81 FR 12490 - Information Collection Being Reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 46 (March 9, 2016)

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. The FCC may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid 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 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 46 (Wednesday, March 9, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12490-12491]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-05274]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[OMB 3060-0798]


Information Collection Being Reviewed by the Federal 
Communications Commission

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 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 FCC may not conduct 
or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently 
valid 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 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
control number.

DATES: Written PRA comments should be submitted on or before May 9, 
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 contact listed below as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES: Direct all PRA comments to Cathy Williams, FCC, via email 
[email protected] and to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information about the 
information collection, contact Cathy Williams at (202) 418-2918.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    OMB Control Number: 3060-0798.
    Title: FCC Application for Radio Service Authorization; Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau; Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau.
    Form Number: FCC Form 601.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Individuals and households; Business or other for-
profit entities; Not-for-profit institutions; and State, local or 
tribal government.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 253,320 respondents and 
253,320 responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 0.5-1.25 hours.
    Frequency of Response: Recordkeeping requirement, third party 
disclosure requirement, on occasion reporting requirement and periodic 
reporting requirement.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The 
statutory authority for this collection of information is contained in 
47 U.S.C. 151, 152, 154, 154(i), 155(c), 157, 201, 202, 208, 214, 301, 
302a, 303, 307, 308, 309, 310, 311, 314, 316, 319, 324, 331, 332, 333, 
336, 534, 535 and 554.
    Total Annual Burden: 222,055 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: $71,306,250.
    Privacy Impact Assessment: Yes.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: In general there is no need 
for confidentiality with this collection of information.
    Needs and Uses: FCC Form 601 is a consolidated, multi-part 
application

[[Page 12491]]

form that is used for market-based and site-based licensing for 
wireless telecommunications services, including public safety licenses, 
which are filed through the Commission's Universal Licensing System 
(ULS). FCC Form 601 is composed of a main form that contains 
administrative information and a series of schedules used for filing 
technical and other information. This form is used to apply for a new 
license, to amend or withdraw a pending application, to modify or renew 
an existing license, cancel a license, request a duplicate license, 
submit required notifications, request an extension of time to satisfy 
construction requirements, or request an administrative update to an 
existing license (such as mailing address change), request a Special 
Temporary Authority or Developmental License. Respondents are 
encouraged to submit FCC Form 601 electronically and are required to do 
so when submitting FCC Form 601 to apply for an authorization for which 
the applicant was the winning bidder in a spectrum auction.
    The data collected on FCC Form 601 includes the FCC Registration 
Number (FRN), which serves as a ``common link'' for all filings an 
entity has with the FCC. The Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 
requires entities filing with the Commission use an FRN.
    On July 20, 2015, the Commission released the Part 1 R&O in which 
it updated many of its Part 1 competitive bidding rules (See Updating 
Part 1 Competitive Bidding Rules; Expanding the Economic and Innovation 
Opportunities of Spectrum Through Incentive Auctions; Petition of 
DIRECTV Group, Inc. and EchoStar LLC for Expedited Rulemaking to Amend 
Section 1.2105(a)(2)(xi) and 1.2106(a) of the Commission's Rules and/or 
for Interim Conditional Waiver; Implementation of the Commercial 
Spectrum Enhancement Act and Modernization of the Commission's 
Competitive Bidding Rules and Procedures, Report and Order, Order on 
Reconsideration of the First Report and Order, Third Order on 
Reconsideration of the Second Report and Order, and Third Report and 
Order, FCC 15-80, 30 FCC Rcd 7493 (2015), modified by Erratum, 30 FCC 
Rcd 8518 (2015) (Part 1 R&O)). Of relevance to the information 
collection at issue here, the Commission: (1) Implemented a new general 
prohibition on the filing of auction applications by entities 
controlled by the same individual or set of individuals (but with a 
limited exception for qualifying rural wireless partnerships); (2) 
modified the eligibility requirements for small business benefits, and 
updated the standardized schedule of small business sizes, including 
the gross revenues thresholds used to determine eligibility; (3) 
established a new bidding credit for eligible rural service providers; 
(4) adopted targeted attribution rules to prevent the unjust enrichment 
of ineligible entities; and (5) adopted rules prohibiting joint bidding 
arrangements with limited exceptions. The updated Part 1 rules apply to 
applicants seeking licenses and permits.
    Additionally, on June 2, 2014 the Commission released the Mobile 
Spectrum Holdings R&O, in which the Commission updated its spectrum 
screen and established rules for its upcoming auctions of low-band 
spectrum. Of relevance to the information collection at issue here, the 
Commission stated that it could reserve spectrum in order to ensure 
against excessive concentration in holdings of below-1-GHz spectrum (In 
the Matter of Policies Regarding Mobile Spectrum Holdings, Expanding 
the Economic and Innovation Opportunities of Spectrum Through Incentive 
Auctions, FCC 14-63, Report and Order, 29 FCC Rcd 6133, 90 ] 135 (2014) 
(Mobile Spectrum Holdings R&O). See also Application Procedures for 
Broadcast Incentive Auction Scheduled to Begin on March 29, 2016; 
Technical Formulas for Competitive Bidding, Public Notice, 30 FCC Rcd 
11034, Appendix 3 (WTB 2015); Wireless Telecommunications Bureau 
Releases Updated List of Reserve-Eligible Nationwide Service Providers 
in each PEA for the Broadcast Incentive Auction, Public Notice, AU No. 
14-252 (WTB 2016).
    The Commission seeks approval for revisions to its previously 
approved collection of information under OMB Control Number 3060-0798 
to permit the collection of the additional information for Commission 
licenses and permits, pursuant to the rules and information collection 
requirements adopted by the Commission in the Part 1 R&O and the Mobile 
Spectrum Holdings R&O. As part of the collection, the Commission is 
seeking approval for the information collection and recordkeeping 
requirements associated with 47 CFR 1.2210(j), 1.2112(b)(2)(iii), 
1.2112(b)(2)(v), 1.2112(b)(2)(vii), and 1.2112(b)(2)(viii). Also, in 
certain circumstances, the Commission requires the applicant to provide 
copies of their agreements and/or submit exhibits.
    In addition, the Commission seeks approval for various other, non-
substantive editorial/consistency edits and updates to FCC Form 601 
that correct inconsistent capitalization of words and other 
typographical errors, and better align the text on the form with the 
text in the Commission rules both generally and in connection with 
recent non-substantive, organizational amendments to the Commission's 
rules.
    The Commission therefore seeks approval for a revision to its 
currently approved information collection on FCC Form 601 to revise FCC 
Form 601 accordingly.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-05274 Filed 3-8-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P