[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 189 (Wednesday, September 30, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58774-58776]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-24653]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-CR-19413; PPBSADA0, PPMPSAS1Y.Y00000 (155)]


Information Collection Request Sent to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for Approval; Nomination of Properties for Listing in 
the National Register of Historic Places

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We (National Park Service, NPS) have sent an Information 
Collection Request (ICR) to OMB for review and approval. We summarize 
the ICR below and describe the nature of the collection and the 
estimated burden and cost. This information collection is scheduled to 
expire on September 30, 2015. We may not conduct or sponsor and a 
person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless 
it displays a currently valid OMB control number. However, under OMB 
regulations, we may continue to conduct or sponsor this information 
collection while it is pending at OMB.

DATES: You must submit comments on or before October 30, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments and suggestions on this information 
collection to the Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior at 
OMB-OIRA at (202) 395-5806 (fax) or [email protected] 
(email). Please provide a copy of your comments to Madonna L. Baucum, 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, National Park Service, 12201 
Sunrise Valley Drive, Room 2C114, Mail Stop 242, Reston, VA 20192; or 
[email protected] (email). Please include ``1024-0018'' in the 
subject line of your comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information 
about this ICR, contact Lisa Deline at [email protected] (email) or 
at 202-354-2239 (telephone). You may review the ICR online at http://www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to review Department of the 
Interior collections under review by OMB.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    The National Register of Historic Places (National Register) is the 
official Federal list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and 
objects significant in American history, architecture, archeology, 
engineering, and culture. National Register properties have 
significance to the history of communities, States, or the Nation. The 
National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 requires the Secretary of 
the Interior to maintain and expand the National Register, and to 
establish criteria and guidelines for including properties on the 
National Register.
    National Register properties must be considered in the planning for 
Federal or federally assisted projects, and listing on the National 
Register is required for eligibility for Federal rehabilitation tax 
incentives. Listing on the National Register provides formal 
recognition of a property's historical, architectural, or archeological 
significance based on national standards used by every State. The 
listing places no obligations on private property owners, and there are 
no restrictions on the use, treatment, transfer, or disposition of 
private property.
    The National Park Service administers the National Register. 
Nominations

[[Page 58775]]

listing historic properties come from State Historic Preservation 
Officers, from Federal Preservation Officers for properties owned or 
controlled by the United States Government, and from Tribal Historic 
Preservation Officers, for properties on tribal lands. Regulations at 
36 CFR parts 60 and 63 establish the criteria and guidelines for 
listing and for determining the eligibility of properties. We use three 
forms for nominating properties and providing documentation for the 
proposed listings:
     NPS Form 10-900 (National Register of Historic Places 
Registration Form).
     NPS Form 10-900-a (National Register of Historic Places 
Continuation Sheet).
     NPS Form 10-900-b (National Register of Historic Places 
Multiple Property Documentation Form).
    These forms and supporting documentation go to the Historic 
Preservation Office where the property is located. The State Historic 
Preservation Officer, Federal Preservation Officer, or Tribal Historic 
Preservation Officer can take one of several options:
     Reject the property.
     Ask for more information.
     In the case of the State Historic Preservation Officer, 
list the property just with the State.
     Send the forms to NPS for listing on the National 
Register.
    Once we receive the forms, we conduct a similar review process to 
determine eligibility for listing on the National Register.

