[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 10 (Friday, January 15, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2232-2233]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00713]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-NER-19995, PPNEHATUC0, PPMRSCR1Y.CU0000 (166)]


Proposed Information Collection; National Underground Railroad 
Network to Freedom Program

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We (National Park Service) will ask the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) to approve the information collection described below. 
As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and as part of our 
continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, we invite 
the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity 
to comment on this IC. This IC is scheduled to expire on July 31, 2016. 
We may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond 
to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control 
number.

DATES: To ensure we are able to consider your comments, we must receive 
them on or before March 15, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Please send your comments on the ICR to Madonna L. Baucum, 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, National Park Service, 12201 
Sunrise Valley Drive, Room 2C114, Mail Stop 242, Reston, VA 20192 
(mail); or [email protected] (email). Please reference OMB Control 
Number ``1024-0232, NPS National Underground Railroad Network to 
Freedom'' in the subject line of your comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Diane Miller, National Manager, 
National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program, National Park 
Service, c/o Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, 2145 Key Wallace 
Drive, Cambridge, Maryland 21613; or via email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    Public Law 105-203 (National Underground Railroad Network to 
Freedom Act of 1998) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to 
establish the Network to Freedom (Network). The Network is a collection 
of sites, facilities, and programs, both governmental and 
nongovernmental, around the United States. All entities must have a 
verifiable association with the historic Underground Railroad movement. 
The National Park Service administers the National Underground Railroad 
Network to Freedom Program. The program coordinates preservation and 
education efforts Nationwide and integrates local historical places, 
museums, and interpretive programs associated with the Underground 
Railroad into a mosaic of community, regional, and national stories.
    Individuals; businesses; organizations; State, tribal and local 
governments; and Federal agencies that want to join the Network must 
complete an application form. The application and instructions are 
available on our Web site at http://www.nps.gov/subjects/ugrr/index.htm. Respondents must (1) verify associations and characteristics 
through descriptive texts that are the result of historical research 
and (2) submit supporting documentation; e.g., copies of rare 
documents, photographs, and maps. Much of the information is submitted 
in electronic format and used to determine eligibility to become part 
of the Network.
    Upon approval by OMB of this extension request, the NPS will begin 
developing a HTML version of the 10-946, ``National Park Service 
National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Application Form'' on 
the Department of the Interior's Enterprise Forms System (EFS) Web 
site. The EFS will consolidate all internal forms used by the 
Department and external forms used by the public into a centralized 
automated forms program. This will

[[Page 2233]]

increase efficiency and responsiveness through the centralization and 
automation of all Departmental forms. In addition, the forms process 
will be modernized through the implementation of a completely digital 
workflow, the integration of digital and electronic signatures, and the 
ability to utilize real-time workflow through the use of unified 
messaging.
    One of the principal components of the Network to Freedom Program 
is to validate the efforts of local and regional organizations, and to 
make it easier for them to share expertise and communicate with us and 
each other. The vehicle through which this can happen is for these 
local entities to become Network Partners. Partners of the Network to 
Freedom Program work alongside and often in cooperation with us to 
fulfill the program's mission. Prospective partners must submit a 
letter with the following information:
     Name and address of the agency, company or organization;
     Name, address, and phone, fax, and email information of 
principal contact;
     Abstract not to exceed 200 words describing the partner's 
activity or mission statement; and
     Brief description of the entity's association to the 
Underground Railroad.

II. Data

    OMB Number: 1024-0232.
    Title: National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program.
    Form(s): NPS Form 10-946, ``National Park Service National 
Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Application Form''.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection of 
information.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals; businesses; nonprofit 
organizations; and Federal, State, tribal, and local governments.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion.

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                                                                                    Completion
                                                     Number of       Number of       time per      Total annual
                    Activity                        respondents      responses       response      burden hours
                                                                                      (hours)
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Network Applications............................              35              35              25             875
Partner Requests................................               2               2              .5               1
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals......................................              37              37              26             876
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    Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: None.

III. Comments

    We 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 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 to respondents, including use 
of automated information techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Please note that the comments submitted in response to this notice 
are a matter of public record. We will include or summarize each 
comment in our request to OMB to approve this IC. 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 us in your comment to 
withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we 
cannot guarantee that it will be done.

    Dated: January 11, 2016.
Madonna L. Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, National Park Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-00713 Filed 1-14-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-EH-P