[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 130 (Friday, July 7, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38657-38658]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-10669]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of the Secretary


Notice of Proposed Information Collection

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Office of Budget, Department of the 
Interior.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of Budget, Office of the Secretary, 
Department of the Interior (DOI), announces the proposed extension of a 
public information collection required by the Payments in Lieu of Taxes 
(PILT) Act, and that it is seeking comments on its provisions. After 
public review, the Office of Budget will submit the information 
collection to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and 
approval.

DATES: Consideration will be given to all comments received by 
September 5, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations on the proposed 
information collection should be sent to the Office of Budget, Attn: 
William Howell, Department of the Interior, MS 4116 MIB, 1849 C St., 
NW., Washington, DC 20240. Individuals providing comments should 
reference OMB control 1093-0005, ``Payments in Lieu of Taxes 
(PILT Act), Statement of Federal Land Payments, (43 CFR 44).''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on this 
proposed information collection or to obtain a copy of the proposal and 
associated collection instrument, please write to the above address, or 
call William Howell, (202) 208-3157.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at 5 CFR part 
1320, which implement the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-
13), require that interested members of the public and affected 
agencies have an opportunity to comment on information collection and 
recordkeeping activities (see 5 CFR 1320.8 (d)). This notice identifies 
an information collection activity that the Office of Budget is 
planning to submit to OMB for extension or re-approval.
    Public Law 97-258 (31 U.S.C. 6901-6907), as amended, the Payment in 
Lieu of Taxes (PILT) Act, was designed by Congress to help local 
governments recover some of the expenses they incur in providing 
services on public lands. These local governments receive funds under 
various Federal land payment programs such as the National Forest 
Revenue Act, the Mineral Lands Leasing Act, and the Taylor Grazing Act. 
PILT payments supplement the payments that local governments receive 
under these other programs.
    The PILT Act requires that the Governor of each State furnish the 
Department of the Interior with a listing of payments disbursed to 
local governments by the States on behalf of the Federal Government 
under 12 statutes described in Section 4 of the Act (31 U.S.C. 6903). 
The Department of the Interior uses the amounts reported by the States 
to reduce PILT payments to units of general local governments from that 
which they might otherwise receive. If such listings were not furnished 
by the Governor of each affected State, the Department would not be 
able to compute the PILT payments to units of general local government 
within the States in question.
    The information collection supporting the PILT Act was initially 
administered by the Bureau of Land Management, within the Department of 
the Interior, as ``Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT Act), Statement of 
Federal Land Payments, (43 CFR 1881),'' OMB control 1004-0109. 
However, in fiscal year 2004, administrative authority for the PILT 
program was transferred from the Bureau of Land Management to the 
Office of Budget within the Office of the Secretary of the Department 
of the Interior. Applicable DOI regulations pertaining to the PILT 
program to be administered by the Office of the Secretary were 
published as a final rule in the Federal Register on December 7, 2004. 
Recently, the Office of Budget, within the Office of the Secretary, 
requested emergency approval of the information collection as 
``Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT Act), Statement of Federal land 
Payments, (43 CFR 44).'' OMB approved the information collection under 
control  1093-0005. The Office of Budget, Office of the 
Secretary is now planning to extend the information collection approval 
for the standard three years in order to enable the Department of the 
Interior to continue to comply with the PILT Act.

II. Data

    (1) Title: Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT Act), Statement of 
Federal Land Payments, (43 CFR 44).
    OMB Control Number: 1093-0005.
    Current Expiration Date: 11/30/2006.
    Type of Review: Information Collection: Renewal.
    Affected Entities: State, local, or tribal government.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 50.
    Frequency of response: Annual.
    (2) Annual reporting and recordkeeping burden:
    Total annual reporting per respondent: 20 hours.
    Total annual reporting: 1000 hours.
    (3) Description of the need and use of the information: The 
statutorily-required information is needed to compute payments due 
units of general local government under the PILT Act (31 U.S.C. 6901-
6907). The Act requires that the Governor of each State furnish a 
statement as to amounts paid to units of general local government under 
12 revenue-sharing statutes in the prior fiscal year.

III. Request for Comments

    The Department of the Interior invites comments 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 agency's estimate of the burden of the 
collection and 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

[[Page 38658]]

to generate, maintain, retain, 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.
    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: June 28, 2006.
Pam Haze,
Co-Director, Office of Budget, Office of the Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E6-10669 Filed 7-6-06; 8:45 am]
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