[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 65 (Wednesday, April 5, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20182-20185]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-06288]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Indian Gaming Commission


Renewals of Information Collections Under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act

AGENCY: National Indian Gaming Commission, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC or Commission) is seeking 
comments on the renewal of information collections. See SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION for the list of activities. These information collections 
expire on June 30, 2023 except for OMB Control Number 3141-0003, which 
expires on May 31, 2023.

DATES: Submit comments on or before June 5, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Comments can be mailed, faxed, or emailed to the attention 
of: Tim Osumi, National Indian Gaming Commission, 1849 C Street NW, MS 
1621, Washington, DC 20240. Comments may be faxed to (202) 632-7066, 
and may be sent electronically to [email protected], subject: PRA renewals.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tim Osumi at (202) 264-0676; fax (202) 
632-7066 (not toll-free numbers).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  We are seeking comments on the renewal of 
information collections for the following activities: (i) compliance 
and enforcement actions under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, as 
authorized by Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number 
3141-0001; (ii) approval of tribal ordinances, and background 
investigation and issuance of licenses, as authorized by OMB Control 
Number 3141-0003; (iii) National Environmental Policy Act submissions, 
as authorized by OMB Control Number 3141-0006; and (iv) issuance to 
tribes of certificates of self-regulation for Class II gaming, as 
authorized by OMB Control Number 3141-0008.

I. Request for Comments

    You are invited to comment on these collections concerning: (i) 
whether the collections of information are necessary for the proper 
performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the 
information will have practical utility; (ii) the accuracy of the 
agency's estimates of the burdens (including the hours and dollar 
costs) of the proposed collections of information, including the 
validity of the methodologies and assumptions used; (iii) ways to 
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; (iv) ways to minimize the burdens of the information 
collections on those who are to respond, including through the use of 
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other collection 
techniques or forms of information technology. Please note that an 
agency may not conduct or sponsor, and an individual need not respond 
to, a collection of information unless it has a valid OMB Control 
Number.
    It is the Commission's policy to make all comments available to the 
public for review at the location listed in the ADDRESSES section. 
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other 
personally identifiable information (PII) in your comment, you should 
be aware that your entire comment--including your PII--may be made 
publicly available at any time. While you may ask in your comment that 
the Commission withhold your PII from public review, the Commission 
cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so.

II. Data

    Title: Indian Gaming Compliance and Enforcement.
    OMB Control Number: 3141-0001.
    Brief Description of Collection: Although IGRA places primary 
responsibility with the tribes for regulating their gaming activities, 
25 U.S.C. 2706(b) directs the Commission to monitor gaming conducted on 
Indian lands on a continuing basis. Amongst other actions necessary to 
carry out the Commission's statutory duties, the Act authorizes the 
Commission to access and inspect all papers, books, and records 
relating to gross revenues of a gaming operation. The Act also requires 
tribes to provide the Commission with annual independent audits of 
their gaming operations, including audits of all contracts in excess of 
$25,000. 25 U.S.C. 2710(b)(2)(C), (D); 2710(d)(1)(A)(ii). The Act also 
authorizes the Commission to ``promulgate such regulations and 
guidelines as it deems appropriate to implement'' IGRA. 25 U.S.C. 
2706(b)(10). Part 571 of title 25, Code of Federal Regulations, 
implements these statutory requirements.

[[Page 20183]]