Comments Received and Our Responses

    On January 28, 2015, we published in the Federal Register (80 FR 
4589) a notice of our intent to request that OMB approve the collection 
of information associated with nominations of properties for inclusion 
in the National Register of Historic properties. We did not receive any 
comments in response to that notice.
    We published an amended notice on June 26, 2015 (80 FR 36845). The 
amended notice extended the comment date and provided the public with 
more detailed information about the five types of package submissions 
that we receive along with additional information on the respective 
burden estimates. We solicited comments for 60 days ending on August 
25, 2015. We received comments from nine States:
    Comment: Four States provided clarifications on the State burden 
estimates published in the amended notice, but did not provide any 
additional comments regarding the collection of information.
    Response: We have considered and included, as appropriate, the 
information provided in our burden estimates.
    Comment: One State responded that the collection of information was 
essential to meet the mandates of the National Historic Preservation 
Act. The State acknowledged the burden estimates for their State were 
accurate and added that there is a wide variation between response 
times from an individual compared to an experienced consultant. It was 
suggested that the NPS redesign the NR form so that it takes up fewer 
pages and to fix the ``quirks'' of the existing form. Finally, the 
State felt the burden could not be reduced unless additional funding is 
provided to the State Historic Preservation Offices to hire additional 
staff.
    Response: The forms are provided as Word templates, which allow for 
rolling text from one page to the next. Some respondents choose not to 
fill out NPS Form 10-900 completely and simply place most documentation 
on NPS Form 10-900-a. Blank spaces may be deleted so there are fewer 
pages. The current forms allow for this flexibility. The current and 
projected out-year funding levels do not support the possibility of 
hiring additional staff or increasing the operating budget for the 
program. However, hiring additional staff would not reduce the burden, 
only spread it out among a larger staff.
    Comment: One State commented that a category for State Historic 
Preservation Offices that prepare NR nominations should have been 
included in the burden estimates.
    Response: We agree and have included the burden in this ICR.
    Comment: One State commented that the information collected is 
adequate and useful and would not recommend any changes to what is 
requested. The State believes that providing workshops and further 
guidance would help respondents to more fully understand the 
requirements. The State also commented that it would be difficult to 
reduce the burden because most States are concerned with local 
administration of the Federal tax program and incentives are tied to 
being listed on the National Register.
    Response: We agree. The NR Program provides easily accessibly 
guidance online via the National Register Bulletins and webinars that 
are posted on the NR Web site, as well as offering yearly workshops to 
assist with the documentation process.
    Comment: One State commented that the collection of information was 
neither necessary nor useful and had no practical utility in the 
nomination of properties.
    Response: We disagree. The information we collect is necessary to 
properly identify, evaluate, and protect properties nominated to the 
National Register of Historic Places.

II. Data

    OMB Control Number: 1024-0018.
    Title: Nomination of Properties for Listing in the National 
Register of Historic Places, 36 CFR 60 and 63.
    Service Form Number(s): 10-900, 10-900-a, and 10-900-b.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals; businesses; organizations; 
and State, local, and tribal local governments.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion.

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                                                                     Number of      Completion
                    Activity                         Number of        annual         time per      Total annual
                                                    respondents      responses       response      burden hours
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Preparation and Submission of Nomination Forms..             100             100             250          25,000
Historic Preservation Office Review of                       100           1,282               6           7,692
 Nomination Forms...............................
Individual Nominations \1\......................  ..............             635  ..............               0
District Nominations \1\........................  ..............             435  ..............               0
Nominations Submitted under Existing MPS Covers   ..............              75  ..............               0
 \1\............................................
New Proposed MPS Cover Documents \1\............  ..............              36  ..............               0
New Nominations.................................  ..............               1  ..............               0
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals......................................             200           2,564  ..............          32,692
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Prepared by consultants.


[[Page 58776]]

    Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: $19,398,000 for consultant 
costs for preparing nominations.

III. Comments

    We again invite comments concerning this information collection on:
     Whether or not the collection of information is necessary, 
including whether or not the information will have practical utility;
     The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this 
collection of information;
     Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
     Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. Before including your address, phone number, email 
address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you 
should be aware that your entire comment, including your personal 
identifying information, may be made publicly available at any time. 
While you can ask OMB in your comment to withhold your personal 
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that it 
will be done.

    Dated: September 23, 2015.
Madonna L. Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, National Park Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-24653 Filed 9-29-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-EH-P