83 FR 23296 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Trust Evaluation System

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of the Secretary

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 97 (May 18, 2018)

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians (OST, we), are proposing a new information collection.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 97 (Friday, May 18, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23296-23298]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-10596]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of the Secretary

[18XD0120AF/DT11100000/DST000000.54AB00; OMB Control Number 1035--New]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Trust 
Evaluation System

AGENCY: Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, 
the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians (OST, we), are 
proposing a new information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
June 18, 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

[[Page 23297]]

[email protected]; or via facsimile to (202) 395-5806. Please 
provide a copy of your comments to Ronald L. Hunt, Federal Information 
Resources Director, Department of the Interior, Office of the Special 
Trustee for American Indians, Office of Information Resources, 4400 
Masthead Street NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109; or by email to 
[email protected], or by telephone at (505) 816-1258. Please 
reference OMB Control Number 1035-OST in the subject line of your 
comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information 
about this ICR, contact Cecilia Smith, Management & Program Analyst, 
OST, Program Management, by email at [email protected], or by 
telephone at (505) 816-1259. 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 
May 25, 2015 (80 FR 30485). No comments were received in response to 
that notice.
    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 OST; (2) will this information be processed and 
used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden accurate; (4) 
how might the OST enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (5) how might the OST 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 Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians 
(OST) is responsible for overseeing the implementation of trust 
reforms, trust accounting and coordination of trust policies intra-
bureau-wide related to the management of Indian trust funds and assets; 
see 25 U.S.C. 4041. The OST, Office of Trust Review and Audit (OTRA) is 
responsible for performing trust examinations, evaluations and 
assessments of Indian trust programs and functions, pursuant to 
executive direction by the Secretary of the Interior. In addition, OTRA 
has a congressional mandate to conduct Annual Tribal Trust Evaluations 
for Tribes that compact trust programs, functions, services, and/or 
activities under Public Law 93-638 Self-Governance Compacts on behalf 
of the Secretary of the Interior. This authority is in 25 U.S.C. 
5363(d)(1) & (2) and the enabling regulations in 25 CFR 1000.350. OTRA 
currently collects Indian trust data and documentation from Tribes and 
Agencies in fulfillment of performing the Indian trust examinations on 
Federal Agencies and Tribal trust evaluations for compacted Tribes. 
This collection is enabled by performing desk reviews (via email 
electronic questionnaires), and on-site visits to Tribes and Federal 
agencies (although Federal agencies are exempt from the provisions of 
the PRA).
    Under 25 CFR 1000.355, the Secretary's designated representative 
will conduct trust evaluations for each self-governance tribe that has 
an annual funding agreement. The end result is the issuance of a 
report, which is required by 25 CFR 1000.365. Currently, Department of 
the Interior, OST-OTRA, conducts an on-site review of trust operations 
where a tribe has compacted a trust program. During that review, under 
current methodology, interviews are conducted and documents are 
requested on-site. Information collected is then brought back to the 
Albuquerque office and analyzed. A draft report is written and provided 
to the tribe for comment where applicable, comments received back are 
incorporated into the report, and a final report is issued to the 
tribe.
    OTRA is changing the method of collecting information from an on-
site manual audit data collection method to a web-based automated audit 
data collection and audit management tool, called the Trust Evaluation 
System (TES). Currently OTRA travels to the audit location and uses a 
Thomas Reuters audit software solution called Auto Audit to manage the 
data collected in the field and the audit. TES, a web-based tool, will 
be cloud hosted and will be interactive with the Auditor, Tribes and 
Agencies throughout the evaluation process in conducting the trust 
examinations, tribal trust evaluations, and trust records assessments, 
via the web, as desktop reviews.
    OST will be collecting the same data it currently collects 
manually, but will utilize electronic questionnaires and document 
uploads from Tribes and Federal agencies, via the web in TES, to 
complete the evaluations and examinations it currently conducts. This 
method will be implemented to replace the desktop reviews and/or 
traveling to each location to conduct these audits. Some audits will be 
still be conducted on-site, but only for high-risk locations. OTRA's 
audit universe consists of up to 300 audits on 3-5 year audit cycle for 
OST and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) offices throughout the greater 
United States and Alaska.
    Title of Collection: Trust Evaluation System.
    OMB Control Number: 1035-New.
    Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Existing collection in use without OMB approval.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Tribes that have an annual funding 
agreement in place to compact Indian trust programs.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 80 Tribes. Federal 
agencies are exempt from the PRA and are not included in the total 
annual respondents/responses/burden hours estimates.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 1,280.
    Estimated Completion Time per Response: 2 hours for reporting and 1 
hour for recordkeeping.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 3,840.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Frequency of Collection: Once per fiscal or calendar year (year the 
respective tribe operates under).
    Total Estimated Annual Non-hour Burden Cost: None.
    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.

[[Page 23298]]

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

 Jerold Gidner,
Principal Deputy Special Trustee, Office of the Special Trustee for 
American Indians.
[FR Doc. 2018-10596 Filed 5-17-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4334-63-P