Implementing the Provisions of the Communications Act of 1934, as Enacted by the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, 24632-24634 [2012-9912]

Agencies

• FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 80 (Wednesday, April 25, 2012)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 24632-24634]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-9912]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 14

[CG Docket No. 10-213 and 10-145, WT Docket No. 96-198; FCC 11-151]


Implementing the Provisions of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
Enacted by the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video 
Accessibility Act of 2010

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.

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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 document 
Implementing the Provisions of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
Enacted by the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video 
Accessibility Act of 2010, (Report and Order). This notice is 
consistent with the Report and Order, which stated that the Commission 
would publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the 
effective date of those rules.

DATES: The amendments to 47 CFR 14.5, 14.20(d), 14.31, 14.32, and 14.34 
through 14.52, published at 76 FR 82354, December 30, 2011, are 
effective April 25, 2012.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rosaline Crawford, Disability Rights 
Office, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, at (202) 418-2075, or 
email Rosaline.Crawford@fcc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that, on April 16, 
2012, OMB approved, for a period of three years, the information 
collection requirements contained in the Commission's Report and Order, 
FCC 11-151, published at 76 FR 82354, December 30, 2011. The OMB 
Control Number is 3060-1167. The Commission publishes this notice as an 
announcement of the effective date 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 Cathy Williams, Federal Communications Commission, Room 
1-C823, 445 12th Street SW., Washington, DC 20554. Please include the 
OMB Control Number, 3060-1167, in your correspondence. The Commission 
will also accept your comments via the Internet if you send them to 
PRA@fcc.gov PRA@fcc.gov.
    To request materials in accessible formats for people with 
disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), 
send an email to fcc504@fcc.gov fcc504@fcc.gov 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 OMB approval on 
April 16, 2012, for the information collection requirements contained 
in the Commission's rules at 47 CFR 14.5, 14.20(d), 14.31, 14.32, and 
14.34 through 14.52.
    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 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 3060-1167.
    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: 3060-1167.
    OMB Approval Date: April 16, 2012.
    OMB Expiration Date: April 30, 2015.
    Title: Accessible Telecommunications and Advanced Communications 
Services and Equipment.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Review: New collection.
    Respondents: Individuals or households; businesses or other for-
profit entities; not-for-profit institutions.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 9,454 respondents; 119,660 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: .50 to 40 hours.
    Frequency of Response: Annual, one time, and on occasion reporting 
requirements; recordkeeping requirement; third-party disclosure 
requirement.
    Obligation to Respond: Mandatory. Statutory authority for this 
information

[[Page 24633]]

collection is contained in sections 1-4, 255, 303(r), 403, 503, 716, 
717, and 718 of the Act, 47 U.S.C. 151-154, 255, 303(r), 403, 503, 617, 
618, and 619.
    Total Annual Burden: 408,695 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: $110,588.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: Confidentiality is an issue 
to the extent that individuals and households provide personally 
identifiable information, which is covered under the FCC's system of 
records notice (SORN), FCC/CGB-1, ``Informal Complaints and 
Inquiries.'' As required by the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a, the 
Commission also published a SORN, FCC/CGB-1 ``Informal Complaints and 
Inquiries,'' in the Federal Register on December 15, 2009 (74 FR 66356) 
which became effective on January 25, 2010.
    In addition, upon the service of an informal or formal complaint, a 
service provider or equipment manufacturer must produce to the 
Commission, upon request, records covered by 47 CFR 14.31 of the 
Commission's rules and may assert a statutory request for 
confidentiality for these records. All other information submitted to 
the Commission pursuant to Subpart D of Part 14 of the Commission's 
rules or to any other request by the Commission may be submitted 
pursuant to a request for confidentiality in accordance with 47 CFR 
0.459 of the Commission's rules.
    Privacy Impact Assessment: Yes. The Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) 
was completed on June 28, 2007. It may be reviewed at: <https://www.fcc.gov/omd/privacyact/Privacy_Impact_Assessment.html. 
The Commission is in the process of updating the PIA to incorporate 
various revisions made to the SORN.

    Note:  The Commission will prepare a revision to the SORN and 
PIA to cover the PII collected related to this information 
collection, as required by OMB's Memorandum M-03-22 (September 26, 
2003) and by the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a.

