Final-phase replacing Legacy Rehost 2000 remaining modules and first- phase replacing certain Alaska Land Information System case types with the Mineral and Lands Records System

United States Department of the Interior
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
National Headquarters
Washington, DC 20240
https://www.blm.gov

June 26, 2023

In Reply Refer To:

1600/1700/1800/2000/2100/2200/2300/2400/2500/2600/2700/2800/2900/3250/3400/3500/3600/3700/3800/4100/5500/6500/8100/8200/8300/8500/9100/9200 (HQ-850) P

EMS TRANSMISSION 06/28/2023
Instruction Memorandum No. 2023-049
Expires:  09/30/2025

To:                  All Field Office Officials

From:              Assistant Director, Energy, Minerals and Realty Management 

Subject:           Final-phase replacing Legacy Rehost 2000 remaining modules and first-phase replacing certain Alaska Land Information System case types with the Mineral and Lands Records System

Program Area:  Land Use Authorizations and Realty Billing, Land Tenure, Solid Minerals, Trespass, Fluid Minerals (Geothermal Utilizations)

Purpose:  This Instruction Memorandum (IM) sets the implementation date of June 26, 2023, for the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Mineral and Lands Records System (MLRS) to replace the Legacy Rehost 2000 (LR2000) Case Recordation module component, Alaska Land Information System (ALIS) components for Land Use Authorizations and Billable Cases for Groups 2800 and 2900, Lands and Realty Authorizations Module (LRAM), Communication Site Rental Calculation System (CSRC), Serial Number Automation Module (SNAM), and the Bond and Surety System (BSS).  This IM also sets the implementation date of July 3, 2023, for MLRS to replace the LR2000 Status module.

MLRS is a customer-centric, spatially enabled Land Information System that employs nationally standardized business processes.  The MLRS platform included enforceable business rules to maintain improved land and mineral records and data and which prescribe varying access levels to land records and bond information as appropriate to BLM employees, external customers, and public users.  MLRS Release 3 will enhance workflow productivity, reduce BLM’s operational costs, and provide a stable, adaptable, and reliable platform.

Administrative or Mission Related:  Mission.

Policy/Action:  Beginning on June 26, 2023, all affected BLM officials and employees are instructed to use MLRS to create new or modify migrated case information.  June 9, 2023, was the last day to enter and modify data in LR2000 Status.  June 16, 2023, was the last day to enter and modify data in LR2000 Case Recordation, LRAM, CSRC, SNAM, BSS, and ALIS case groups 2800 and 2900.

External customers and public users may access the MLRS website for more information.

Timeframe:  MLRS Release 3 (R3) phases out remaining cases in LR2000 Case Recordation, Status, SNAM, LRAM, CSRC, BSS, and ALIS case groups 2800 and 2900.

1. Data Freeze: [TIME-SENSITIVE].  LR2000 Status data were frozen at 5:00 pm PT on June 9, 2023.  [TJC1] [WME2] All remaining LR2000 data in Case Recordation, LRAM, CSRC, SNAM, BSS, and ALIS case groups 2800 and 2900 were frozen at 5:00 pm PT on June 16, 2023.  All data were frozen in place and users’ data entry has been paused while data is migrated.  Case types include:

• LR2000 Case Recordation and Status Case Groups:
  • Land Tenure and Land Use Authorizations case groups 00xx, 16xx, 17xx, 18xx, 20xx through 29xx
  • Contested case group 39xx
  • Free Use Timber case group 55xx
  • Sikes Act case group 65xx
  • Cultural case group 81xx
  • Recreation case groups 82xx, 83xx, 85xx
  • Cadastral case group 91xx
  • Geothermal Utilization case type 325060
  • Solid Minerals case groups 34xx through 38xx
  • Trespass and Unauthorized case groups 41xx and 92xx
• ALIS Case Groups:
  • Rights-of-way and Leases/Permits case groups 28xx and 29xx only.

2. Data Migration: [TIME-SENSITIVE] Data migration for data in LR2000 Case Recordation, LRAM, CSRC, SNAM, BSS, and ALIS began at 5:00 pm PT on June 16, 2023 and is expected to be completed no later than June 23, 2023.  LR2000 Status data will be migrated beginning on June 27, 2023, completing before July 3, 2023.