    Section 571.7(a) requires Indian gaming operations to keep/maintain 
permanent books of account and records sufficient to establish the 
amount of gross and net income, deductions and expenses, receipts and 
disbursements, and other relevant financial information. Section 
571.7(c) requires that these records be kept for at least five years. 
Under Sec.  571.7(b), the Commission may require a gaming operation to 
submit statements, reports, accountings, and specific records that will 
enable the NIGC to determine whether or not such operation is liable 
for fees payable to the Commission (and in what amount). Section 
571.7(d) requires a gaming operation to keep copies of all enforcement 
actions that a tribe or a state has taken against the operation.
    Section 571.12 requires tribes to prepare comparative financial 
statements covering all financial activities of each class II and class 
III gaming operation on the tribe's Indian lands, and to engage an 
independent certified public accountant to provide an annual audit of 
the financial statements of each gaming operation. Section 571.13 
requires tribes to prepare and submit to the Commission two paper 
copies or one electronic copy of the financial statements and audits, 
together with management letter(s) and other documented auditor 
communications and/or reports as a result of the audit, setting forth 
the results of each fiscal year. The submission must be sent to the 
Commission within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year of each 
gaming operation, including when a gaming operation changes its fiscal 
year or when gaming ceases to operate. Section 571.14 requires tribes 
to reconcile quarterly fee reports with audited financial statements 
and to keep/maintain this information to be available to the NIGC upon 
request in order to facilitate the performance of compliance audits.
    This information collection is mandatory and allows the Commission 
to fulfill its statutory responsibilities under IGRA to regulate gaming 
on Indian lands.
    Respondents: Indian tribal gaming operations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 720.
    Estimated Annual Responses: 1,440.
    Estimated Time per Response: Depending on the type of information 
collection, the range of time can vary from 4 burden hours to 476 
burden hours for one item.
    Frequency of Responses: Depending on the type of information 
collection, it can be quarterly or annually.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours on Respondents: 126,720.
    Estimated Total Non-hour Cost Burden: $38,376,960.
    Title: Approval of Class II and Class III Ordinances, Background 
Investigations, and Gaming Licenses.
    OMB Control Number: 3141-0003.
    Brief Description of Collection: The Act sets standards for the 
regulation of gaming on Indian lands, including requirements for the 
approval or disapproval of tribal gaming ordinances. Specifically, 
Sec.  2705(a)(3) requires the NIGC Chair to review all class II and 
class III tribal gaming ordinances. Section 2710 sets forth the 
specific requirements for the tribal gaming ordinances, including the 
requirement that there be adequate systems in place: to cause 
background investigations to be conducted on individuals in key 
employee and primary management official (PMO) positions (Sec.  
2710(b)(2)(F)(i)); and to provide two prompt notifications to the 
Commission, including one containing the results of the background 
investigations before the issuance of any gaming licenses, and the 
other one of the issuance of such gaming licenses to key employees and 
PMOs (Sec.  2710(b)(2)(F)(ii)). In addition, Sec.  2710(d)(2)(D)(ii) 
requires tribes who have, in their sole discretion, revoked any prior 
class III ordinance or resolution to submit a notice of such revocation 
to the NIGC Chair. The Act also authorizes the Commission to 
``promulgate such regulations and guidelines as it deems appropriate to 
implement'' IGRA. 25 U.S.C. 2706(b)(10). Parts 519, 522, 556, and 558 
of title 25, Code of Federal Regulations, implement these statutory 
requirements.
    Sections 519.1, 522.2(f) and 519.2 require a tribe, management 
contractor, and a tribal operator to designate an agent for service of 
process. Section 522.2(a) requires a tribe to submit a copy of an 
ordinance or resolution certified as authentic, and that meets the 
approval requirements in 25 CFR 522.5(b) or 522.7. Sections 522.11 and 
522.12 require tribes to submit, respectively, an ordinance for the 
licensing of individually owned gaming operations other than those 
operating on September 1, 1986, and for the licensing of individually 
owned gaming operations operating on September 1, 1986. Section 
522.3(a) requires a tribe to submit an amendment to an ordinance or 
resolution within 15 days after adoption of such amendment.
    Section 522.2(b)-(h) requires tribes to submit to the Commission: 
(i) A copy of the procedures to conduct or cause to be conducted 
background investigations on key employees and primary management 
officials and to ensure that key employees and primary management 
officials are notified of their rights under the Privacy Act; (ii) a 
copy of the procedures to issue tribal licenses to primary management 
officials and key employees; (iii) When an ordinance or resolution 
concerns class III gaming, a copy of any approved tribal-state compact 
or class III procedures as prescribed by the Secretary that are in 
effect at the time the ordinance or amendment is passed; (iv) A copy of 
the procedures for resolving disputes between the gaming public and the 
tribe or the management contractor; (v) Identification of the entity 
that will take fingerprints and a copy of the procedures for conducting 
a criminal history check. Such a criminal history check shall include a 
check of criminal history records information maintained by the Federal 
Bureau of Investigation; and (vi) Indian lands or tribal gaming 
regulations or environmental and public health and safety documentation 
that the Chair may request in the Chair's discretion. Section 522.3(a) 
requires a tribe to submit any amendment to these submissions within 15 
days after adoption of such amendment. Section 522.13(a) requires a 
tribe to submit to the Commission a copy of an authentic ordinance 
revocation or resolution.
    Section 556.4 requires tribes to mandate the submission of the 
following information from applicants for key employee and PMO 
positions: (i) full name, other names used (oral or written), social 
security number(s), birth date, place of birth, citizenship, gender, 
all languages (spoken or written); (ii) currently and for the previous 
five years: Business and employment positions held, ownership interests 
in those businesses, business and residence addresses, and driver's 
license numbers; (iii) the names and current addresses of at least 
three personal references; (iv) current business and personal telephone 
numbers; (v) a description of any existing and previous business 
relationships with Indian tribes, including ownership interests in 
those businesses; (vi) a description of any existing and previous 
business relationships with the gaming industry generally, including 
ownership interests in those businesses; (vii) the name and address of 
any licensing or regulatory agency with which the person has filed an 
application for a license or permit related to gaming, whether or not 
such license or permit was granted; (viii) for

