2020-19947. Expanding Flexible Use of the 3.7 to 4.2 GHz Band

AGENCY:

Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION:

Final rule; announcement of compliance date.

SUMMARY:

In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of Management and Budget has approved the information collection requirements associated with the rules adopted in the Federal Communications Commission's 3.7 GHz Report and Order, FCC 20-22, requiring the Relocation Payment Clearinghouse, the Relocation Coordinator, and the Space Station Operators to disclose status reports and other information regarding costs and procedures of the transition process and its clearing efforts. This document is consistent with the 3.7 GHz Report and Order, FCC 20-22, which states that the Commission will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing a compliance date for the new rule sections.

DATES:

Compliance with 47 CFR 27.1412(b)(3)(i), (d)(2), and (f) through (h); 27.1413(a)(2) and (3), (b), and (c)(3); 27.1414(b)(3), (b)(4)(iii), and (c)(1) through (3) and (6) and (7); 27.1415; 27.1416(a); 27.1417; 27.1421; and 27.1422(c), published at 85 FR 22804 on April 23, 2020, is required on September 16, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Anna Gentry, Mobility Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, at [phone] or [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

This document announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved the information collection requirements in 47 CFR 27.1412(b)(3)(i), (d)(2), and (f) through (h); 27.1413(a)(2) and (3), (b), and (c)(3); 27.1414(b)(3), (b)(4)(iii), and (c)(1) through (3) and (6) and (7); 27.1415; 27.1416(a); 27.1417; 27.1421; and 27.1422(c), on August 28, 2020. These rules were adopted in the 3.7 GHz Report and Order, FCC 20-22, published at 85 FR 22804 on April 23, 2020. The Commission publishes this document as an announcement of the compliance date for these new rules. OMB approval for all other new or amended rules for which OMB approval is required will be requested, and compliance is not yet required for those rules. Compliance with all new or amended rules adopted in the 3.7 GHz Report and Order that do not require OMB approval is required as of June 22, 2020, see 85 FR 22804 (Apr. 23, 2020). If you have any comments on the burden estimates listed below, or how the Commission can improve the collections and reduce any burdens caused thereby, please contact Cathy Williams, Federal Communications Commission, Room 1-C823, 445 12th Street SW, Washington, DC 20554, regarding OMB Control Number 3060-1275. Please include the OMB Control Number in your correspondence. The Commission will also accept your comments via email at [e-mail].

To request materials in accessible formats for people with disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an email to [e-mail] or call the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau at [phone] (voice), [phone] (TTY).

Synopsis

As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507), the Commission is notifying the public that it received final OMB approval on August 28, 2020, for the information collection requirements contained in 47 CFR 27.1412(b)(3)(i), (d)(2), and (f) through (h); 27.1413(a)(2) and (3), (b), and (c)(3); 27.1414(b)(3), (b)(4)(iii), and (c)(1) through (3) and (6) and (7); 27.1415; 27.1416(a); 27.1417; 27.1421; and 27.1422(c) . Under 5 CFR part 1320, an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a current, valid OMB Control Number.

No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act that does not display a current, valid OMB Control Number. The OMB Control Number for the information collection requirements in 47 CFR 27.1412(b)(3)(i), (d)(2), and (f) through (h); 27.1413(a)(2) and (3), (b), and (c)(3); 27.1414(b)(3), (b)(4)(iii), and (c)(1) through (3) and (6) and (7); 27.1415; 27.1416(a); 27.1417; 27.1421; and 27.1422(c) is 3060-1275.

The foregoing notice is required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Pub. L. 104-13, October 1, 1995, and 44 U.S.C. 3507.

The total annual reporting burdens and costs for the respondents are as follows:

OMB Control Number: 3060-1275.

OMB Approval Date: August 28, 2020.

OMB Expiration Date: August 31, 2023.

Title: 3.7 GHz Band Relocation Payment Clearinghouse; 3.7 GHz Band Relocation Coordinator; 3.7 GHz Band Space Station Operators.

Form Number: N/A.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities; Not for profit institutions; State, Local or Tribal Government.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 3,007 respondents; 9,362 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 0.5 hours to 600 hours.