3. MLRS Outage: Beginning at 5:00 pm PT on June 16, 2023, MLRS was taken offline and is expected to become available at 8:00 am MT on June 26, 2023. During this time, MLRS will be unavailable to all internal users and external customers until the data migration is complete.
    
4. Payments:  All monies collected during data migration for LR2000, LRAM, CSRC and ALIS case groups 28 and 29 must be deposited into Suspense in CBS. Monies collected during this time will need to be transferred in CBS from Suspense to the appropriate program from June 26, 2023, through June 29, 2023, to ensure proper 3rd quarter financial reporting.

5. MLRS Account User Login:  New BLM internal users will need to submit a Remedy Ticket for an MLRS account using the BLM’s National Help Desk Remedy.  Once appropriate training in MLRS has been completed and the user is approved for access to the BLM User Console, access roles and permissions will be created by User Support Specialists at the BLM National Help Desk.

6. Permissions/Security:  The MLRS application uses DOI Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS) accounts for internal users (BLM employees/contractors), and the user credentials are verified through the ADFS single sign-on flow each time the user signs in. BLM users will be granted roles and permissions to MLRS for specific program areas. The User Support Specialist will receive the MLRS access ticket and assign specific roles and permissions for access within MLRS.

7. Public Room Access:  A common technology footprint has been established within the BLM’s State Office public rooms that includes two computers for public access to MLRS. Access to specific internal BLM and DOI websites have been approved and are available for use from the public room computers. State Offices will need to provide printers with scanning capability to support in-person MLRS customers with document printing and scanning.
    
8. Public Help Desk:  The BLM Public Help Desk has been modified to include MLRS instructions and will be monitored and adapted to triage application issues as well as to resolve external customer support problems.
    
9. Training:  Training commenced with ‘Train-the-Trainer’ sessions and computer-based training for BLM users on June 5, 2023. Instructor led training sessions for specific MLRS modules began June 5, 2023 and will continue through June 23, 2023.

10. Hard (Physical) Copy Case Files:  The MLRS database can create and maintain electronic case files or records; however, the BLM will continue to maintain the BLM’s paper filing system in tandem with the MLRS system until complete electronic integration can be achieved. State and Field Offices may scan and upload new documents to the MLRS for access by remote staff. However, all case information must continue to be placed in the official paper case file in accordance with BLM MS-1274 Serialized Case File System guidance, until such time MLRS is recognized by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) as an official electronic records management system.

11. File Naming Conventions:  Files uploaded to MLRS will be named to include the date filed (e.g., YYYYMMDD or 20220926) and the type of document (e.g., Assignment). As an example, an assignment of Land Use Authorizations filed on September 26, 2022, will be named 20220926_Assignment.
    
    MLRS will default all uploaded files to “customer access-enabled” status, which makes the file publicly available. The internal BLM MLRS user will need to disable customer access for any files submitted and marked as having proprietary or confidential information, or documents such as those including protected information regarding Indian mineral leases. 
     
12. Change in Serial Number Format:  The MLRS application will generate serial numbers for both new and existing cases migrated from LR2000 Case Recordation and ALIS. Serial number modernization standardizes serial number policy nationwide, future-proofs BLM’s numbering system, and simplifies the user experience with serial numbers. The new MLRS serial number format will contain a two-character alphabetic abbreviation for geographic state, a two-character alphabetic abbreviation for the corresponding administrative State Office, and sequential nine-digit number that forms a system unique identifier within MLRS.  Cases migrated from LR2000 Case Recordation and ALIS with existing “legacy” case serial numbers will retain the former serial number in MLRS, as a searchable field, but will be assigned a new standardized serial number. All new cases must conform to the new serial number format. MLRS will use the new serial number standard to maintain links between related cases. MLRS generated serial numbers are unique to each case, are not repeated from state to state, and must not contain embedded prefixes, spaces, or suffixes.

Cases migrated from LR2000 Status with legacy case serial numbers will retain the legacy serial number in both the MLRS serial number field and the legacy serial number field.  If modifications to a legacy Status case are made, a new MLRS serial number will be assigned in the MLRS serial number field.  The legacy serial number will be retained only in the legacy serial number field after a legacy case is modified.

