Modernizing the E-Rate Program for Schools and Libraries, 17079-17080 [2021-06566]

Agencies

• FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 61 (Thursday, April 1, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 17079-17080]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06566]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 54

[WC Docket No. 13-184; FCC 19-117; FRS 17561]


Modernizing the E-Rate Program for Schools and Libraries

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission 
(Commission) announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
has approved, for a period of three years, an information collection 
associated with the rules for the Universal Service Schools and 
Libraries program contained in the Commission's Modernizing the E-Rate 
Program for Schools and Libraries Report and Order (Category Two 
Order), FCC 19-117. This document is consistent with the Category Two 
Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the 
Federal Register announcing the effective date of the new information 
collection requirements.

DATES: The amendments to Sec.  54.502(d) and (e) published at 84 FR 
70026, December 20, 2019, are effective April 1, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate Dumouchel, Wireline Competition 
Bureau at (202) 418-7400 or via email: [email protected]. For 
additional information concerning the Paperwork Reduction Act 
information collection requirements contact Nicole Ongele at (202) 418-
2991 or via email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Commission made a submission for non-
substantive changes to an existing collection for review and approval 
by OMB, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, on 
March 23, 2021, which were approved by the OMB on March 24, 2021. The 
information collection requirements are contained in the Commission's 
Category Two Order, FCC 19-117, published at 84 FR 70026, December 20, 
2019. The OMB Control Number is 3060-0806. The Commission publishes 
this document as an announcement of the effective date of the rules 
published December 20, 2019. 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, 45 L St. NE, 
Washington, DC 20554. Please include the OMB Control Number, 3060-0806, 
in your correspondence. We ask that requests for accommodations be made 
as soon as possible in order to

[[Page 17080]]

allow the agency to satisfy such requests whenever possible. Send an 
email to [email protected] or call the Consumer and Governmental Affairs 
Bureau at (202) 418-0530.

Synopsis

    As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3507), the Commission is notifying the public that it received OMB 
approval on March 24, 2021, for the information collection requirements 
contained in 47 CFR 54.502(d) and (e), published at 84 FR 70026, 
December 20, 2019. Under 5 CFR part 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 3060-0806.
    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: 3060-0806.
    OMB Approval Date: March 24, 2021.
    OMB Expiration Date: December 31, 2021.
    Title: Universal Service--Schools and Libraries Universal Service 
Program, FCC Forms 470 and 471.
    Form No.: FCC Forms 470 and 471.
    Respondents: Not-for-profit institutions, and State, Local or 
Tribal governments.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 43,000 respondents and 67,100 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 3.5 hours for FCC Form 470 (3 hours 
for response; 0.5 hours for recordkeeping; 4.5 hours for FCC Form 471 
(4 hours for response; 0.5 hours for recordkeeping).
    Frequency of Response: Recordkeeping, on occasion and annually 
reporting requirements.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. 
Statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 
sections 47 U.S.C. 151-154, 201-205, 218-220, 254, 303(r), 403 and 405 
of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    Total Annual Burden: 273,950 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: No Cost.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: There is no assurance of 
confidentiality provided to respondents concerning this information 
collection. However, respondents may request materials or information 
submitted to the Commission or to the Administrator be withheld from 
public inspection under 47 CFR 0.459 of the FCC's rules.
    Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Needs and Uses: Collection of the information on FCC Forms 470 and 
471 is necessary so that the Commission and USAC have sufficient 
information to determine if entities are eligible for funding pursuant 
to the schools and libraries support mechanism, to determine if 
entities are complying with the Commission's rules, and to prevent 
waste, fraud, and abuse. In addition, the information is necessary for 
the Commission to evaluate the extent to which the E-rate program is 
meeting the statutory objectives specified in section 254(h) of the 
1996 Act, and the Commission's performance goals established in the E-
rate Modernization Order and Second E-rate Modernization Order.
    In December 2019, the Commission adopted the Category Two Order, 
which modified E-Rate program rules to, among other things: Make 
permanent the category two budget approach, which provides applicants 
with a set amount of category two funding for a five-year period; allow 
applicants to apply for category two funding on a school district-wide 
or library system-wide basis, rather than an entity-level basis; and 
decrease the administrative burden on applicants requesting funding for 
category two services. The Commission sought to modify the FCC Form 471 
to implement these changes for funding year 2021, as set forth in the 
Category Two Order.
    The submission was made for proposed non-substantive changes to an 
existing information collection pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 3507. The 
submission sought to make non-substantive changes to certain fields, 
instructions, and the filing process for the FCC Form 471 to implement 
the changes adopted by the Commission in the Category Two Order, FCC 
19-117. The submission also sought to make non-substantive changes to 
the instructions and process by which applicants fill out the FCC Form 
471 to improve the user experience and reduce the administrative 
burden. There are no proposed changes for the FCC Form 470. The FCC 
Form 471 is contained in an online database.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-06566 Filed 3-31-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P