Frequency of Response: Recordkeeping requirement; on occasion, weekly, monthly, quarterly, semi-annul, and annual reporting requirements; third party disclosure requirement.

Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. Statutory authority for this information collection is contained in sections 1, 2, 4(i), 4(j), 5(c), 201, 302, 303, 304, 307(e), 309, 316 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 152, 154(i), 154(j), 155(c), 201, 302, 303, 304, 307(e), 309, 316.

Total Annual Burden: 77,754 hours.

Total Annual Cost: $10,705,353.

Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: The information collected under this collection will be made publicly available. However, to the extent information submitted pursuant to this information collection is determined to be confidential, it will be protected by the Commission. If a respondent seeks to have information collected pursuant to this information collection withheld from public inspection, the respondent may request confidential treatment pursuant to § 0.459 of the Commission's rules for such information.

Needs and Uses: On February 28, 2020, in furtherance of the goal of releasing more mid-band spectrum into the market to support and enable next-generation wireless networks, the Commission adopted a Report and Order, FCC 20-22 (3.7 GHz Report and Order) in which it reformed the use of the 3.7-4.2 GHz band, also known as the C-Band. The 3.7-4.2 GHz band currently is allocated in the United States exclusively for non-Federal use on a primary basis for Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) and Fixed Service. Domestically, space station operators use the 3.7-4.2 GHz band to provide downlink signals of various bandwidths to licensed transmit-receive, registered receive-only, and unregistered receive-only earth stations throughout the United States. The 3.7 GHz Report and Order calls for the relocation of existing FSS operations in the band into the upper 200 megahertz of the band (4.0-4.2 GHz) and making the lower 280 megahertz (3.7-3.98 GHz) available for flexible-use throughout the contiguous United States through a Commission-administered public auction of overlay licenses in the 3.7 GHz Service that is scheduled to occur later this year, with the 20 megahertz from 3.98-4.0 GHz reserved as a guard band. The Commission adopted a robust transition schedule to achieve an expeditious relocation of FSS operations and ensure that a significant amount of spectrum is made available quickly for next-generation wireless deployments, while also ensuring effective accommodation of relocated incumbent users. The 3.7 GHz Report and Order establishes a deadline of December 5, 2025, for full relocation to ensure that all FSS operations are cleared in a timely manner, but provides an opportunity for accelerated clearing of the band by allowing incumbent space station operators, as defined in the 3.7 GHz Report and Order, to commit to voluntarily relocate on a two-phased accelerated schedule (with additional obligations and incentives for such operators), with a Phase I deadline of December 5, 2021, and a Phase II deadline of December 5, 2023.

The Commission concluded in the 3.7 GHz Report and Order that a neutral, independent third-party Relocation Payment Clearinghouse (RPC) should be established to administer the cost-related aspects of the transition in a fair, transparent manner, mitigate financial disputes among stakeholders, and collect and distribute payments in a timely manner to transition incumbent space station operators out of the 3.7-3.98 GHz band. The Commission also concluded that a Relocation Coordinator (RC) should be appointed to ensure that all incumbent space station operators are relocating in a timely manner, and to be responsible for receiving notice from earth station operators or other satellite customers of any disputes related to comparability of facilities, workmanship, or preservation of service during the transition and notify the Commission of disputes and recommendations for resolution.

To ensure that 3.7-4.2 GHz band stakeholders adopt practices and standards in their operations to ensure an effective, efficient, and streamlined transition, the RPC, the RC, and the Space Station Operators (SSOs) are required to disclose status reports and other information regarding costs and procedures of the transition process and its clearing efforts.

The information required in this collection will be used to ensure that the process of clearing the lower portion of the band is efficient and timely, so that the spectrum can be auctioned for flexible-use service licenses and deployed for next-generation wireless services, including 5G, as quickly as possible. The collection is also necessary for the Commission to satisfy its oversight responsibilities and/or agency specific/government-wide reporting obligations. Under this new information collection, the RPC, the RC, and the SSOs will make the required disclosures of status reports and other information required by the Commission.

Federal Communications Commission.

Marlene Dortch,

Secretary.