All correspondence and decisions shall inform the customer of the new MLRS serial number as well as the legacy serial number for existing cases. Any correspondence, payments, case actions, or applications for changes for legacy cases that reference the legacy serial number should not be denied or returned for this reason. In the field, legacy serial numbers posted on signage, such as well signs, will not need to be changed due to the serial number change, however, new signage should reflect the new serial number.

The office of record for new MLRS cases must continue to file paper documents, and records managers will add a note on the front of the legacy physical case file with the new MLRS assigned case serial number and any related case serial number(s). Serial Register Pages will reflect both the newly assigned MLRS case serial number and the legacy case serial number for cases migrated from LR2000 and ALIS.  Serial Register Pages for newly created cases will only have a newly assigned MLRS serial number. MLRS will not generate a legacy-style case serial number for those cases created in MLRS.

Example:  ARES123456789 is a sample MLRS-generated case serial number, where AR is the two-character abbreviation for geographic state Arkansas; ES is the two-character administrative state abbreviation for the BLM Eastern States Office; it is followed by the nine (9) digit system unique identifier.

Budget Impact:  The application of this policy will have minimal budget impact for documenting MLRS case information; the same is true for using MLRS versus using the legacy LR2000, ALIS, and BSS applications. The BLM anticipates a workload reduction by having customers monitor the status of their filings so there can be near real-time communication between customers and BLM regarding any issues with their filings, and by asking customers to update their own address.

Background:  This IM supports the administration’s priorities by accelerating responsible development of renewable energy on public lands. Applications for wind and solar energy projects may be processed and authorized as rights-of-way under Title V of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended, and Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 43, Part 2800. Wind and solar projects are authorized under right-of-way leases within designated leasing areas and are authorized under right-of-way grants in areas outside of designated leasing areas. Geothermal energy projects are processed under the Geothermal Steam Act, as amended and CFR Title 43, Part 3200, and are authorized under leases and permits. LR2000 and ALIS provide information on BLM land and mineral programs for oil, gas, and geothermal leasing, rights-of-way, coal and other mineral development, land status and mineral title, withdrawals, landscape planning classifications, applications for permits, use authorizations and other actions on Federal lands or on Federal mineral estate outside of Alaska.

 The LR2000 Case Recordation and BSS databases contain information on Land Use Authorizations and Billable Cases located on Federal lands within the lower 48 states. The ALIS system contains Land Use Authorizations and Billable Cases information located on Federal lands within Alaska. It is the objective of the BLM to enter and maintain data in a standardized manner to achieve high quality Rights-of-Way, Land Use Authorizations, and bonding data. The importance of accurate, timely, and complete data entry in the MLRS improves communication with others who rely heavily on the information.

The MLRS replaced portions of LR2000 in previous releases 1 and 2:

• Legacy Rehost 2000 (LR2000) Phase Out and Replacement of the Mining Claim Recordation Module and Decommissioning of the Mining Claim Payment Portal | Bureau of Land Management (blm.gov)
• Legacy Rehost 2000 (LR2000) and Bond and Surety System (BSS) Oil & Gas and Geothermal Records Phase Out | Bureau of Land Management (blm.gov)

Manual/ Handbook Sections Affected:  All references to data entry in BLM Manuals and Handbooks for Realty and Minerals programs.

Coordination:   The Division of Fluid Minerals (HQ-310), The Division of Solid Minerals (HQ-320), the National Renewable Energy Coordination Office (HQ-330), the Division of Lands, Realty & Cadastral Survey (HQ-350), and the Directorate of Information Technology (HQ-500).

Contact:  If you have any questions regarding this IM, please contact Dominica VanKoten, Acting Division Chief of Lands, Realty, and Cadastral Survey (HQ-350) at (202) 309-3209 or email address dvankote@blm.gov.

Signed by:                                           Authenticated by:
Benjamin E. Gruber                            Robert M. Williams
Acting, Assistant Director                  Division of Regulatory Affairs and Directives(HQ-630)
Energy, Minerals and Realty
    Management