Misuse of Internet Protocol (IP) Captioned Telephone Service; Telecommunications Relay Services and Speech-to-Speech Services for Individuals With Hearing and Speech Disabilities, 8030-8032 [2013-02367]
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8030
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 24 / Tuesday, February 5, 2013 / Rules and Regulations
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 64
[CG Docket Nos. 13–24 and 03–123; FCC
13–13]
Misuse of Internet Protocol (IP)
Captioned Telephone Service;
Telecommunications Relay Services
and Speech-to-Speech Services for
Individuals With Hearing and Speech
Disabilities
Federal Communications
Commission.
ACTION: Final rule; interpretation.
AGENCY:
In this document, the
Commission adopts a final interpretive
rule modification to clarify its
Telecommunications Relay Service
(TRS) payment rule to explicitly provide
that the Interstate TRS Fund (Fund or
TRS Fund) administrator shall not be
obligated to pay any request for
compensation until it has been
established as compensable. The
Commission’s action is intended
preserve the integrity and viability of
the TRS Fund by ensuring that
obligations are not incurred prior to the
Fund administrator or the Commission
has determined that requests for
payment are compensable. Because this
is an interpretive rule modification, it is
not subject to notice and comment
procedures.
SUMMARY:
DATES:
Effective March 7, 2013.
Eliot
Greenwald, Consumer and
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Disability
Rights Office, at (202) 418–2235 or
email Eliot.Greenwald@fcc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a
summary of the Commission’s Order,
document FCC 13–13, adopted on
January 24, 2013 and released on
January 25, 2013, in CG Docket Nos. 13–
24 and 03–123. In document FCC 13–13,
the Commission also adopted an Interim
Rule and a Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking, each of which is
summarized in a separate Federal
Register publication. The full text of
document FCC 13–13 will be available
for public inspection and copying via
ECFS, and during regular business
hours at the FCC Reference Information
Center, Portals II, 445 12th Street SW.,
Room CY–A257, Washington, DC 20554.
It also may be purchased from the
Commission’s duplicating contractor,
Best Copy and Printing, Inc., Portals II,
445 12th Street, SW., Room CY–B402,
Washington, DC 20554, telephone: (800)
378–3160, fax: (202) 488–5563, or
Internet: www.bcpiweb.com. Document
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
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Jkt 229001
FCC 13–13 can also be downloaded in
Word or Portable Document Format
(PDF) at https://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/
trs.html#orders. To request materials in
accessible formats for people with
disabilities (Braille, large print,
electronic files, audio format), send an
email to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the
Consumer and Governmental Affairs
Bureau at 202–418–0530 (voice), 202–
418–0432 (TTY).
Final Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
Analysis
Document FCC 13–13, final rule, does
not contain new or modified
information collection requirements
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995 (PRA), Public Law 104–13. In
addition, therefore, it does not contain
any new or modified information
collection burden for small business
concerns with fewer than 25 employees,
pursuant to the Small Business
Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public
Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(4).
Synopsis
1. In document FCC 13–13, the
Commission reminds TRS providers
that, under existing law, they are not
entitled to collect payment from the
TRS Fund for service that does not
constitute compensable TRS under the
statute and our rules. TRS is defined as
‘‘telephone transmission services that
provide the ability for an individual
who is deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind,
or who has a speech disability to engage
in communication by wire or radio with
one or more individuals, in a manner
that is functionally equivalent to the
ability of a hearing individual who does
not have a speech disability to
communicate using voice
communication services by wire or
radio.’’ 47 U.S.C. 225(a)(3). Payments to
TRS providers are based on total
monthly TRS minutes of use.
§§ 64.601(a)(21), 64.604(c)(5)(iii)(E) of
the Commission’s rules. See also Publix
Network Corp.; Customer Attendants,
LLC; Revenue Controls Corp.; Revenue
Controls Corp.; SignTel, Inc.; and Focus
Group, LLC, Order to Show Cause and
Notice of Opportunity for Hearing, 17
FCC Rcd 11487, 11495, paragraph 19
(2002) (Publix).
