[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 41 (Tuesday, March 3, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Page 11467]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-04308]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs

[DR5B211IA000715]


Notice of Deadline for Submitting Completed Applications To Begin 
Participation in the Tribal Self-Governance Program in Fiscal Year 2016 
or Calendar Year 2016

AGENCY: Office of Self-Governance, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of application deadline.

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SUMMARY: In this notice, the Office of Self-Governance (OSG) 
establishes a March 20, 2015, deadline for Indian tribes/consortia to 
submit completed applications to begin participation in the tribal 
self-governance program in Fiscal Year 2016 or Calendar Year 2016.

DATES: Completed application packages must be received by the Director, 
Office of Self-Governance, by March 20, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Application packages for inclusion in the applicant pool 
should be sent to Sharee M. Freeman, Director, Office of Self-
Governance, Department of the Interior, Mail Stop 355-G-SIB, 1951 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Kenneth D. Reinfeld, Office of 
Self-Governance, telephone (703) 390-6551.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Tribal Self-Governance Act of 1994 
(Pub. L. 103-413) (Act), as amended by the Fiscal Year 1997 Omnibus 
Appropriations Bill (Pub. L. 104-208) and section 1000.15(a) of Title 
25 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the Director, Office of Self-
Governance may select up to 50 additional participating tribes/
consortia per year for the tribal self-governance program and negotiate 
and enter into a written funding agreement with each participating 
tribe. The Act mandates that the Secretary of the Interior submit 
copies of the funding agreements at least 90 days before the proposed 
effective date to the appropriate committees of the Congress and to 
each tribe that is served by the Bureau of Indian Affairs' agency that 
is serving the tribe that is a party to the funding agreement. Initial 
negotiations with a tribe/consortium located in a region and/or agency 
which has not previously been involved with self-governance 
negotiations will take approximately 2 months from start to finish. 
Agreements for an October 1 to September 30 funding year need to be 
signed and submitted by July 1. Agreements for a January 1 to December 
31 funding year need to be signed and submitted by October 1.

Purpose of Notice

    The regulations at 25 CFR 1000.10 to 1000.31 will be used to govern 
the application and selection process for tribes/consortia to begin 
their participation in the tribal self-governance program in Fiscal 
Year 2016 and Calendar Year 2016. Applicants should be guided by the 
requirements in these subparts in preparing their applications. Copies 
of these subparts may be obtained from the information contact person 
identified in this notice.
    Tribes/consortia wishing to be considered for participation in the 
tribal self-governance program in fiscal year 2016 or calendar year 
2016 must respond to this notice, except for those tribes/consortia 
which are: (1) Currently involved in negotiations with the Department 
of the Interior (Interior); or (2) one of the 114 tribal entities with 
signed agreements.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

    Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), as implemented by 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 5 CFR 1320, a person is 
not required to respond to a collection of information by a Federal 
agency unless the collection displays a valid OMB control number. The 
application and reporting requirements related to this program are 
considered to be a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the PRA. These submissions are required to obtain and/
or retain a benefit. OMB has approved the information collections 
related to this program and has assigned control number 1076-0143, 
Tribal Self-Governance Program, which expires January 31, 2016. We 
estimate the annual burden associated with this collection to average 
55 hours per respondent. This includes the time for reviewing 
instructions, gathering, and submitting the information to the 
Department. Comments regarding the burden or other aspects of this 
information collection may be directed to: Information Collection 
Officer, Office of Regulatory Affairs & Collaborative Action--Indian 
Affairs, 1849 C Street NW., MS-3642-MIB, Washington, DC 20240.

    Dated: February 20, 2015.
Kevin K. Washburn,
Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2015-04308 Filed 3-2-15; 8:45 am]
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