[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 36, Volume 1]
[Revised as of July 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 36CFR60.15]

[Page 305-307]
 
              TITLE 36--PARKS, FORESTS, AND PUBLIC PROPERTY
 
      CHAPTER I--NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
 
PART 60--NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 60.15  Removing properties from the National Register.

    (a) Grounds for removing properties from the National Register are 
as follows:
    (1) The property has ceased to meet the criteria for listing in the 
National Register because the qualities which caused it to be originally 
listed have been lost or destroyed, or such qualities were lost 
subsequent to nomination and prior to listing;
    (2) Additional information shows that the property does not meet the 
National Register criteria for evaluation;
    (3) Error in professional judgement as to whether the property meets 
the criteria for evaluation; or
    (4) Prejudicial procedural error in the nomination or listing 
process. Properties removed from the National Register for procedural 
error shall be reconsidered for listing by the Keeper after correction 
of the error or errors by the State Historic Preservation Officer, 
Federal Preservation Officer, person or local government which 
originally nominated the property, or by

[[Page 306]]

the Keeper, as appropriate. The procedures set forth for nominations 
shall be followed in such reconsiderations. Any property or district 
removed from the National Register for procedural deficiencies in the 
nomination and/or listing process shall automatically be considered 
eligible for inclusion in the National Register without further action 
and will be published as such in the Federal Register.
    (b) Properties listed in the National Register prior to December 13, 
1980, may only be removed from the National Register on the grounds 
established in paragraph (a)(1) of this section.
    (c) Any person or organization may petition in writing for removal 
of a property from the National Register by setting forth the reasons 
the property should be removed on the grounds established in paragraph 
(a) of this section. With respect to nominations determined eligible for 
the National Register because the owners of private property object to 
listing, anyone may petition for reconsideration of whether or not the 
property meets the criteria for evaluation using these procedures. 
Petitions for removal are submitted to the Keeper by the State Historic 
Preservation Officer for State nominations, the Federal Preservation 
Officer for Federal nominations, and directly to the Keeper from persons 
or local governments where there is no approved State Historic 
Preservation Program.
    (d) Petitons submitted by persons or local governments where there 
is no approved State Historic Preservation Program shall include a list 
of the owner(s). In such cases the Keeper shall notify the affected 
owner(s) and the chief elected local official and give them an 
opportunity to comment. For approved State programs, the State Historic 
Preservation Officer shall notify the affected owner(s) and chief 
elected local official and give them an opportunity to comment prior to 
submitting a petition for removal. The Federal Preservation Officer 
shall notify and obtain the comments of the appropriate State Historic 
Preservation Officer prior to forwarding an appeal to NPS. All comments 
and opinions shall be submitted with the petition.
    (e) The State Historic Preservation Officer or Federal Preservation 
Officer shall respond in writing within 45 days of receipt to petitions 
for removal of property from the National Register. The response shall 
advise the petitioner of the State Historic Preservation Officer's or 
Federal Preservation Officer's views on the petition.
    (f) A petitioner desiring to pursue his removal request must notify 
the State Historic Preservation Officer or the Federal Preservation 
Officer in writing within 45 days of receipt of the written views on the 
petition.
    (g) The State Historic Preservation Officer may elect to have a 
property considered for removal according to the State's nomination 
procedures unless the petition is on procedural grounds and shall 
schedule it for consideration by the State Review Board as quickly as 
all notification requirements can be completed following procedures 
outlined in Sec. 60.6, or the State Historic Preservation Officer may 
elect to forward the petition for removal to the Keeper with his or her 
comments without State Review Board consideration.
    (h) Within 15 days after receipt of the petitioner's notification of 
intent to pursue his removal request, the State Historic Preservation 
Officer shall notify the petitioner in writing either that the State 
Review Board will consider the petition on a specified date or that the 
petition will be forwarded to the Keeper after notification requirements 
have been completed. The State Historic Preservation Officer shall 
forward the petitions to the Keeper for review within 15 days after 
notification requirements or Review Board consideration, if applicable, 
have been completed.
    (i) Within 15 days after receipt of the petitioner notification of 
intent to pursue his petition, the Federal Preservation Officer shall 
forward the petition with his or her comments and those of the State 
Historic Preservation Officer to the Keeper.
    (j) The Keeper shall respond to a petition for removal within 45 
days of receipt, except where the Keeper must notify the owners and the 
chief elected local official. In such cases the Keeper shall respond 
within 90 days of receipt.

[[Page 307]]

The Keeper shall notify the petitioner and the applicable State Historic 
Preservation Officer, Federal Preservation Officer, or person or local 
government where there is no approved State Historic Preservation 
Program, of his decision. The State Historic Preservation Officer or 
Federal Preservation Officer transmitting the petition shall notify the 
petitioner, the owner(s), and the chief elected local official in 
writing of the decision. The Keeper will provide such notice for 
petitions from persons or local governments where there is no approved 
State Historic Preservation Program. The general notice may be used for 
properties with more than 50 owners. If the general notice is used it 
shall be published in one or more newspapers with general circulation in 
the area of the nomination.
    (k) The Keeper may remove a property from the National Register on 
his own motion on the grounds established in paragraph (a) of this 
section, except for those properties listed in the National Register 
prior to December 13, 1980, which may only be removed from the National 
Register on the grounds established in paragraph (a)(1) of this section. 
In such cases, the Keeper will notify the nominating authority, the 
affected owner(s) and the applicable chief elected local official and 
provide them an opportunity to comment. Upon removal, the Keeper will 
notify the nominating authority of the basis for the removal. The State 
Historic Preservation Officer, Federal Preservation Officer, or person 
or local government which nominated the property shall notify the 
owner(s) and the chief elected local official of the removal.
    (l) No person shall be considered to have exhausted administrative 
remedies with respect to removal of a property from the National 
Register until the Keeper has denied a petition for removal pursuant to 
this section.