2. Thus, service to a user who is not
‘‘deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind, or
who [does not have] a speech
disability,’’ or service that otherwise
does not meet the requirements in the
Commission’s rules and orders, does not
qualify for reimbursement from the TRS
Fund. Therefore, the Commission may,
for example, request providers to submit
to the Commission a description of the
reasonable practices they are using to
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Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
ensure that they are not requesting
payment from the TRS Fund for service
that does not constitute compensable
TRS. Providers whose submissions do
not adequately establish that they are
requesting compensation only for
service to eligible users may be denied
compensation for IP CTS minutes.
3. To address any possible ambiguity
in the Commission’s existing rules as to
when TRS providers are entitled to
compensation, the Commission amends
§ 64.604(c)(5)(iii)(E) of its rules
(governing payments to TRS providers)
to clarify that the Fund administrator
shall not be obligated to pay any request
for compensation until it has been
established as compensable. A request
will be established as compensable only
after the administrator or the
Commission determines that the
provider has met its burden to
demonstrate that the claim is properly
compensable under these rules and the
procedures established by the
administrator in consultation with the
Commission. The Commission clarifies
that any request for compensation for
which payment has been suspended or
withheld in accordance with 47 CFR
64.604(c)(5)(iii)(L) will not be
considered compensable until the
administrator, in consultation with the
Commission, or the Commission on its
own makes a final determination that
the request is compensable in
accordance with that provision. Because
this revision to § 64.604 of the
Commission’s rules does not impose
new substantive rules but rather
clarifies existing rules, it constitutes an
interpretive rule for which the
Commission need not provide prior
notice and obtain public comment. See
5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A). See also Syncor
Intern. Corp. v. Shalala, 127 F.3d 90, 94
(DC Cir. 1997) (‘‘an interpretive rule can
construe an agency’s substantive
regulation as well as a statute’’).
Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
4. The Regulatory Flexibility Act
(RFA), 5 U.S.C. 603, requires that an
agency prepare a regulatory flexibility
analysis for notice-and-comment
rulemaking proceedings, unless the
agency certifies that ‘‘the rule will not,
if promulgated, have a significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities.’’ 5 U.S.C.
605(b). The RFA generally defines
‘‘small entity’’ as having the same
meaning as the terms ‘‘small business,’’
‘‘small organization,’’ and ‘‘small
governmental jurisdiction.’’ 5 U.S.C.
601(6). In addition, the term ‘‘small
business’’ has the same meaning as the
term ‘‘small business concern’’ under
the Small Business Act. 5 U.S.C. 601(3).
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 24 / Tuesday, February 5, 2013 / Rules and Regulations
A ‘‘small business concern’’ is one
which: (1) Is independently owned and
operated; (2) is not dominant in its field
of operation; and (3) satisfies any
additional criteria established by the
Small Business Administration (SBA).
15 U.S.C. 632.
5. In document FCC 13–13, to
preserve the integrity and viability of
the TRS Fund by ensuring that
obligations are not incurred prior to the
Fund administrator or the Commission
has determined that requests for
payment are compensable, the
Commission adopts a final rule
amending § 64.604(c)(5)(iii)(E) of its
rules (governing payments to TRS
providers) to clarify that the TRS Fund
administrator shall not be obligated to
pay any request for compensation until
it has been established as compensable.
As a result, a request will be established
as compensable only after the
administrator or the Commission
determines that the provider has met its
burden to demonstrate that the claim is
properly compensable under the rules
and the procedures established by the
administrator in consultation with the
Commission. Because this revision to
§ 64.604 of the Commission’s rules does
not impose new substantive rules but
rather clarifies existing rules, it
constitutes an interpretive rule for
which the Commission need not
provide prior notice and obtain public
comment. See 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A). See
also Syncor Intern. Corp. v. Shalala, 127
F.3d 90, 94 (DC Cir. 1997) (‘‘an
interpretive rule can construe an
agency’s substantive regulation as well
as a statute’’).
6. With regard to the criterion of the
economic impact of document FCC 13–
13, the Commission concludes that IP
CTS providers fit within the business
classification of Wired
Telecommunications Carriers. See
NAICS Code 517110 (2007). The closest
applicable size standard under the SBA
rules is for Wired Telecommunications
Carriers, for which the small business
size standard is all such firms having
1,500 or fewer employees. 13 CFR
121.201, NAICS Code 517110 (2007).
Collectively, there are four IP CTS
providers that are authorized by the
Commission to offer these services.
Only one of these entities is a small
business under the SBA size standard.
