Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 50, December 13, 2024
Section 82-1-3 - Introduction3.1. General purposes. The purpose of this rule is to implement the Federal-State-Local preservation partnership in West Virginia as provided for in The National Historic Preservation Amendments Act of 1980 ( P.L. 95-515), as amended. The role of the "Certified Local Governments" in the partnership involves (1) eligibility to apply to the State Historic Preservation Officer, for matching funds earmarked for "Certified Local Governments," and (2) responsibility for review of nominations of properties to The National Register of Historic Places. CLGs will help to promote the preservation of prehistoric and historic sites, structures, objects, buildings and historic districts by establishing a partnership between the local government and the West Virginia State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), a unit of the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, which seeks to encourage and expand local involvement in preservation issues. This partnership will help to ensure that: Historic preservation issues are understood and addressed at the local level; local interests and concerns are identified in the evaluation and nomination process of the SHPO; information concerning local historic preservation issues is provided to the SHPO and to the public; local landmark legislation and historic preservation Commissions are established in localities where they do not yet exist and are updated, if necessary, where they already exist; existing inventory data and technical information is made available to the local community preservation needs. In order to become certified, a local government must meet several requirements, chief of which are to have enacted an historic preservation ordinance and appointed a qualified Historic Preservation Commission. The Federal Act directs the State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO) and the Secretary of the Interior to certify local governments to participate in the partnership.