2016-08441. Information Collections Being Submitted for Review and Approval to the Office of Management and Budget

AGENCY:

Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION:

Notice and request for comments.

SUMMARY:

As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burdens, and as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the following information collections. Comments are requested concerning: whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Commission, including whether the information shall have practical utility; the accuracy of the Commission's burden estimate; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on the respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology; and ways to further reduce the information collection burden on small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees. The FCC may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information subject to the PRA that does not display a valid OMB control number.

DATES:

Written comments should be submitted on or before May 13, 2016. If you anticipate that you will be submitting comments, but find it difficult to do so within the period of time allowed by this notice, you should advise the contacts below as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES:

Direct all PRA comments to Nicholas A. Fraser, OMB, via email [e-mail]; and to Cathy Williams, FCC, via email [e-mail] and to [e-mail]. Include in the comments the OMB control number as shown in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For additional information or copies of the information collection, contact Cathy Williams at [phone]. To view a copy of this information collection request (ICR) submitted to OMB: (1) Go to the Web page http://www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain, (2) look for the section of the Web page called “Currently Under Review,” (3) click on the downward-pointing arrow in the “Select Agency” box below the “Currently Under Review” heading, (4) select “Federal Communications Commission” from the list of agencies presented in the “Select Agency” box, (5) click the “Submit” button to the right of the “Select Agency” box, (6) when the list of FCC ICRs currently under review appears, look for the OMB control number of this ICR and then click on the ICR Reference Number. A copy of the FCC submission to OMB will be displayed.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

OMB Control: 3060-0700.

Title: Open Video Systems Provisions, FCC Form 1275.

Form Number: FCC Form 1275.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities; and State, Local or Tribal Government.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 280 respondents; 4,672 respondents.

Frequency of Response: Recordkeeping requirement; Third party disclosure requirement; On occasion reporting requirement.

Estimated Time per Response: 0.25 to 20 hours.

Total Annual Burden: 9,855 hours.

Total Annual Costs: None.

Privacy Impact Assessment: No impact(s).

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The statutory authority for this collection is contained in section 302 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: There is no need for confidentiality with this collection of information.

Needs and Uses: Section 302 of the 1996 Telecommunications Act provides for specific entry options for telephone companies wishing to enter the video programming marketplace, one option being to provide cable service over an “open video system” (“OVS”). The rule sections that are covered by this collection relate to OVS.

OMB Control Number: 3060-1084.

Title: Rules and Regulations Implementing Minimum Customer Account Record Exchange Obligations on All Local and Interexchange Carriers (CARE).

Form Number: N/A.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 2,621 respondents; 574,468 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 1 minute (.017 hours) to 20 minutes (.33 hours).

Frequency of Response: Recordkeeping and annual reporting requirement.

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The statutory authority for these information requirements are found in sections 1-4, 201, 202, 222, 258, and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended; 47 U.S.C. 151-154, 201, 202, 222, 258, and 303(r).

Total Annual Burden: 47,693 hours.

Total Annual Cost: None.

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: Confidentiality is not an issue as individuals and/or households are not required to provide personally identifiable information.

Privacy Impact Assessment: No impact(s).

Needs and Uses: In the 2005 Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, In the Matter of Rules and Regulations Implementing Minimum Customer Account Record Exchange Obligations on All Local and Interexchange Carriers (2005 Report and Order), CG Docket No. 02-386, FCC 05-29, which was released on February 25, 2005, the Commission adopted rules governing the exchange of customer account information between local exchange carriers (LECs) and interexchange carriers (IXCs). The Commission concluded that mandatory, minimum standards are needed in light of record evidence demonstrating that information needed by carriers to execute customer requests and properly bill customers is not being consistently provided by all LECs and IXCs. Specifically, the 2005 Report and Order requires LECs to supply customer account information to IXCs when: (1) The LEC places an end user on, or removes an end user from, an IXC's network; (2) an end user presubscribed to an IXC makes certain changes to her account information via her LEC; (3) an IXC requests billing name and address information for an end user who has usage on an IXC's network but for whom the IXC does not have an existing account; and (4) a LEC rejects an IXC-initiated PIC order. The 2005 Report and Order required IXCs to notify LECs when an IXC customer informs an IXC directly of the customer's desire to change IXCs. In the accompanying Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Commission sought comment on whether to require the exchange of customer account information between LECs. In December 2007, the Commission declined to adopt mandatory LEC-to-LEC data exchange requirements.

OMB Control Number: 3060-1088.

Title: Rules and Regulations Implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) of 1991, Report and Order and Third Order on Reconsideration, CG Docket No. 05-338, FCC 06-42.

Form Number: N/A.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities; Not-for-profit institutions; and Individuals or households.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 5,340,000 respondents; 6,054,155 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 3 minutes (.05 hours) to 30 minutes (.50 hours).

