Notice2025-09444
Agency Information Collection Activities; Application and Reports for Paleontological Permits
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 27, 2025
Issuing agencies
Interior Department
Abstract
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the U.S. Department of the Interior (Interior, we), are proposing to revise an information collection.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 100 (Tuesday, May 27, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 100 (Tuesday, May 27, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22318-22320]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-09444]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of the Secretary
[256D0102DM; DS6CS00000; DLSN00000.000000; DX6CS25; OMB Control Number
1093-0008]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Application and Reports
for Paleontological Permits
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we,
the U.S. Department of the Interior (Interior, we), are proposing to
revise an information collection.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments. To be
considered, your comments must be received on or before July 28, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent to the Departmental Information
Collection Clearance Officer (ICCO), 1849 C Street NW, Washington, DC
20240; or by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#60242f294d30322120090f134e040f094e070f16"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="62262d2b4f323023220b0d114c060d0b4c050d14">[email protected]</span></a>. Please reference Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number 1093-0008 in the subject
line of your comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey Parrillo, Departmental ICCO,
1849 C Street NW, Washington, DC 20240; by telephone, (202)-208-7072;
or by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#84c0cbcda9d4d6c5c4edebf7aae0ebedaae3ebf2"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d2969d9bff82809392bbbda1fcb6bdbbfcb5bda4">[email protected]</span></a>. Individuals in the United States
who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability
may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications
relay services. Individuals outside the United States should use the
relay services offered within their country to make international calls
to the point-of-contact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act (PRA; 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and its implementing regulations at 5
CFR part 1320, all information collections require approval under the
PRA. We may not conduct or sponsor, and you are not required to respond
to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.
As part of our continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent
burdens, we invite the public and other Federal agencies to comment on
new, proposed, revised, and continuing collections of information. This
helps us
[[Page 22319]]
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.
We are especially interested in public comment addressing the
following:
(1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including
whether or not the information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection
of information, including the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
(3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
(4) How might the agency minimize the burden of the collection of
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g.,
permitting electronic submission of response.
Comments that you submit 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 information collection request. 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: In 1999, the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee
requested that the Department of the Interior (we, DOI), the U.S.
Department of Agriculture--Forest Service (USDA-FS), and the
Smithsonian Institution prepare a report on fossil resource management
on Federal lands (Sen. Rep. 105-227, at 60 (1998)). The request
directed these entities to analyze the:
<bullet> Need for a unified Federal policy for the collection,
storage, and preservation of fossils.
<bullet> Need for standards that would maximize the availability of
fossils for scientific study.
<bullet> Effectiveness of current methods for storing and
preserving fossils collected from Federal lands.
During the course of preparing the report, the agencies held a
public meeting to gather public input. The DOI report to Congress,
``Assessment of Fossil Management of Federal and Indian Lands,'' was
published in May 2000. After the report was released, the
Paleontological Resources Preservation Act (PRPA) was introduced in the
107th Congress. PRPA was modeled after the Archaeological Resources
Protection Act (ARPA) and emphasized the recommendations and guiding
principles in the May 2000 report.
The legislation was reintroduced in subsequent Congresses through
the 111th Congress when it was included as a subtitle in the Omnibus
Public Land Management Act, which became law on March 30, 2009.
Legislative history demonstrates that PRPA (16 U.S.C. 470aaa-aaa-11)
was enacted to preserve paleontological resources for current and
future generations because these resources are nonrenewable and are an
irreplaceable part of America's heritage. PRPA requires that
implementation be coordinated between the Secretaries of the Interior
and Agriculture and that DOI and USDA-FS issue regulations as
appropriate to carry out the law.
Accordingly, DOI and USDA-FS formed an interagency coordination
team in April 2009 to draft the proposed regulations. Members of the
team included program leads for paleontology, archaeology, and
regulatory specialists from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the
National Park Service (NPS), the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) (the bureaus), and the USDA-FS.
Information collected under this control number includes the
following:
(1) DI Form 9002, ``Paleontology Permit Application'' (43 CFR
49.115)--Permit applicants proposing to work in areas administered by
the BLM, BOR, or USFWS must provide the following information via DI
form 9002:
a. Applicant's name, affiliation, and contact information.
b. Description of the applicant's qualifications, to include a
current resume for the applicant and all other persons who will oversee
fieldwork and other work, and information on the applicant's past
performance on previous permits.
c. Maps and other location information, and estimated start and end
dates of proposed work.
d. Description, purpose and methodology of proposed work, including
a detailed scope of work or research plan for the proposed activity,
logistical information, methods that will be employed to explore for or
remove the paleontological resources, proposed content and nature of
any collection to be made under the permit.
e. Information about the proposed repository.
f. Description of anticipated costs, including bonding information.
(2) DI Form 9003, ``Paleontology Permit'' (43 CFR 49.125(a)).
(3) DI Form 9004, ``Paleontology Locality Record'' (43 CFR
49.125(a)(1) & (6))--Permittee will record locality information on DI
form 9004 or in another format approved by the bureau in the permit
that captures the same information.
