[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 33 (Wednesday, February 19, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7469-7470]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-4001]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR


Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment 
Request

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces that the Information Collection Request 
for the Housing Assistance Application requires renewal. The proposed 
information collection requirement, with no appreciable changes, 
described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, Public Law 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A). The Bureau is 
soliciting public comments on the subject proposal.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before April 21, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments 
regarding this proposal. Comments should refer to the proposal by name 
and/or OMB Control Number and should be sent to June Henkel, Bureau of 
Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, NW, MS-4603-
MIB, Washington, D.C. 20240.
    All written comments will be available for public inspection in 
Room 4603 of the Main Interior Building, 1849 C Street, NW, Washington, 
D.C. from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 
legal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instructions should be directed to 
June Henkel, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior, 1849 
C Street, NW, MS-4603, Washington, D.C. 20240, and 202/208-3667. (This 
is not a toll-free number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The information collection is needed to establish whether an 
applicant is eligible to receive services under the Housing Improvement 
Program (HIP) and to establish the priority order in which eligible 
applicants may receive services under the program.

II. Method of Collection

    The housing regulations at 25 CFR Part 256 contain the program 
eligibility and selection criteria (Sec. 256.6, .7) which prospective 
applicants seeking program services must demonstrate that they meet. 
Information collected from applicants under these regulations provides 
eligibility and selection data used by the local servicing housing 
office to establish whether an applicant is eligible to receive 
services under the program and in what priority order the applicants 
are eligible to receive services. The local servicing housing office 
may be a tribal housing office under a Public Law 93-638, Indian Self-
Determination contract or a Self-Governance annual funding agreement, 
or the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Additionally, the data is used by the 
Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs to establish whether a request for 
waiver of a specific housing regulation is in the best interest of the 
applicant and the Federal government.

[[Page 7470]]

III. Data

    (1) Title of the Collection of Information: Department of the 
Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Housing Assistance Application.
    OMB Number: 1076-0084.
    Expiration Date: February 28, 1997.
    Type of Review: Renewal of a currently approved information 
collection.
    (2) Summary of the Collection of Information: The collection of 
information provides pertinent data concerning an applicant's 
eligibility to receive services under the Housing Improvement Program 
and includes:
    A. Applicant Information including: Name, Current Address, 
Telephone Number, Date of Birth, Social Security Number, Tribe, Roll 
Number, Marital Status, Name of Spouse, Date of Birth (of spouse), 
Social Security Number (of spouse), Tribe (of spouse), and Roll Number 
(of spouse).
    B. Family Information including: Name, Date of Birth, Social 
Security Number, Relationship to Applicant, and Tribe/Roll Number.
    C. Income Information including: Earned and Unearned Income.
    D. Housing Information including: Location of the house to be 
repaired, constructed or purchased; Description of housing assistance 
for which applying; Knowledge of receipt of prior Housing Improvement 
Program assistance, amount, to whom and when; Ownership or rental; 
Availability of electricity and name of electric company; Type of sewer 
system; Water source; Number of bedrooms; Size of house; and, Bathroom 
facilities.
    E. Land Information including: land owner; legal status of land; 
or, type of interest in land.
    F. General Information including: Prior receipt of services under 
the Housing Improvement Program and description of such; Ownership of 
other housing and description of such, Identification of Housing and 
Urban Development (HUD) funded house and current status of project; 
Identification of other sources of housing assistance for which the 
applicant has applied and been denied assistance if applying for a new 
housing unit or purchase of an existing standard unit; and, advisement 
and description of any severe health problem, handicap or permanent 
disability.
    G. Applicant Certification including: Signature of Applicant and 
Date, and Signature of Spouse and Date.
    (3) Description of the need for the information and proposed use of 
the information: Submission of this information is required in order to 
receive services under the Housing Improvement Program. The information 
is collected to determine applicant eligibility for services and 
applicant priority order to receive services under the program.
    (4) Description of likely respondents, including the estimated 
number of likely respondents, and proposed frequency of response to the 
collection of information: Description of likely respondents: 
Individual members of Indian tribes who are living on or near a 
tribally, or by law, defined service area.
    Estimated number of respondents: 3,500.
    Proposed frequency of response: Annually or less frequently, 
depending on length of waiting list, funding availability and dynamics 
of service population.
    (5) Estimate of total annual reporting and record keeping burden 
that will result from the collection of information:
    Estimated time per application: The reporting burden for this 
application is estimated to average \1/2\ hour per response, including 
the time for reviewing the instructions, gathering and maintaining the 
data, and completing and reviewing the form.
    Estimated total Annual Burden Hours: 1750 hours.
    Estimated total Record Keeping Burden: 1300 hours.
    Estimated Annual Record Keeping Costs: $52,000 (1300 hours x $40.00 
per hour).

IV. Request for Comments

    The Department of the Interior invites comment on:
    (a) Whether the collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether 
the information will have practical utility;
    (b) the accuracy of the agencies'' estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information, 
including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
    (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and,
    (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.
    Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources 
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 
provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time 
needed to review instructions; to develop, acquire, install and utilize 
technology and systems for the purpose of collecting, validating, and 
verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and 
disclosing and providing information; to train personnel and to be able 
to respond to a collection of information, to search data sources, to 
complete and review the collection of information; and to transmit or 
otherwise disclose the information.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid Office of Management and Budget control number.

    Dated: February 11, 1997.
Ada E. Deer,
Assistant Secretary, Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. 97-4001 Filed 2-18-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-02-P