Information Collection Being Submitted for Review and Approval to Office of Management and Budget, 57828-57829 [2021-22771]

Agencies

• FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 199 (Tuesday, October 19, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57828-57829]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-22771]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[OMB 3060-1228; FR ID 53878]


Information Collection Being Submitted for Review and Approval to 
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, 
as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, the Federal 
Communications Commission (FCC or the Commission) invites the general 
public and other Federal Agencies to take this opportunity to comment 
on the following information collection. Pursuant to the Small Business 
Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, the FCC seeks specific comment on how it 
might ``further reduce the information collection burden for small 
business concerns with fewer than 25 employees.'' The Commission 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 and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be submitted on or before November 18, 
2021.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting 
``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using 
the search function. Your comment must be submitted into 
www.reginfo.gov per the above instructions for it to be considered. In 
addition to submitting in www.reginfo.gov also send a copy of your 
comment on the proposed information collection to Nicole Ongele, FCC, 
via email to [email protected] and to [email protected]. Include in the 
comments the OMB control number as shown in the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION 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 https://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 Title of this ICR and 
then click on the ICR Reference Number. A copy of the FCC submission to 
OMB will be displayed.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: As part of its continuing effort to reduce 
paperwork burdens, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), the FCC invited the general public and 
other Federal Agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the 
following information collection. Comments are requested concerning: 
(a) 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; (b) the accuracy 
of the Commission's burden estimates; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information collected; and (d) 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. Pursuant to the Small Business 
Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public Law 107-198, see 44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(4), the FCC seeks specific comment on how it might ``further 
reduce the information collection burden for small business concerns 
with fewer than 25 employees.''
    OMB Control Number: 3060-1228.
    Title: Connect America Fund--High Cost Portal Filing.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit, not-for-profit 
institutions.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 2,024 unique respondents; 
4,644 responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 8 hours-60 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion, quarterly reporting 
requirements, annual reporting requirements, and recordkeeping 
requirement.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. 
Statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 47 
U.S.C. 151-154, 155, 201-206, 214, 218-220, 251, 252, 254, 256, 303(r), 
332, 403, 405, 410, and 1302.
    Total Annual Burden: 86,727 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: No Cost.
    Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: Except for the middle-mile 
maps for Alaska Plan carriers, and the coverage maps and information 
for Uniendo a Puerto Rico Fund and Connect USVI Fund Stage 2 mobile 
support recipients, the Commission is not requesting respondents to 
submit confidential information to the Commission. We note that the 
Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) must preserve the 
confidentiality of all data obtained from respondents and contributors 
to the universal service support program mechanism; must not use the 
data except for purposes of administering the universal service support 
program; and must not disclose data in company-specific form unless 
directed to do so by the Commission. Also, respondents may request 
materials or information submitted to the Commission or to the 
Administrator believed confidential to be withheld from public 
inspection under 47 CFR 0.459 of the FCC's rules
    Needs and Uses: Through several orders, the Commission has recently 
changed or modified reporting obligations for high-cost support. 
Pursuant to the following orders, this collection includes location 
reporting and related certification requirements of high-cost support 
recipients: Connect America Fund et al., Report and Order, Order and 
Order on Reconsideration, and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 31 
FCC Rcd 3087 (2016) (2016 Rate-of-Return Order); Connect

[[Page 57829]]

America Fund et al., Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking, 31 FCC Rcd 5949 (2016) (Phase II Auction Order); Connect 
America Fund et al., Order, 31 FCC Rcd 12086 (2016) (ACS Phase II 
Order); Connect America Fund et al., Report and Order and Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking, 29 FCC Rcd 876 (2014) (Rural Broadband Experiments 
Order); Connect America Fund et al., Report and Order, 29 FCC Rcd 15644 
(2014) (Price Cap Order); Technology Transitions et al., Order et al., 
29 FCC Rcd 1433 (2014) (Tech Transitions Order); Connect America Fund 
et al., Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 31 
FCC Rcd 10139 (2016) (Alaska Plan Order); Connect America Fund et al., 
Order, 32 FCC Rcd 968 (2017) (New York Auction Order); Connect America 
Fund et al., Report and Order, Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 
and Order on Reconsideration, 33 FCC Rcd 11-893 (2018) (2018 Rate-of-
Return Order); Uniendo a Puerto Rico and Connect USVI Fund et al., 
Report and Order and Order on Reconsideration, 34 FCC Rcd 9109 (2019) 
(PR-USVI Stage 2 Order); Rural Digital Opportunity Fund et al., Report 
and Order, 35 FCC Rcd 686 (2020) (2020 Rural Digital Opportunity Fund 
Order).
    This information collection addresses the requirement that certain 
carriers with high-cost reporting obligations must file information 
about the locations to which they have deployed broadband service 
meeting applicable public interest requirements (location information). 
A web-based portal, the High-Cost Universal Broadband Portal (HUBB or 
portal), is used to accept this information. The Commission and USAC 
will use this information to monitor the deployment progress of 
reporting carriers and to verify the reporting carriers' claims of 
service at the reported locations. Such activities help the Commission 
ensure that support is being used as intended. In addition, because 
data filed in the HUBB is publicly accessible, the reporting helps 
ensure public accountability and transparency.
    In the 2019 PR-USVI Stage 2 Order, the Commission created a 
competitive process to determine support recipients for the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. As a result, 
carriers receiving support in these areas are subject to specific 
public interest obligations related to speed, usage, latency, and price 
as well as certain deployment milestones. Specifically, the Commission 
imposed defined deployment obligations and associated HUBB reporting 
requirements (annual location reporting and build-out certifications) 
for all Uniendo a Puerto Rico Fund and Connect USVI Fund Stage 2 fixed 
support recipients as well as annual reporting and certification 
requirements for all Uniendo a Puerto Rico Fund and Connect USVI Fund 
Stage 2 mobile support recipients.
    Uniendo a Puerto Rico Fund and Connect USVI Fund Stage 2 mobile 
support recipients will also file network coverage and other data as 
required by the Commission's orders. The Commission and USAC will use 
this information to monitor the deployment progress of mobile carriers 
and to verify that carriers meet the public interest obligations for 4G 
LTE and 5G mobile broadband and voice services in the Commonwealth of 
Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Instead of filing in the HUBB 
portal, mobile support recipients will submit their reports 
electronically as part of a web form accessed via the Commission's Form 
477 portal (477 Portal) and the Electronic Comment Filing System 
(ECFS). This collection mechanism is being used to reduce the 
technological burden on the public and the Commission, as carriers and 
the public are familiar with both of these systems. The Commission's 
Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) will specify the filing process by 
which Stage 2 mobile support recipients must file their reports in the 
477 Portal prior to the filing deadlines.
    In the 2020 Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Order, the Commission 
adopted a support mechanism to provide funding through a competitive 
auction to connect rural homes and businesses to high-speed broadband 
networks. The Commission established specific public interest 
obligations and deployment milestones for all carriers receiving this 
support. Specifically, the Commission imposed defined deployment 
obligations and associated HUBB reporting requirements (annual location 
reporting and build-out certifications) for all support recipients. We 
therefore propose to revise this information collection. Finally, we 
propose to increase the burdens associated with existing and new 
reporting requirements to account for additional carriers that will be 
subject to these requirements.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-22771 Filed 10-18-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P