[[Page 20184]]

each felony for which there is an ongoing prosecution or a conviction, 
the charge, the name and address of the court involved, and the date 
and disposition if any; (ix) for each misdemeanor conviction or ongoing 
misdemeanor prosecution (excluding minor traffic violations) within 10 
years of the date of the application, the name and address of the court 
involved and the date and disposition; (x) for each criminal charge in 
the past 10 years that is not otherwise listed, the criminal charge, 
the name and address of the court, and the date and disposition; (xi) 
the name and address of any licensing or regulatory agency with which 
the person has filed an application for an occupational license or 
permit, whether or not such license or permit was granted; (xii) a 
photograph; and (xiii) fingerprints. Sections 556.2 and 556.3, 
respectively, require tribes to place a specific Privacy Act notice on 
their key employee and PMO applications, and to warn applicants 
regarding the penalty for false statements by also placing a specific 
false statement notice on their applications.
    Sections 556.6(a) and 558.3(e) require tribes to keep/maintain the 
individuals' complete application files, investigative reports, and 
eligibility determinations during their employment and for at least 
three years after termination of their employment. Section 556.6(b)(1) 
requires tribes to create and maintain an investigative report on each 
background investigation that includes: (i) the steps taken in 
conducting a background investigation; (ii) the results obtained; (iii) 
the conclusions reached; and (iv) the basis for those conclusions. 
Section 556.6(b)(2) requires tribes to submit, no later than 60 days 
after an applicant begins work, a notice of results of the applicant's 
background investigation that includes: (i) the applicant's name, date 
of birth, and Social Security number; (ii) the date on which the 
applicant began or will begin work as a key employee or PMO; (iii) a 
summary of the information presented in the investigative report; and 
(iv) a copy of the eligibility determination.
    Section 558.3(b) requires a tribe to notify the Commission of the 
issuance of PMO and key employee licenses within 30 days after such 
issuance. Section 558.3(d) requires a tribe to notify the Commission if 
the tribe does not issue a license to an applicant, and requires it to 
forward copies of its eligibility determination and notice of results 
to the Commission for inclusion in the Indian Gaming Individuals Record 
System. Section 558.4(e) requires a tribe, after a gaming license 
revocation hearing, to notify the Commission of its decision to revoke 
or reinstate a gaming license within 45 days of receiving notification 
from the Commission that a specific individual in a PMO or key employee 
position is not eligible for continued employment.
    These information collections are mandatory and allow the 
Commission to carry out its statutory duties.
    Respondents: Indian tribal gaming operations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,524.
    Estimated Annual Responses: 225,484.
    Estimated Time per Response: Depending on the type of information 
collection, the range of time can vary from 0.7 burden hour to 23 
burden hours for one item.
    Frequency of Response: Varies.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours on Respondents: 489,089.
    Estimated Total Non-hour Cost Burden: $3,264,177.
    Title: NEPA Compliance.
    OMB Control Number: 3141-0006.
    Brief Description of Collection: The National Environmental Policy 
Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq., and the Council on Environmental 
Quality's (CEQ) implementing regulations, require federal agencies to 
prepare (or cause to be prepared) environmental documents for agency 
actions that may have a significant impact on the environment. Under 
NEPA, an Environmental Assessment (EA) must be prepared when the agency 
action cannot be categorically excluded, or the environmental 
consequences of the agency action will not result in a significant 
impact or the environmental impacts are unclear and need to be further 
defined. An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) must be prepared when 
the agency action will likely result in significant impacts to the 
environment.
    Amongst other actions necessary to carry out the Commission's 
statutory duties, the Act requires the NIGC Chair to review and approve 
third-party management contracts that involve the operation of tribal 
gaming facilities. 25 U.S.C. 2711. The Commission has taken the 
position that the NEPA process is triggered when a tribe and a 
potential contractor seek approval of a management contract. Normally, 
an EA or EIS and its supporting documents are prepared by an 
environmental consulting firm and submitted to the Commission by the 
tribe. In the case of an EA, the Commission independently evaluates the 
NEPA document, verifies its content, and assumes responsibility for the 
accuracy of the information contained therein. In the case of an EIS, 
the Commission directs and is responsible for the preparation of the 
NEPA document, but the tribe or potential contractor is responsible for 
paying for the preparation of the document. The information collected 
includes, but is not limited to, maps, charts, technical studies, 
correspondence from other agencies (federal, tribal, state, and local), 
and comments from the public. These information collections are 
mandatory and allow the Commission to carry out its statutory duties.
    Respondents: Tribal governing bodies, management companies.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 3.
    Estimated Annual Responses: 3.
    Estimated Time per Response: Depending on whether the response is 
an EA or an EIS, the range of time can vary from 2 burden hours to 16.0 
burden hours for one item.
    Frequency of Response: Varies.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours on Respondents: 20.5.
    Estimated Total Non-hour Cost Burden: $494,132.
    Title: Issuance of Certificates of Self-Regulation to Tribes for 
Class II Gaming.
    OMB Control Number: 3141-0008.
    Brief Description of Collection: The Act sets the standards for the 
regulation of Indian gaming, including a framework for the issuance of 
certificates of self-regulation for class II gaming operations to 
tribes that meet certain qualifications. Specifically, 25 U.S.C. 
2710(c) authorizes the Commission to issue a certificate of self-
regulation if it determines that a tribe has: (i) conducted its gaming 
activity in a manner that has resulted in an effective and honest 
accounting of all revenues and a reputation for safe, fair, and honest 
operation of the activity, and has been generally free of evidence of 
criminal or dishonest activity; (ii) conducted its gaming operation on 
a fiscally and economically sound basis; (iii) conducted its gaming 
activity in compliance with the IGRA, NIGC regulations and the tribe's 
gaming ordinance and gaming regulations; (iv) adopted and is 
implementing adequate systems for the accounting of all revenues from 
the gaming activity, for the investigation, licensing, and monitoring 
of all employees of the gaming activity, for the investigation, 
enforcement, and prosecution of violations of its gaming ordinance and 
regulations, and for the prosecution of criminal or dishonest activity 
or referring of such activity for prosecution. The Act also authorizes 
the Commission to ``promulgate such regulations and guidelines as it 
deems appropriate to implement'' IGRA. 25