Therefore, the interim rules would not
have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities.
7. The Commission therefore certifies,
pursuant to the RFA, that the interim
rules adopted in document FCC 13–13
will not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small
entities. The Commission will send a
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14:35 Feb 04, 2013
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copy of document FCC 13–13, including
a copy of the RFA certification, to the
Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the SBA.
Congressional Review Act
8. The Commission will send a copy
of document FCC 13–13 in a report to
be sent to Congress and the Government
Accountability Office pursuant to the
Congressional Review Act. 5 U.S.C.
801(a)(1)(A).
Ordering Clauses
9. Pursuant to sections 1, 2, 4(i) and
(j) and 225 of the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 152,
154(i) and (j) and 225, document FCC
13–13 is hereby adopted.
List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 64
Individuals with disabilities,
Telecommunications.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
Final Rule Changes
For the reasons discussed in the
preamble, the Federal Communications
Commission amends 47 CFR part 64 as
follows:
PART 64—MISCELLANEOUS RULES
RELATING TO COMMON CARRIERS
1. The authority citation to part 64
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 254(k);
403(b)(2)(B), (c), Pub. L. 104–104, 110 Stat.
56. Interpret or apply 47 U.S.C. 201, 218, 222,
225, 226, 227, 228, 254(k), 616, 620, and the
Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act
of 2012, Pub. L. 112–96, unless otherwise
noted.
2. Amend § 64.604 by revising
paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(E) to read as
follows:
■
§ 64.604
Mandatory minimum standards.
*
*
*
*
*
(c) * * *
(5) * * *
(iii) * * *
(E) Payments to TRS providers. (1)
TRS Fund payments shall be distributed
to TRS providers based on formulas
approved or modified by the
Commission. The administrator shall
file schedules of payment formulas with
the Commission. Such formulas shall be
designed to compensate TRS providers
for reasonable costs of providing
interstate TRS, and shall be subject to
Commission approval. Such formulas
shall be based on total monthly
interstate TRS minutes of use. The
formulas should appropriately
compensate interstate providers for the
provision of TRS, whether intrastate or
interstate.
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(2) TRS minutes of use for purposes
of interstate cost recovery under the
TRS Fund are defined as the minutes of
use for completed interstate TRS calls
placed through the TRS center
beginning after call set-up and
concluding after the last message call
unit.
(3) In addition to the data required
under paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C) of this
section, all TRS providers, including
providers who are not interexchange
carriers, local exchange carriers, or
certified state relay providers, must
submit reports of interstate TRS minutes
of use to the administrator in order to
receive payments.
(4) The administrator shall establish
procedures to verify payment claims,
and may suspend or delay payments to
a TRS provider if the TRS provider fails
to provide adequate verification of
payment upon reasonable request, or if
directed by the Commission to do so.
The TRS Fund administrator shall make
payments only to eligible TRS providers
operating pursuant to the mandatory
minimum standards as required in this
section, and after disbursements to the
administrator for reasonable expenses
incurred by it in connection with TRS
Fund administration. TRS providers
receiving payments shall file a form
prescribed by the administrator. The
administrator shall fashion a form that
is consistent with 47 CFR parts 32 and
36 procedures reasonably tailored to
meet the needs of TRS providers.
(5) The Commission shall have
authority to audit providers and have
access to all data, including carrier
specific data, collected by the fund
administrator. The fund administrator
shall have authority to audit TRS
providers reporting data to the
administrator.
(6) The administrator shall not be
obligated to pay any request for
compensation until it has been
established as compensable. A request
shall be established as compensable
only after the administrator, in
consultation with the Commission, or
the Commission determines that the
provider has met its burden to
demonstrate that the claim is
compensable under applicable
Commission rules and the procedures
established by the administrator. Any
request for compensation for which
payment has been suspended or
withheld in accordance with paragraph
(c)(5)(iii)(L) of this section shall not be
established as compensable until the
administrator, in consultation with the
Commission, or the Commission
determines that the request is
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 24 / Tuesday, February 5, 2013 / Rules and Regulations
compensable in accordance with
paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(L)(4) of this section.
