81 FR 486 - Information Collections Being Submitted for Review and Approval to the Office of Management and Budget

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 3 (January 6, 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 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.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 3 (Wednesday, January 6, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 486-487]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-33239]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[OMB 3060-0741]


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.

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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 February 5, 
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 [email protected]; and to Nicole Ongele, FCC, via 
email [email protected] and to [email protected]. 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 Nicole Ongele at (202) 418-2991. 
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 Number: 3060-0741.
    Title: Technology Transitions, GN Docket No. 13-5, et al.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Review: Revision of currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 5,357 respondents; 573,767 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 0.5-8 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirements; 
recordkeeping; third party disclosure.
    Total Annual Burden: 575,840 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: No cost.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. 
Statutory authority is contained in 47 U.S.C. 222 and 251.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: The Commission is not 
requesting that the respondents submit confidential information to the 
FCC. Respondents may, however, request confidential treatment for 
information they believe to be confidential under 47 CFR 0.459 of the 
Commission's rules.
    Privacy Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Needs and Uses: Section 251 of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended, 47 U.S.C. 251, is designed to accelerate private sector 
development and deployment of telecommunications technologies and 
services by spurring competition. Section 222(e) is also designed to 
spur competition by prescribing requirements for the sharing of 
subscriber list information. These OMB collections are designed to help 
implement certain provisions of sections 222(e) and 251, and to 
eliminate operational barriers to competition in the telecommunications 
services market. Specifically, these OMB collections will be used to 
implement (1) local exchange carriers' (``LECs'') obligations to 
provide their competitors with dialing parity and non-discriminatory 
access to certain services and functionalities; (2) incumbent local 
exchange carriers' (``ILECs'') duty to make network information 
disclosures; and (3) numbering administration. The Commission estimates 
that the total annual burden of the entire collection, as revised, is 
575,840 hours. This revision relates to a change in one of many 
components of the currently approved collection--specifically, certain 
reporting, recordkeeping and/or third party disclosure requirements 
under section 251(c)(5). In August 2015, the Commission adopted new 
rules concerning certain information collection requirements 
implemented under section 251(c)(5) of the Act, pertaining to network 
change disclosures. The changes to those rules apply specifically to a 
certain subset of network change disclosures, namely

[[Page 487]]

notices of planned copper retirements. The changes are designed to 
provide interconnecting entities adequate time to prepare their 
networks for the planned copper retirements and to ensure that 
consumers are able to make informed choices. There is also a change in 
the number of potential respondents to the rules promulgated under that 
section. The number of respondents as to the information collection 
requirements implemented under section 251(c)(5) of the Act, has 
changed from 1,300 to 750, a decrease of 550 respondents from the 
previous submission. Under section 251(f)(1) of the Act, rural 
telephone companies are exempt from the requirements of section 251(c) 
``until (i) such company has received a bona fide request for 
interconnection, services, or network elements, and (ii) the State 
commission determines . . . that such request is not unduly 
economically burdensome, is technically feasible, and is consistent 
with section 254. . . .'' The Commission has determined that the number 
of potential respondents set forth in the previous submission 
inadvertently failed to take this exemption into account. There are 
1,429 ILECs nationwide. Of those, 87 are non-rural ILECs and 1,342 are 
rural ILECs. The Commission estimates that of the 1,342 rural ILECs, 
679 are entitled to the exemption and 663 are not entitled to the 
exemption and thus must comply with rules promulgated under section 
251(c) of the Act, including the rules that are the subject of this 
information collection. Thus, the Commission estimates that there are 
87 (non-rural) + 663 (rural) = 750 potential respondents. The 
Commission estimates that the revision does not result in any 
additional outlays of funds for hiring outside contractors or procuring 
equipment.

Federal Communications Commission.
Sheryl D. Todd,
Deputy Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-33239 Filed 1-5-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6712-01-P