2023-15653. Information Collection Being Submitted for Review and Approval to 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, 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. Pursuant to the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, the FCC seeks specific comment on how it can further reduce the information collection burden for small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees.

DATES:

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be submitted on or before August 24, 2023.

ADDRESSES:

Comments should be sent to www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function. Your comment must be submitted into www.reginfo.gov per the above instructions for it to be considered. In addition to submitting in www.reginfo.gov also send a copy of your comment on the proposed information collection to Cathy Williams, FCC, via email to [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 Cathy Williams at (202) 418–2918. 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 Title of this ICR and then click on the ICR Reference Number. A copy of the FCC submission to OMB will be displayed.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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.

As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burdens, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501–3520), the FCC invited the general public and other Federal Agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the following information collection. Comments are requested concerning: (a) 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; (b) the accuracy of the Commission's burden estimates; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; and (d) 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. Pursuant to the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(4), the FCC seeks specific comment on how it might “further reduce the information collection burden for small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees.”

OMB Control Number: 3060–XXXX.

Title: Empowering Broadband Consumers Through Transparency, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, CG Docket No. 22–2, FCC 22–86 (Broadband Label Order).

Form Number: N/A.

Type of Review: New information collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities.

Number of Respondents: 6,010 respondents; 30,050 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 1.5 to 65 hours.

Frequency of Response: On-occasion reporting requirement and recordkeeping requirement.

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The statutory authority for the information collection requirements is contained in sections 4(i), 4(j), 13, 201(b), 254, 257, 301, 303, 316, and 332 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 154(j), 163, 201(b), 254, 257, 301, 303, 316, 332, section 60504 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Public Law 117–58, 135 Stat. 429 (2021), and section 904 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Public Law 116–260, 134 Stat. 1182 (2020), as amended.

Total Annual Burden: 983,493 hours.

Total Annual Cost: No cost.

Needs and Uses: This notice and request for comments seeks to establish a new information collection as it pertains to Empowering Broadband Consumers Through Transparency, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, published at 87 FR 76959 (Dec. 16, 2022) (Broadband Label Order). The information will be used to implement section 60504(a) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Infrastructure Act). The Infrastructure Act, in relevant part, directed the Commission “[n]ot later than 1 year after the date of enactment of th[e] Act, to promulgate regulations to require the display of broadband consumer labels, as described in the Public Notice of the Commission issued on April 4, 2016 (DA 16–357), to disclose to consumers information regarding broadband internet access service plans.” Further, the Infrastructure Act required that the label “include information regarding whether the offered price is an introductory rate and, if so, the price the consumer will be required to pay following the introductory period.”

On January 27, 2022, the Commission released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, published at 87 FR 6827 (Feb. 7, 2022), initiating a proceeding to implement section 60504 of the Infrastructure Act. Specifically, the Commission proposed to require that broadband internet access service providers (ISPs or providers) display, at the point of sale, labels that disclose to consumers certain information about prices, introductory rates, data allowances, broadband speeds, and management practices, among other things.

On November 14, 2022, the Commission adopted the Broadband Label Order requiring ISPs to display a new broadband label to help consumers comparison shop among broadband services, thereby implementing section 60504 of the Infrastructure Act. Specifically, the Commission required ISPs to display, at the point of sale, a broadband consumer label containing critical information about the provider's service offerings, including information about pricing, introductory rates, data allowances, performance metrics, and whether the provider participates in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The Commission required that ISPs display the label for each stand-alone broadband internet access service they currently offer for purchase, and that the label link to other important information such as network management practices, privacy policies, and other educational materials. Consistent with the Infrastructure Act, the label adopted for fixed and mobile broadband internet access service is similar to the two voluntary labels the Commission approved in 2016, with certain modifications. The label resembles the well-known nutrition labels that consumers have come to rely on when shopping for food products.

In addition to label content, the Commission adopted requirements for the label's format and display location to ensure consumers can make side-by-side comparisons of various service offerings from an individual provider or from alternative providers—something essential for making informed decisions. Labels must be displayed on providers' websites and at alternate sales channels such as retail locations and over the phone. The label must be accessible for people with disabilities and for non-English speakers. Labels must also be available via a customer's online account portal. ISPs shall maintain an archive of all labels for a period of no less than two years from the time the service plan reflected in the label is no longer available for purchase by a new subscriber and the provider has removed the label from its website or alternate sales channels. In addition, third parties will be able to easily analyze information contained in the labels and help consumers with their purchase decisions, as providers are required to make the label content available in a machine-readable format on their websites. Finally, the Commission adopted a label template that all ISPs are required to display at the point of sale. This label establishes the formatting and content of all requirements adopted in the Broadband Label Order.

Federal Communications Commission.

Marlene Dortch,

Secretary, Office of the Secretary.