*
*
*
*
*
[FR Doc. 2013–02367 Filed 2–1–13; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 6712–01–P
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 64
[CG Docket Nos. 13–24 and 03–123; FCC
13–13]
Misuse of Internet Protocol (IP)
Captioned Telephone Service;
Telecommunications Relay Services
and Speech-to-Speech Services for
Individuals With Hearing and Speech
Disabilities
Federal Communications
Commission.
ACTION: Interim rule.
AGENCY:
In this document, the
Commission adopts interim rules
prohibiting all referrals for rewards
programs (as described in the synopsis
below) and any other form of direct or
indirect inducements, financial or
otherwise, to subscribe to or use, or
encourage subscription to or use of,
Internet Protocol Captioned Telephone
Service (IP CTS); requiring each IP CTS
provider, as a precondition to providing
service to new IP CTS users, to register
each new IP CTS user, to obtain from
the user, as part of the registration
process, self-certification that the user
has a hearing loss that necessitates IP
CTS to communicate in a manner that
is functionally equivalent to
communication by conventional voice
telephone users, and where the
consumer accepts IP CTS equipment at
a price below $75 from any source other
than a governmental program, to also
obtain from the user a certification from
an independent, third party professional
attesting to the same; and requiring IP
CTS providers to ensure that equipment
and software used in conjunction with
their service have a default setting of
captions off at the beginning of each
call, so that the consumer must take an
affirmative step to turn on the captions
each time the consumer wishes to use
IP CTS. The Commission’s action is
intended to address certain practices
related to the provision and marketing
of IP CTS that appear to be contributing
to a recent and dramatic spike in
reimbursement requests to the Interstate
Telecommunications Relay Service
Fund (TRS Fund or Fund), of sufficient
magnitude to constitute a serious threat
to the Fund if not promptly and
decisively addressed.
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SUMMARY:
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14:35 Feb 04, 2013
Jkt 229001
Effective February 5, 2013,
except the amendments to
§ 64.604(c)(10) of the Commission’s
rules which is effective March 7, 2013.
and 64.604(c)(9) of the Commission’s
rules which contain new information
collection requirements that have not
been approved by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB). This
amendment will become effective upon
publication in the Federal Register of a
notice announcing the approval of such
requirements by the Office of
Management and Budget under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The
Commission will publish a separate
document in the Federal Register
announcing the effective date.
DATES:
Eliot
Greenwald, Consumer and
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Disability
Rights Office, at (202) 418–2235 or
email Eliot.Greenwald@fcc.gov. For
additional information concerning the
PRA information collection
requirements contained in document
FCC 13–13, contact Cathy Williams at
(202) 418–2918, or email:
Cathy.Williams@fcc.gov and
PRA@fcc.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
This is a
summary of the Commission’s Order,
document FCC 13–13, adopted on
January 24, 2013 and released on
January 25, 2013, in CG Docket Nos. 13–
24 and 03–123. In document FCC 13–13,
the Commission also adopted a Final
Rule and a Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking, each of which is
summarized in a separate Federal
Register publication. The full text of
document FCC 13–13 will be available
for public inspection and copying via
ECFS, and during regular business
hours at the FCC Reference Information
Center, Portals II, 445 12th Street SW.,
Room CY–A257, Washington, DC 20554.
It also may be purchased from the
Commission’s duplicating contractor,
Best Copy and Printing, Inc., Portals II,
445 12th Street SW., Room CY–B402,
Washington, DC 20554, telephone: (800)
378–3160, fax: (202) 488–5563, or
Internet: www.bcpiweb.com. Document
FCC 13–13 can also be downloaded in
Word or Portable Document Format
(PDF) at https://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/
trs.html#orders. To request materials in
accessible formats for people with
disabilities (Braille, large print,
electronic files, audio format), send an
email to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the
Consumer and Governmental Affairs
Bureau at 202–418–0530 (voice), 202–
418–0432 (TTY).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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Fmt 4700
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Final Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
Analysis
Document FCC 13–13 contains new
information collection requirements.
