are important. If the regulatory authority is OSM, it must meet environmental assessment requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act concurrent with performing the technical review.