Frequency of Response: Annual, monthly, and on occasion reporting requirements; Recordkeeping requirement; and Third party disclosure requirement.

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The authorizing statutes for this information collection are: Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991, Public Law 102-243. 105 Stat. 2394 (1991); Junk Fax Prevention Act, Public Law 109-21, 119 Stat. 359 (2005).

Total Annual Burden: 3,672,250 hours.

Total Annual Cost: $928,042.

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: Confidentiality is an issue to the extent that individuals and households provide personally identifiable information, which is covered under the FCC's updated system of records notice (SORN), FCC/CGB-1, “Informal Complaints, Inquiries and Requests for Dispute Assistance,” which became effective on September 24, 2014.

Privacy Impact Assessment: The Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) for Informal Complaints and Inquiries was completed on June 28, 2007. It may be reviewed at http://www.fcc.gov/​omd/​privacyact/​Privacy5FImpact5FAssessment.html. The Commission is in the process of updating the PIA to incorporate various revisions to it as a result of revisions to the SORN.

Needs and Uses: On April 5, 2006, the Commission adopted a Report and Order and Third Order on Reconsideration, In the Matter of Rules and Regulations Implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991; Junk Fax Prevention Act of 2005, CG Docket Nos. 02-278 and 05-338, FCC 06-42, which modified the Commission's facsimile advertising rules to implement the Junk Fax Prevention Act. The Report and Order and Third Order on Reconsideration contained information collection requirements pertaining to: (1) Opt-out Notice and Do-Not-Fax Requests Recordkeeping in which the rules require senders of unsolicited facsimile advertisements to include a notice on the first page of the facsimile that informs the recipient of the ability and means to request that they not receive future unsolicited facsimile advertisements from the sender; (2) Established Business Relationship Recordkeeping whereas the Junk Fax Prevention Act provides that the sender, e.g., a person, business, or a nonprofit/institution, is prohibited from faxing an unsolicited advertisement to a facsimile machine unless the sender has an “established business relationship” (EBR) with the recipient; (3) Facsimile Number Recordkeeping in which the Junk Fax Prevention Act provides that an EBR alone does not entitle a sender to fax an advertisement to an individual or business. The fax number must also be provided voluntarily by the recipient; and (4) Express Invitation or Permission Recordkeeping where in the absence of an EBR, the sender must obtain the prior express invitation or permission from the consumer before sending the facsimile advertisement.

On October 14, 2008, the Commission released an Order on Reconsideration, FCC 08-239, addressing certain issues raised in petitions for reconsideration and/or clarification filed in response to the Commission's Report and Order and Third Order on Reconsideration (Junk Fax Order), FCC 06-42. In document FCC 08-239, the Commission clarified that: (1) Facsimile numbers compiled by third parties on behalf of the facsimile sender will be presumed to have been made voluntarily available for public distribution so long as they are obtained from the intended recipient's own directory, advertisement, or Internet site; (2) reasonable steps to verify that a recipient has agreed to make available a facsimile number for public distribution may include methods other than direct contact with the recipient; and (3) a description of the facsimile sender's opt-out mechanism on the first Web page to which recipients are directed in the opt-out notice satisfies the requirement that such a description appear on the first page of the Web site.

The Commission believes these clarifications will assist senders of facsimile advertisements in complying with the Commission's rules in a manner that minimizes regulatory compliance costs while maintaining the protections afforded consumers under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

OMB Control Number: 3060-XXXX.

Title: Carriage of Digital Television Broadcast Signals: Amendment to Part 76 of the Commission's Rules.

Form Number: None.

Type of Review: New collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 11 respondents; 11 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 0.25 hours (15 minutes).

Frequency of Response: Third party disclosure requirement and recordkeeping requirement.

Total Annual Burden: 3 hours.

Total Annual Costs: No cost.

Obligation to Respond: Required in order to monitor regulatory compliance. The statutory authority for this collection of information is contained in sections 4, 303, 614 and 615 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: There is no need for confidentiality with this collection of information.

Privacy Impact Assessment(s): No impact(s).

Needs and Uses: The information collection imposes a notification requirement on certain small cable systems that become ineligible for exemption from the requirement to carry high definition broadcast signals in HD (adopted in FCC 15-65). In particular, the information collection requires that, beginning December 12, 2016, at the time a small cable system utilizing the HD carriage exemption offers any programming in HD, the system must give notice that it is offering HD programming to all broadcast stations in its market that are carried on its system. Cable operators must also keep records of such notification. This information collection requirement allows affected broadcast stations to monitor compliance with the requirement that cable operators transmit high definition broadcast signals in HD.

Federal Communications Commission.

Marlene H. Dortch,

Secretary, Office of the Secretary.