The Commission, as part of its
continuing effort to reduce paperwork
burdens, will invite the general public
to comment on the information
collection requirements contained in
document FCC 13–13 as required by the
PRA of 1995, Public Law 104–13 in a
separate notice that will be published in
the Federal Register. In addition,
pursuant to the Small Business
Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public
Law 107–198, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(4), the
Commission seeks specific comment on
how the Commission might further
reduce the information collection
burden for small business concerns with
fewer than 25 employees. In this present
document, the Commission has assessed
the effects of imposing various
requirements on IP CTS providers and
on consumers of IP CTS. The
Commission recognizes that these
requirements are necessary to detect and
prevent abuse and waste in the IP CTS
program. The Commission takes these
actions to ensure the sustainability of
the program upon which individuals
with hearing disabilities have come to
rely for their daily communication
needs. In doing so, the Commission has
balanced preserving the sustainability of
the IP CTS program and minimizing the
information collection burden for
consumers and small business concerns,
including those small businesses with
fewer than 25 employees. For example,
in adopting requirements for IP CTS
providers, in order to be eligible for
compensation from the TRS Fund for
providing service to new IP CTS users,
to register the users and obtain from the
users certification of hearing loss
necessitating use of IP CTS, the rule
affords considerable flexibility by
allowing those consumers who have
purchased their IP CTS equipment for
$75 or more, or obtained equipment
from a governmental program, to selfcertify as to their hearing loss.
Nevertheless, such procedures are
necessary to limit use of IP CTS to those
who actually have a hearing loss that
necessitates use of the service.
Synopsis
1. In document FCC 13–13, the
Commission takes immediate, interim
steps to address certain practices related
to the provision and marketing of IP
CTS that appear to be contributing to a
recent and dramatic spike in
reimbursement requests to the TRS
Fund, of sufficient magnitude to
constitute a serious threat to the Fund
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 24 (Tuesday, February 5, 2013)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 8030-8032]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-02367]
[[Page 8030]]
=======================================================================
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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 64
[CG Docket Nos. 13-24 and 03-123; FCC 13-13]
Misuse of Internet Protocol (IP) Captioned Telephone Service;
Telecommunications Relay Services and Speech-to-Speech Services for
Individuals With Hearing and Speech Disabilities
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Final rule; interpretation.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission adopts a final interpretive
rule modification to clarify its Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS)
payment rule to explicitly provide that the Interstate TRS Fund (Fund
or TRS Fund) administrator shall not be obligated to pay any request
for compensation until it has been established as compensable. The
Commission's action is intended preserve the integrity and viability of
the TRS Fund by ensuring that obligations are not incurred prior to the
Fund administrator or the Commission has determined that requests for
payment are compensable. Because this is an interpretive rule
modification, it is not subject to notice and comment procedures.
DATES: Effective March 7, 2013.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eliot Greenwald, Consumer and
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Disability Rights Office, at (202) 418-
2235 or email Eliot.Greenwald@fcc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Order,
document FCC 13-13, adopted on January 24, 2013 and released on January
25, 2013, in CG Docket Nos. 13-24 and 03-123. In document FCC 13-13,
the Commission also adopted an Interim Rule and a Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking, each of which is summarized in a separate Federal Register
publication. The full text of document FCC 13-13 will be available for
public inspection and copying via ECFS, and during regular business
hours at the FCC Reference Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th
Street SW., Room CY-A257, Washington, DC 20554. It also may be
purchased from the Commission's duplicating contractor, Best Copy and
Printing, Inc., Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402,
Washington, DC 20554, telephone: (800) 378-3160, fax: (202) 488-5563,
or Internet: www.bcpiweb.com. Document FCC 13-13 can also be downloaded
in Word or Portable Document Format (PDF) at https://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/trs.html#orders. To request materials in accessible formats for
people with disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio
format), send an email to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the Consumer and
Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 (voice), 202-418-0432
(TTY).
Final Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 Analysis
Document FCC 13-13, final rule, does not contain new or modified
information collection requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995 (PRA), Public Law 104-13. In addition, therefore, it does
not contain any new or modified information collection burden for small
business concerns with fewer than 25 employees, pursuant to the Small
Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public Law 107-198, see 44
U.S.C. 3506(c)(4).
Synopsis
1. In document FCC 13-13, the Commission reminds TRS providers
that, under existing law, they are not entitled to collect payment from
the TRS Fund for service that does not constitute compensable TRS under
the statute and our rules. TRS is defined as ``telephone transmission
services that provide the ability for an individual who is deaf, hard
of hearing, deaf-blind, or who has a speech disability to engage in
communication by wire or radio with one or more individuals, in a
manner that is functionally equivalent to the ability of a hearing
individual who does not have a speech disability to communicate using
voice communication services by wire or radio.'' 47 U.S.C. 225(a)(3).