    Needs and Uses: On October 7, 2011, in document FCC 11-151, the 
Commission released a Report and Order adopting final rules to 
implement sections 716 and 717 of the Communications Act of 1934 (the 
Act), as amended, which were added to the Act by the ``Twenty-First 
Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010'' (CVAA). 
See Public Law 111-260, Sec.  104. Section 716 of the Act requires 
providers of advanced communications services and manufacturers of 
equipment used for advanced communications services to make their 
services and equipment accessible to individuals with disabilities, 
unless doing so is not achievable. See 47 U.S.C. 617. Section 717 of 
the Act establishes new recordkeeping requirements and enforcement 
procedures for service providers and equipment manufacturers that are 
subject to sections 255, 716, and 718 of the Act. See 47 U.S.C. 618. 
Section 255 of the Act requires telecommunications and interconnected 
VoIP services and equipment to be accessible, if readily achievable. 
See 47 U.S.C. 255. Section 718 of the Act requires web browsers 
included on mobile phones to be accessible to and usable by individuals 
who are blind or have a visual impairment, unless doing so is not 
achievable. See 47 U.S.C. 619.
    Specifically, the rules adopted in document FCC 11-151 have the 
following possible related information collection requirements:
    (a) The rules adopted in document FCC 11-151 establish procedures 
for advanced communications service providers and equipment 
manufacturers to seek waivers from the accessibility obligations of 
section 716 of the Act and, in effect, waivers from the recordkeeping 
requirements and enforcement procedures of section 717 of the Act. 
Waiver requests may be submitted for individual or class offerings of 
services or equipment which are designed for multiple purposes, but are 
designed primarily for purposes other than using advanced 
communications services. All such waiver petitions will be put on 
public notice for comments and oppositions.
    (b) The CVAA and the rules adopted in document FCC 11-151 require 
service providers and equipment manufacturers that are subject to 
sections 255, 716, or 718 of the Act to maintain records of the 
following: (1) Their efforts to consult with people with disabilities; 
(2) descriptions of the accessibility features of their products and 
services; and (3) information about the compatibility of their products 
with peripheral devices or specialized customer premises equipment 
commonly used by individuals with disabilities to achieve access. These 
recordkeeping requirements are necessary to facilitate enforcement of 
accessibility obligations. Document FCC 11-151 provides flexibility by 
allowing covered entities to keep records in any format, recognizing 
the unique recordkeeping methods of individual entities. Because 
complaints regarding accessibility of a service or equipment may not 
occur for years after the release of the service or equipment, covered 
entities must keep records for two years from the date the service 
ceases to be offered to the public or the equipment ceases to be 
manufactured. Service providers and equipment manufacturers are not 
required to keep records of their consideration of achievability or the 
implementation of accessibility, but they must be prepared to carry 
their burden of proof in any enforcement proceeding, which requires 
greater than conclusory or unsupported claims.
    (c) The CVAA and the rules adopted in document FCC 11-151 require 
an officer of service providers and equipment manufacturers that are 
subject to sections 255, 716, or 718 of the Act to certify annually to 
the Commission that records are kept in accordance with the 
recordkeeping requirements. The certification must be supported with an 
affidavit or declaration under penalty of perjury, signed and dated by 
an authorized officer of the entity with personal knowledge of the 
representations provided in the company's certification, verifying the 
truth and accuracy of the information. The certification must also 
identify the name and contact details of the person or persons within 
the company that are authorized to resolve accessibility complaints, 
and the agent designated for service of process. The certification must 
be filed with the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau on or before 
April 1 each year for records pertaining to the previous calendar year. 
The certification must be updated when necessary to keep the contact 
information current.
    (d) The Commission also established procedures in document FCC 11-
151 to facilitate the filing of formal and informal complaints alleging 
violations of sections 255, 716, or 718 of the Act. Those procedures 
include a nondiscretionary pre-filing notice procedure to facilitate 
dispute resolution. As a prerequisite to filing an informal complaint, 
complainants must first request dispute assistance from the Consumer 
and Governmental Affairs Bureau's Disability Rights Office.
    The rules adopted in document FCC 11-151 temporarily exempt 
advanced communications service providers and equipment manufacturers 
from the accessibility obligations of section 716 of the Act and, in 
effect, from the recordkeeping requirements and enforcement procedures 
of section 717 of the Act, if they qualify as small business concerns 
under the Small Business Administration's (SBA) rules and size 
standards for the industry in which they are primarily engaged. These 
size standards are based on the maximum number of employees or maximum 
annual receipts of a business concern. The SBA categorizes industries 
for its size standards using the North

[[Page 24634]]

American Industry Classification System (NAICS).

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Office of the Managing Director.
[FR Doc. 2012-9912 Filed 4-24-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P