[[Page 20185]]

U.S.C. 2706(b)(10). Part 518 of title 25, Code of Federal Regulations, 
implements these statutory requirements.
    Section 518.3(e) requires a tribe's gaming operation(s) and the 
tribal regulatory body (TRB) to have kept all records needed to support 
the petition for self-regulation for the three years immediately 
preceding the date of the petition submission. Section 518.4 requires a 
tribe petitioning for a certificate of self-regulation to submit the 
following to the Commission, accompanied by supporting documentation: 
(i) two copies of a petition for self-regulation approved by the tribal 
governing body and certified as authentic; (ii) a description of how 
the tribe meets the eligibility criteria in Sec.  518.3; (iii) a brief 
history of each gaming operation, including the opening dates and 
periods of voluntary or involuntary closure(s); (iv) a TRB 
organizational chart; (v) a brief description of the criteria that 
individuals must meet before being eligible for employment as a tribal 
regulator; (vi) a brief description of the process by which the TRB is 
funded, and the funding level for the three years immediately preceding 
the date of the petition; (vii) a list of the current regulators and 
TRB employees, their complete resumes, their titles, the dates that 
they began employment, and if serving limited terms, the expiration 
date of such terms; (viii) a brief description of the accounting 
system(s) at the gaming operation that tracks the flow of the gaming 
revenues; (ix) a list of the gaming activity internal controls at the 
gaming operation(s); (x) a description of the recordkeeping system(s) 
for all investigations, enforcement actions, and prosecutions of 
violations of the tribal gaming ordinance or regulations, for the 
three-year period immediately preceding the date of the petition; and 
(xi) the tribe's current set of gaming regulations, if not included in 
the approved tribal gaming ordinance. Section 518.10 requires each 
Indian gaming tribe that has been issued a certificate of self-
regulation to submit to the Commission the following information by 
April 15th of each year following the first year of self-regulation, or 
within 120 days after the end of each gaming operation's fiscal year: 
(i) an annual independent audit; and (ii) a complete resume for all TRB 
employees hired and licensed by the tribe subsequent to its receipt of 
a certificate of self-regulation.
    Submission of the petition and supporting documentation is 
voluntary. Once a certificate of self-regulation has been issued, the 
submission of certain other information is mandatory.
    Respondents: Tribal governments.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 11.
    Estimated Annual Responses: 11.
    Estimated Time per Response: Depending on the information 
collection, the range of time can vary from 1 burden hour to 202 burden 
hours for one item.
    Frequency of Responses: Annually.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours on Respondents: 257.
    Estimated Total Non-hour Cost Burden: $203,825.

    Dated: March 22, 2023.
Christinia Thomas,
Deputy Chief of Staff.
[FR Doc. 2023-06288 Filed 4-4-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7565-01-P