(a) The commission shall do all of the following:

(1) Receive and evaluate applications for, and make recommendations with respect to entries on, the National Register of Historic Places to the officer.

(2) Conduct a statewide inventory and maintain comprehensive records of historical resources pursuant to federal and state law, including, but not limited to, historical landmarks and points of historical interest.

(3) Establish criteria for the recording and preservation of historical resources, and for deletions from historical registers warranted by destruction or damage of a historical resource or other change in conditions.

(4) Develop and adopt criteria for the rehabilitation of historic structures.

(5) Establish policies and guidelines in compliance with state and federal requirements for a comprehensive statewide historical resources plan which includes, but is not limited to, architecture, history, archaeology, and folklife.

(6) Develop and update annually, based upon public hearings and active public participation, the statewide historical resources plan.

(7) Make recommendations to the department, based upon the statewide historical resources plan, including the listing of historical resource projects on a priority basis.

(8) Oversee the administration of the California Register, receive and evaluate nominations to, and cause qualified resources to be listed in, the California Register, and adopt, as necessary, timely revisions of the California Register criteria and procedures as may be advisable.

(9) Recommend to the department the criteria and standards for acceptance of historical buildings, structures, sites, or places for registration as historical landmarks or points of historical interest.

(10) Receive and evaluate applications for registration of structures, sites, or places as historical landmarks or points of historical interest. The commission shall select and designate historical landmarks and points of historical interest that it determines meet the criteria in subdivision (a) of Section 5031. The commission shall maintain a register which identifies historical landmarks and points of historical interest by number and description.

(11) Make recommendations to the office with respect to a standard design and detail for the marker or plaque which may be erected or raised at registered historical landmarks or historical resources, and with respect to the use of the marker or plaque. The commission shall consult with cities and counties in developing design and placement standards. These standards shall not prevent a city or county from implementing its own standards if they meet the minimum criteria established by the commission.

(12) Recommend to the department the type of directional sign to be erected in connection with the registration of a point of historical interest. The commission shall consult with cities and counties in developing design and placement standards. These standards shall not prevent a city or county from implementing its own standards if they meet the minimum criteria established by the commission.

(13) Submit an annual report in January to the director and the Legislature giving an account of its activities, identifying unattained goals of historical resources plans and programs, and recommending needed legislation for the support of those programs. The director shall advise the commission of new and continuing plans, policy, and programs concerning statewide historical resources and shall receive and consider the views of the commission.

(14) Consult with, and consider the recommendation of, public agencies, civic groups, and citizens interested in historic preservation.

(15) Develop criteria and procedures based upon public hearings and active public participation for the selection of projects to be funded through the National Historic Preservation Fund, the California Heritage Fund, and other federal and state programs that have as their primary purpose the preservation and enhancement of historical resources.

(16) Prepare, or cause to be prepared, and recommend to the director, a budget with respect to those duties and responsibilities of the commission contained in this section.

(b) The commission may adopt guidelines for the review of applications for excavation and salvage permits submitted pursuant to Section 6313 and make recommendations thereon to the State Lands Commission.

(Amended by Stats. 1993, Ch. 749, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1994.)