2017-15527. 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, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or the Commission) invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the following information collection. 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 Commission 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 August 24, 2017. 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 listed below as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES:

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For additional information or copies of the information collection, contact Nicole Ongele 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:

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 the Commission) invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the following information collection. 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.

OMB Control Number: 3060-0004.

Title: Sections 1.1307 and 1.1311, Guidelines for Evaluating the Environmental Effects of Radiofrequency Exposure.

Form Number: N/A.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Respondents: Individuals or households, Business or other for-profit, Not-for-profit institutions, and State, Local or Tribal government.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 284,332 Respondents; 284,332 Responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 1 hour-5 hours.

Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement and third party disclosure requirement.

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. Statutory authority for this Information collection is contained in 47 U.S.C. Sections 154(i), 302, 303, 303(r), and 307.

Total Annual Burden: 58,865 hours.

Total Annual Costs: $5,449,750.

Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: There is a minimal exemption from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4), and 47 CFR 0.459 of the Commission's rules, that is granted for trade secrets, which may be submitted to the Commission as part of the documentation of test results. The exemption is normally granted for a short time (weeks to months) for requests relating to routine authorizations and for a longer time for requests relating to experimental authorizations. No other assurances of confidentiality are provided to respondents.

Needs and Uses: The Commission will submit this expiring information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) after this 60-day comment period in order to obtain the full three-year clearance from them.

This information collection is a result of responsibility placed on the FCC by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. NEPA requires that each federal agency evaluate the impact of “major actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.” It is the FCC's opinion that this is the most efficient and reasonable method of complying with NEPA with regard to the environmental issue of radiofrequency radiation from FCC-regulated transmitters.

The Commission requires applicants to submit limited information during the licensing and authorization process. In many services, the Commission simply requires licensees to provide reliable service to specific geographic areas, but does not require licensees to file site-specific information. It does not appear that the FCC's present licensing methods can provide public notification of site-specific information without imposing new and significant additional burden to the Commission's applicants. However, we note that applicants with the greatest potential to exceed the Commission's exposure limits are required to perform an environmental evaluation as part of the licensing and authorization process.

The Commission advises concerned members of the public, seeking site-specific information, to contact the FCC for the name and telephone number of the service providers in the concerned party's area. The Commission encourages all service providers to provide site-specific, technical information and environmental evaluation documentation upon public request. In addition, we note alternative sources of information may be state and local governments, which may collect some site-specific information as part of the zoning process.

OMB Control Number: 3060-1081.

Title: Section 54.202, 54.209, 54.307, 54.313, 54.314, and 54.809, Telecommunications Carriers Eligible for Universal Service Support.

Form Number: N/A.

Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 20 respondents; 20 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 40 hours.

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. Statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 47 U.S.C. 201(b), 214(e)(6), 303(r).

Frequency of Response: One-time reporting requirement.

Total Annual Burden: 800 hours.

Total Annual Cost: No cost.

Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).

Nature of Extent of Confidentiality: If respondents submit information which respondents believe is confidential, respondents may request confidential treatment of such information pursuant to section 0.459 of the Commission's rules, 47 CFR 0.459.

Needs and Uses: Designation as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC) makes a telecommunications carrier eligible to participate in the Universal Service Fund's high-cost program, which support the extension of telecommunications services to underserved rural communities. In the absence of this information collection, the Commission's ability to oversee the use of Federal universal service funds and to combat waste, fraud, and abuse in the use of Federal funds would be compromised. Section 54.202 of the Commission's rules requires carriers seeking designation from the Commission to submit an application that certifies that the carrier will comply with the service requirement applicable to the support that it receives, 47 CFR 54.202(a)(1)(i); applicants must submit a five year plan that describes with specificity proposed improvements or upgrades to the applicant's network throughout its proposed service area, with estimates of the area and population that will be served as a result of the improvements, § 54.202(a)(1)(ii); an applicant must demonstrate its ability to remain functional in emergency situations, including a demonstration that it has a reasonable amount of back-up power to ensure functionality without an external power source, is able to reroute traffic around damaged facilities, and is capable of managing traffic spikes resulting from emergency situations, § 54.202(a)(2); demonstrate that it will satisfy applicable consumer protection and service quality standards, § 54.202(a)(3). If the common carrier is seeking designation as an eligible telecommunications carrier under section 214(e)(6) for any part of Tribal lands shall provide a copy of its petition to the affected tribal government and tribal regulatory authority, as applicable, at the time it files its petition with the Federal Communications Commission. In addition, the Commission shall send any public notice seeking comment on any petition for designation as an eligible telecommunications carrier on Tribal lands, at the time it is released, the affected tribal government and tribal regulatory authority, as applicable, by the most expeditious means available, § 54.202(c).

OMB Control Number: 3060-1223.

Title: Payment Instructions from the Eligible Entity Seeking Reimbursement from the TV Broadcaster Relocation Fund.

Form Number: FCC Form 1876.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit, not-for-profit institutions and state, local or tribal government.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 1,000 respondents; 2,000 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 3 hours.

Frequency of Response: One-time reporting requirement.

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. Statutory authority for this information collection is contained in the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, Public Law 112-96 (Spectrum Act) § 6403(b)(4)(A).

Total Annual Burden: 6,000 hours.

Total Annual Cost: No Cost.

Privacy Act Impact Assessment: This information collection does not affect individuals or households; thus, there are no impacts under the Privacy Act.

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: The information collection includes information identifying bank accounts and providing account and routing numbers to access those accounts. FCC considers that information to be records not routinely available for public inspection under 47 CFR 0.457, and exempt from disclosure under FOIA exemption 4 (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4)).

Needs and Uses: This collection was approved under the emergency processing provision of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), 5 CFR 1320.13. The Commission is now requesting OMB approval for this information collection for a full three year term. The Spectrum Act requires the Commission to reimburse broadcast television licensees for costs “reasonably incurred” in relocating to new channels assigned in the repacking process and Multichannel Video Programming Distributors (MVPDs) for costs reasonably incurred in order to continue to carry the signals of stations relocating to new channels as a result of the repacking process or a winning reverse auction bid.^[1]

The Commission decided through notice-and-comment rulemaking that it will issue all eligible broadcasters and MVPDs an initial allocation of funds based on estimated costs, which will be available for draw down (from individual accounts in the U.S. Treasury) as the entities incur expenses, followed by a subsequent allocation to the extent necessary. The reason for allowing eligible entities to draw down funds as they incur expenses is to reduce the chance that entities will be unable to finance necessary relocation changes.^[2]

The information collection for which we are requesting approval is necessary for eligible entities to instruct the Commission on how to pay the amounts the entities draw down, and for the entities to make certifications that reduce the risk of waste, fraud, abuse and improper payments.

Federal Communications Commission.

Marlene H. Dortch,

Secretary, Office of the Secretary.

Footnotes

1.  Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, Pubic Law 112-96 (Spectrum Act) § 6403(b)(4)(A)(i), (ii).

2.  Expanding the Economic and Innovation Opportunities of Spectrum Through Incentive Auctions, GN Docket No. 12-268, Report and Order, 29 FCC Rcd 6567 (2014) (“Incentive Auction R&O”) at 609.