(4) DI Form 9006, Reports (43 CFR 49.125(a)(14))--Permittees
conducting activities on lands administered by the BLM, BOR, or USFWS
must submit reports to the bureaus using DI form 9006 as a cover sheet.
Under some permits, one report may be required summarizing all
activities; while other permits may require multiple reports for
separate activities under the permit. We use the reports to track and
manage the resources and contribute to scientific research.
(5) DI Form 9007, Repository Receipt (43 CFR 49.125(a)(10) &
(11))--Permittee must deposit the collection in the approved repository
named in the permit by the date specified in the permit and provide the
bureau with DI form 9007, which includes a certification by the
permittee that the collection and other associated records were
transferred to the repository and a certification by the approved
repository's authorized official that the collection was received.
(6) Resource damage or theft (43 CFR 49.75(a)(8))--Permittee must
report suspected or apparent resource damage or theft of
paleontological or other resources to the Federal land manager as soon
as possible, but not to exceed 48 hours, after learning of the
suspected or apparent damage or theft.
(7) List and description of paleontological resources (43 CFR
49.125(a)(12))--If the permittee has not transferred the collection to
the approved repository named in the permit by the date specified in
the permit, the permittee must provide the Federal land manager a
complete list and description of all paleontological resources
collected and the current location of the paleontological resources.
(8) Amendments to permits (43 CFR 49.130(a))--Permittees may
request a modification to a permit. Modification requests will include
permittee name, permit number, and the reason(s) for the modification
request.
(9) Objecting to a notice of violation (43 CFR 49.515(a) & (b))--
When a
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person receives a notice of violation, the person has 30 days from the
date the notice was received to object by submitting to the Federal
land manager documentation to support the position that the person did
not commit a violation or that the proposed penalty should be reduced
or eliminated.
(10) Responding to a civil penalty (43 CFR 49.535(a) & (b))--A
person may request a hearing on the Federal land manager's final
assessment of a civil penalty by filing a request for hearing via
registered or certified mail (return receipt requested or other
delivery method, delivery receipt requested) to the Departmental Cases
Hearings Division, Office of Hearings and Appeals, Department of the
Interior, at the address specified in the final assessment of civil
penalty. A copy of the request must be served on the Solicitor of the
Department of the Interior at the address specified in the final
assessment of civil penalty. The request for hearing must include the
following information:
a. The reasons for challenging the final assessment;
b. The relief sought and the basis for the relief;
c. A copy of the original notice of civil violation and proposed
civil penalty assessment;
d. A copy of any objection and supporting documentation filed under
43 CFR 49.515(a) & (b);
e. A copy of the final assessment of civil penalty; and
f. A certificate of service acknowledging service of the request
for hearing with the accompanying documentation on the Office of the
Solicitor.
Proposed Revisions
With this submission, we propose to revise the following currently
approved information collections:
(1) DI Form 9002, ``Paleontology Permit Application'' (43 CFR
49.115)--New fields proposed:
a. Provide State or administrative area (i.e., forest or NPS unit)
where proposed work will occur. This will allow DOI offices to assign
local contacts to assist applicants and to track work for
administrative accountability.
b. Is the proposed work identified as hazardous? (Yes/No). For
example, work in caves, with helicopters, or using high angle rigging
or ropes. This will allow bureau offices to learn if an applicant's
proposed work might be identified as hazardous to either the applicant
or the public.
c. RAPTOR account creation. This field will provide electronic
access to the BLM Recreation and Permit Tracking & Online Reporting
(RAPTOR) system. The information will be collected during RAPTOR
account creation and then used to autofill all forms. This additional
burden hours expended while setting up a RAPTOR account will be offset
by the autofill feature of the system. Applicants who are unable to use
the RAPTOR system will continue to use the original DI 9002 format.
(2) DI Form 9004, ``Paleontology Locality Record'' (43 CFR
49.125(a)(1) & (6))--The original DI 9004 form will remain unchanged,
but BLM proposes an additional format that allows permittees to report
multiple localities in a single spreadsheet. Applicants requested the
capability for a single spreadsheet upload which has proven to expedite
data submission for permittees while also reducing administrative
burden to the bureau.
(3) DI Form 9007, Repository Receipt (43 CFR 49.125(a)(10) &
(11))--We are not proposing changes to the currently approved fields on
the DI 9007; however, we plan to update the instructions to state that
permittees may substitute this form with a copy of the approved
repository's museum accession record. This record, provided by the
repository, follows a museum best practice and industry standard and so
may be submitted in place of DI 9007 in order to reduce duplication of
effort.
Title of Collection: Application and Reports for Paleontological
Permits, 43 CFR part 49.
OMB Control Number: 1093-0008.
Form Number: Forms DI-9002, DI-9003, DI-9004, DI-9005, DI-9006, and
DI-9007.
Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals; organizations; businesses
(museums and universities); State, Tribal, or local governments that
collect paleontological resources or disturb paleontological sites on
DOI lands.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 1,845.
Estimated Completion Time per Response: Varies from 1 to 10 hours.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 5,060 hours.
Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
Frequency of Collection: On occasion.
Total Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: $288,876 (associated
with curation agreements).
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.).
Jeffrey Parrillo,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2025-09444 Filed 5-23-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4334-CC-P
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