(a) The governor or other authorized official of any State which contains Federal oil and gas leases, or Indian oil and gas leases where the Indian tribe and allottees have given the State an affirmative indication of their desire for the State to undertake certain royalty management-related activities on their lands, may petition the Secretary to assume responsibilities to conduct audits and related investigations of royalty related matters affecting Federal or Indian oil and gas leases within the State.

(b) A State may enter into a delegation of authority under this part without affecting a State's ability to enter into a cooperative agreement under part 228 of this title.

(c) The Secretary shall carry out all factfinding and hearings he may decide are necessary in order to approve or disapprove the petition.

(d) In the event that the Secretary denies the petition, the Secretary must provide the State with the specific reasons for denial of the petition. The State will then have 60 days to either contest or correct specific deficiencies and to reapply for a delegation of authority.

[49 FR 37350, Sept. 21, 1984. Redesignated and amended at 49 FR 40025, Oct. 12, 1984]