82 FR 28410 - Disruptions to Communications

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 119 (June 22, 2017)

In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, the information collection associated with the Commission's Report and Order and Order on Reconsideration (Order)'s rules. This document is consistent with the Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of those rules.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 119 (Thursday, June 22, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 28410-28411]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-12877]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 4

[PS Docket Nos. 15-80, 11-82, ET Docket No. 04-35, FCC 16-63]


Disruptions to Communications

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective dates.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, 
the information collection associated with the Commission's Report and 
Order and Order on Reconsideration (Order)'s rules. This document is 
consistent with the Order, which stated that the Commission would 
publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective 
date of those rules.

DATES: 
    Effective dates: The amendments to 47 CFR 4.7(d) and (e)(2), and 
4.9 (a)(2), the second sentence in paragraph (a)(4), the second and 
sixth sentence in paragraph (b), (e), (f)(2), and the second sentence 
in paragraph (f)(4) published at 81 FR 45055, July 12, 2016, are 
effective August 1, 2017. The amendments to 47 CFR 4.5(b) published at 
81 FR 45055, July 12, 2016, are effective June 22, 2017. The amendments 
to 47 CFR 4.5(c) published at 81 FR 45055, July 12, 2016, are effective 
July 24, 2017.
    Compliance dates:
     For reporting of critical communications outages 
potentially affecting airports, July 24, 2017.
     For use of OC3-based metric for reporting major transport 
facility outages, with a corresponding threshold of 667 OC3 minutes for 
30 minutes, February 1, 2018.
     For reporting of simplex outages that persist for at least 
96 hours, December 22, 2017.
     For use of revised methodology to calculate the number of 
potentially affected users for wireless network outages, and use of 
adopted methodology to estimate the number of potentially affected 
wireless users for wireless outages affecting a PSAP, May 1, 2018.
     For adherence to the clarified standard for outages that 
significantly degrade communications to PSAPs, June 22, 2018.
     For reporting of events impacting special offices and 
facilities enrolled in the TSP Program as Level 1 or Level 2, and 
disruptions impacting airports listed as current primary (PR) airports 
in the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airports Systems, December 22, 
2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brenda Villanueva, Cybersecurity and 
Communications Reliability Division, Public Safety and Homeland 
Security Bureau, at (202) 418-7005, or email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that, on January 17, 
2017, OMB approved, for a period of three years, the information 
collection requirements relating to the outage reporting rules 
contained in the Commission's Order, FCC 16-63, published at 81 FR 
45055, July 12, 2016. The OMB Control Number is 3060-0484. The 
Commission publishes this document as an announcement of the effective 
dates of the rules. 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 Nicole Ongele, 
Federal Communications Commission, Room 1-C823, 445 12th Street SW., 
Washington, DC 20554. Please include the OMB Control Number, 3060-0484, 
in your correspondence. The Commission will also accept your comments 
via email at [email protected].
    To request materials in accessible formats for people with 
disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), 
send an email to [email protected] or call the Consumer and Governmental 
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY).

Synopsis

    As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3507), the FCC is notifying the public that it received final OMB 
approval on January 17, 2017, for the information collection 
requirements contained in the modifications to the Commission's rules 
in 47 CFR part 4.
    Under 5 CFR 1320, an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection 
of information unless it displays a current, valid OMB Control Number. 
No person

[[Page 28411]]

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 is 
3060-0484. The foregoing notice is required by the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, Public Law 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: 3060-0484.
    OMB Approval Date: January 17, 2017.
    OMB Expiration Date: January 31, 2020.
    Title: Part 4 of the Commission's Rules Concerning Disruptions to 
Communications.
    Form Number: Not applicable.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities; not-for-profit 
institutions.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 798 respondents; 13,012 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 2 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion and annual reporting 
requirements, recordkeeping requirement and third party disclosure.
    Obligation to Respond: Mandatory. Statutory authority for this 
information collection is contained in 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i)-(j) & (o), 
201(b), 214(d), 218, 251(e)(3), 301, 303(b), 303(g), 303(r), 307, 
309(a), 316, 332, 403, 615a-1, and 615c. Total Annual Burden: 25,006 
hours.
    Total Annual Cost: No cost.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: In accordance with 47 CFR 
4.2, reports and information contained therein are presumed 
confidential. The filings are shared with the Department of Homeland 
Security through a password-protected real time access to NORS. Other 
persons seeking disclosure must follow the procedures delineated in 47 
CFR 0.457 and 0.459 of the Commission's rules for requests for and 
disclosure of information. The revisions noted in this information 
collection do not affect the confidential treatment of information 
provided to the Commission through outage reports filed in NORS.
    Privacy Act: No impact(s).
    Needs and Uses: On May 26, 2016, the Commission adopted a Report 
and Order, Order on Reconsideration, and Further Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking, PS Docket Nos. 15-80, 11-60, and ET Docket No. 04-35; FCC 
16-63 (The Report and Order and Order on Reconsideration) adopting 
final and proposed rules. The information to be collected pertains to 
final rules summarized and published in the Federal Register on July 
12, 2016, 81 FR 45055. The general purpose of the Commission's Part 4 
rules is to gather sufficient information regarding disruptions to 
telecommunications to facilitate FCC monitoring, analysis, and 
investigation of the reliability and security of voice, paging, and 
interconnected VoIP communications services, and to identify and act on 
potential threats to our Nation's telecommunications infrastructure. 
The Commission uses this information collection to identify the 
duration, magnitude, root causes, and contributing factors with respect 
to significant outages, and to identify outage trends; support service 
restoration efforts; and help coordinate with public safety officials 
during times of crisis. The Commission also maintains an ongoing 
dialogue with reporting entities, as well as with the communications 
industry at large, generally regarding lessons learned from the 
information collection in order to foster a better understanding of the 
root causes of significant outages, and to explore preventive measures 
in the future so as to mitigate the potential scale and impact of such 
outages.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-12877 Filed 6-21-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6712-01-P