Payments to TRS providers are based on total monthly TRS minutes of
use. Sec. Sec. 64.601(a)(21), 64.604(c)(5)(iii)(E) of the Commission's
rules. See also Publix Network Corp.; Customer Attendants, LLC; Revenue
Controls Corp.; Revenue Controls Corp.; SignTel, Inc.; and Focus Group,
LLC, Order to Show Cause and Notice of Opportunity for Hearing, 17 FCC
Rcd 11487, 11495, paragraph 19 (2002) (Publix).
2. Thus, service to a user who is not ``deaf, hard of hearing,
deaf-blind, or who [does not have] a speech disability,'' or service
that otherwise does not meet the requirements in the Commission's rules
and orders, does not qualify for reimbursement from the TRS Fund.
Therefore, the Commission may, for example, request providers to submit
to the Commission a description of the reasonable practices they are
using to ensure that they are not requesting payment from the TRS Fund
for service that does not constitute compensable TRS. Providers whose
submissions do not adequately establish that they are requesting
compensation only for service to eligible users may be denied
compensation for IP CTS minutes.
3. To address any possible ambiguity in the Commission's existing
rules as to when TRS providers are entitled to compensation, the
Commission amends Sec. 64.604(c)(5)(iii)(E) of its rules (governing
payments to TRS providers) to clarify that the Fund administrator shall
not be obligated to pay any request for compensation until it has been
established as compensable. A request will be established as
compensable only after the administrator or the Commission determines
that the provider has met its burden to demonstrate that the claim is
properly compensable under these rules and the procedures established
by the administrator in consultation with the Commission. The
Commission clarifies that any request for compensation for which
payment has been suspended or withheld in accordance with 47 CFR
64.604(c)(5)(iii)(L) will not be considered compensable until the
administrator, in consultation with the Commission, or the Commission
on its own makes a final determination that the request is compensable
in accordance with that provision. Because this revision to Sec.
64.604 of the Commission's rules does not impose new substantive rules
but rather clarifies existing rules, it constitutes an interpretive
rule for which the Commission need not provide prior notice and obtain
public comment. See 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A). See also Syncor Intern. Corp.
v. Shalala, 127 F.3d 90, 94 (DC Cir. 1997) (``an interpretive rule can
construe an agency's substantive regulation as well as a statute'').
Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
4. The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), 5 U.S.C. 603, requires
that an agency prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis for notice-
and-comment rulemaking proceedings, unless the agency certifies that
``the rule will not, if promulgated, have a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small entities.'' 5 U.S.C. 605(b). The RFA
generally defines ``small entity'' as having the same meaning as the
terms ``small business,'' ``small organization,'' and ``small
governmental jurisdiction.'' 5 U.S.C. 601(6). In addition, the term
``small business'' has the same meaning as the term ``small business
concern'' under the Small Business Act. 5 U.S.C. 601(3).
[[Page 8031]]
A ``small business concern'' is one which: (1) Is independently owned
and operated; (2) is not dominant in its field of operation; and (3)
satisfies any additional criteria established by the Small Business
Administration (SBA). 15 U.S.C. 632.
5. In document FCC 13-13, to preserve the integrity and viability
of the TRS Fund by ensuring that obligations are not incurred prior to
the Fund administrator or the Commission has determined that requests
for payment are compensable, the Commission adopts a final rule
amending Sec. 64.604(c)(5)(iii)(E) of its rules (governing payments to
TRS providers) to clarify that the TRS Fund administrator shall not be
obligated to pay any request for compensation until it has been
established as compensable. As a result, a request will be established
as compensable only after the administrator or the Commission
determines that the provider has met its burden to demonstrate that the
claim is properly compensable under the rules and the procedures
established by the administrator in consultation with the Commission.
Because this revision to Sec. 64.604 of the Commission's rules does
not impose new substantive rules but rather clarifies existing rules,
it constitutes an interpretive rule for which the Commission need not
provide prior notice and obtain public comment. See 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A).
See also Syncor Intern. Corp. v. Shalala, 127 F.3d 90, 94 (DC Cir.
1997) (``an interpretive rule can construe an agency's substantive
regulation as well as a statute'').
