2018-06434. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Probate of Indian Estates, Except for Members of the Osage Nation and Five Civilized Tribes

AGENCY:

Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of information collection; request for comment.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), are proposing to renew an information collection.

DATES:

Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before April 30, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Send written comments on this information collection request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget's Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior by email at [e-mail]; or via facsimile to [phone]. Please provide a copy of your comments to Ms. Charlene Toledo, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Trust Services, Division of Probate Services, 2600 N Central Ave., STE MS 102, Phoenix, AZ 85004: or email to [e-mail]. Please reference OMB Control Number 1076-0169 in the subject line of your comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request additional information about this ICR, contact Ms. Charlene Toledo by telephone at [phone].You may also view the ICR at http://www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we provide the general public and other Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on new, proposed, revised, and continuing collections of information. This helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. It also helps the public understand our information collection requirements and provide the requested data in the desired format.

A Federal Register notice with a 60-day public comment period soliciting comments on this collection of information was published on November 16, 2017. (82 FR 53516) No comments were received.

We are again soliciting comments on the proposed ICR that is described below. We are especially interested in public comment addressing the following issues: (1) Is the collection necessary to the proper functions of the BIA; (2) will this information be processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden accurate; (4) how might the BIA enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the BIA minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, including through the use of information technology.

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 us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Abstract: The Secretary of the Interior probates the estates of individual Indians owning trust or restricted property in accordance with 25 U.S.C. 372-373. In order to compile the probate file, the BIA must obtain the family heirship data regarding the deceased from individuals and the tribe. This section contains the procedures that the Secretary of the Interior follows to initiate the probate of the trust estate for a deceased person who owns an interest in trust or restricted property. The Secretary must perform the necessary research of family heirship data collection requests in this part to obtain the information necessary to compile an accurate and complete probate file. This file will be forwarded to the Office of Hearing and Appeals (OHA) for disposition. Responses to these information collection requests are required to create a probate file for the decedent's estate so that OHA can determine the heirs of the decedent and order distribution of the trust assets in the decedent's estate.

Title of Collection: Probate of Indian Estates, Except for Members of the Osage Nation and Five Civilized Tribes.

OMB Control Number: 1076-0169.

Form Number: None.

Type of Review: Extension without change of currently approved collection.

Respondents/Affected Public: Indians, businesses, and tribal authorities.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 36,906 per year.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 41,139 per year.

Estimated Completion Time per Response: Varies from 0.5 hours to 45 hours.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 617,486 per year.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to Obtain a Benefit.

Frequency of Collection: Once per respondent per year.

Total Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: $0.

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 OMB control number.

The authority for this action is the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq).

Dated: March 21, 2018.

Elizabeth K. Appel,

Director, Office of Regulatory Affairs and Collaborative Action—Indian Affairs.