2026 Census Tribal Court Systems (CTCS)

Forms and Documents

Forms and supporting documents for this ICR

Document	Type	Status	Availability
2026 Census of Tribal Court Systems	Form and Instruction	New	Available
Form NSTCS-14CFR 2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Code of Federal Regulations Courts	Form and Instruction	Removed	Available
Form NSTCS-14AK 2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Alaska Tribal Courts	Form and Instruction	Removed	Available
Form NSTCS-14L48 2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Lower 48 Tribal Courts	Form and Instruction	Removed	Available
CTCS Attachments A through T.pdf	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2026-09-03	Available
Navajo Comments re CTCS.pdf	Public Comments	Uploaded 2026-09-03	Available
2026 CTCS Supporting Statement B.docx	Supporting Statement B	Uploaded 2026-09-03	Available
2026 CTCS Supporting Statement A.docx	Supporting Statement A	Uploaded 2026-09-03	Available

IC Document Collections

Information collection document groups

IC ID	Collection	Type	Status	Form
282307	2026 Census of Tribal Court Systems	Form and Instruction	New	2026 Census of Tribal Court Systems
212832	2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems	Form and Instruction	Removed	2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Code of Federal Regulations Courts
212832	2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems	Form and Instruction	Removed	2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Alaska Tribal Courts
212832	2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems	Form and Instruction	Removed	2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Lower 48 Tribal Courts

ICR Details

OMB Control No: 1121-0350	ICR Reference No: 202609-1121-001
Status: Received in OIRA	Previous ICR Reference No: 201408-1121-009
Agency/Subagency: DOJ/OJP	Agency Tracking No: BJS
Title: 2026 Census Tribal Court Systems (CTCS)
Type of Information Collection: Reinstatement without change of a previously approved collection	Common Form ICR:  No
Type of Review Request: Regular	Date Submitted to OIRA: 09/09/2026

table that charts list comparision

	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	36 Months From Approved
Responses	378	0
Time Burden (Hours)	419	0
Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0

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Abstract: The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) requests a three-year clearance to conduct the 2026 Census of Tribal Court Systems (CTCS). The National Survey of Tribal Court Systems (NSTCS) (OMB No. 1121-0350, expired 12/31/2017) was first collected in 2014 and is part of the larger BJS portfolio of tribal justice data collections that comprise the Tribal Justice Statistics Program (TJSP). Three tribal justice agency-specific data collections make up the core of the BJS TJSP: the Survey of Jails in Indian Country (SJIC), the Census of Tribal Law Enforcement Agencies (CTLEA), and the CTCS.

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Authorizing Statute(s): US Code: 34 USC 10131-2 Name of Law: THE OMNIBUS CRIME CONTROL AND SAFE STREETS ACT OF 1968
  

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

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Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
	Not associated with rulemaking

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Federal Register Notices & Comments
60-day Notice:	Federal Register Citation:	Citation Date:
	91 FR 39121	06/29/2026
30-day Notice:	Federal Register Citation:	Citation Date:
	91 FR 56480	09/02/2026
Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? Yes

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Number of Information Collection (IC) in this ICR: 1

table that charts list of burden

IC Title	Form No.	Form Name
2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems	NSTCS-14L48, NSTCS-14AK, NSTCS-14CFR	2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Lower 48 Tribal Courts ,   2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Alaska Tribal Courts ,   2014 National Survey of Tribal Court Systems: Code of Federal Regulations Courts
2026 Census of Tribal Court Systems	N/A	2026 Census of Tribal Court Systems

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ICR Summary of Burden

table that charts list of burden

	Total Request	Previously Approved	Change Due to New Statute	Change Due to Agency Discretion	Change Due to Adjustment in Estimate	Change Due to Potential Violation of the PRA
Annual Number of Responses	378	0	0	-217	0	595
Annual Time Burden (Hours)	419	0	0	-931	0	1,350
Annual Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0	0	0	0

Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Increase Due to: Miscellaneous Actions

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Reduction Due to: Miscellaneous Actions

Short Statement: The estimated burden has changed from 120 minutes for the 2014 NSTCS, to 65 minutes (1.08 hours) for the respondents to take 20 minutes to complete the Question Guide (Attachment C) in advance and 40 minutes to complete the web survey (Attachment A). Based on the outreach, engagement, and consultation feedback, BJS revised the CTCS survey instrument from its earlier administration. Questions have been rewritten to ensure clear and concise language, reliability and validity across tribes and justice agencies, and formatted for a web instrument to allow for skip pattern and logic check programming. New items and updates to existing items were edited based on recent legislation and criminal justice policies, as well as the stakeholder engagement activities described. In addition, tribal nations encouraged incorporating consistency of measures in the CTCS to establish an understanding of the types and number of cases filed in the tribal courts.

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Annual Cost to Federal Government: $509,093

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? Yes Part B of Supporting Statement

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? No

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Common Form ICR:  No

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On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).

The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:

(a) It is necessary for the proper performance of agency functions;

(b) It avoids unnecessary duplication;

(c) It reduces burden on small entities;

(d) It uses plain, coherent, and unambiguous language that is understandable to respondents;

(e) Its implementation will be consistent and compatible with current reporting and recordkeeping practices;

(f) It indicates the retention periods for recordkeeping requirements;

(g) It informs respondents of the information called for under 5 CFR 1320.8 (b)(3) about:

(i) Why the information is being collected;

(ii) Use of information;

(iii) Burden estimate;

(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);

(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and

(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;

(h) It was developed by an office that has planned and allocated resources for the efficient and effective management and use of the information to be collected.

(i) It uses effective and efficient statistical survey methodology (if applicable); and

(j) It makes appropriate use of information technology.

If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.

Certification Date: 09/09/2026

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