6. With regard to the criterion of the economic impact of document
FCC 13-13, the Commission concludes that IP CTS providers fit within
the business classification of Wired Telecommunications Carriers. See
NAICS Code 517110 (2007). The closest applicable size standard under
the SBA rules is for Wired Telecommunications Carriers, for which the
small business size standard is all such firms having 1,500 or fewer
employees. 13 CFR 121.201, NAICS Code 517110 (2007). Collectively,
there are four IP CTS providers that are authorized by the Commission
to offer these services. Only one of these entities is a small business
under the SBA size standard. Therefore, the interim rules would not
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
7. The Commission therefore certifies, pursuant to the RFA, that
the interim rules adopted in document FCC 13-13 will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
The Commission will send a copy of document FCC 13-13, including a copy
of the RFA certification, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the SBA.
Congressional Review Act
8. The Commission will send a copy of document FCC 13-13 in a
report to be sent to Congress and the Government Accountability Office
pursuant to the Congressional Review Act. 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).
Ordering Clauses
9. Pursuant to sections 1, 2, 4(i) and (j) and 225 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 152, 154(i) and
(j) and 225, document FCC 13-13 is hereby adopted.
List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 64
Individuals with disabilities, Telecommunications.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
Final Rule Changes
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal
Communications Commission amends 47 CFR part 64 as follows:
PART 64--MISCELLANEOUS RULES RELATING TO COMMON CARRIERS
0
1. The authority citation to part 64 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 254(k); 403(b)(2)(B), (c), Pub. L.
104-104, 110 Stat. 56. Interpret or apply 47 U.S.C. 201, 218, 222,
225, 226, 227, 228, 254(k), 616, 620, and the Middle Class Tax
Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, Pub. L. 112-96, unless
otherwise noted.
0
2. Amend Sec. 64.604 by revising paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(E) to read as
follows:
Sec. 64.604 Mandatory minimum standards.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
(5) * * *
(iii) * * *
(E) Payments to TRS providers. (1) TRS Fund payments shall be
distributed to TRS providers based on formulas approved or modified by
the Commission. The administrator shall file schedules of payment
formulas with the Commission. Such formulas shall be designed to
compensate TRS providers for reasonable costs of providing interstate
TRS, and shall be subject to Commission approval. Such formulas shall
be based on total monthly interstate TRS minutes of use. The formulas
should appropriately compensate interstate providers for the provision
of TRS, whether intrastate or interstate.
(2) TRS minutes of use for purposes of interstate cost recovery
under the TRS Fund are defined as the minutes of use for completed
interstate TRS calls placed through the TRS center beginning after call
set-up and concluding after the last message call unit.
(3) In addition to the data required under paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C)
of this section, all TRS providers, including providers who are not
interexchange carriers, local exchange carriers, or certified state
relay providers, must submit reports of interstate TRS minutes of use
to the administrator in order to receive payments.
(4) The administrator shall establish procedures to verify payment
claims, and may suspend or delay payments to a TRS provider if the TRS
provider fails to provide adequate verification of payment upon
reasonable request, or if directed by the Commission to do so. The TRS
Fund administrator shall make payments only to eligible TRS providers
operating pursuant to the mandatory minimum standards as required in
this section, and after disbursements to the administrator for
reasonable expenses incurred by it in connection with TRS Fund
administration. TRS providers receiving payments shall file a form
prescribed by the administrator. The administrator shall fashion a form
that is consistent with 47 CFR parts 32 and 36 procedures reasonably
tailored to meet the needs of TRS providers.
(5) The Commission shall have authority to audit providers and have
access to all data, including carrier specific data, collected by the
fund administrator. The fund administrator shall have authority to
audit TRS providers reporting data to the administrator.
(6) The administrator shall not be obligated to pay any request for
compensation until it has been established as compensable. A request
shall be established as compensable only after the administrator, in
consultation with the Commission, or the Commission determines that the
provider has met its burden to demonstrate that the claim is
compensable under applicable Commission rules and the procedures
established by the administrator. Any request for compensation for
which payment has been suspended or withheld in accordance with
paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(L) of this section shall not be established as
compensable until the administrator, in consultation with the
Commission, or the Commission determines that the request is
[[Page 8032]]
compensable in accordance with paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(L)(4) of this
section.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2013-02367 Filed 2-1-13; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P