Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension, 65065-65067 [2022-23419]
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 207 / Thursday, October 27, 2022 / Notices
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be most helpful to the Commission if
received within 12 days of the date this
notice appears in the Federal Register,
and the Commission requests that
comments be submitted within 7 days
on agreements that request expedited
review. Copies of agreements are
available through the Commission’s
website (www.fmc.gov) or by contacting
the Office of Agreements at (202) 523–
5793 or tradeanalysis@fmc.gov.
Agreement No.: 201377–001.
Agreement Name: CMA CGM/COSCO
Brazil—Caribbean U.S. Gulf Vessel
Sharing Agreement.
Parties: CMA CGM S.A.; COSCO
SHIPPING Lines Co., Ltd.
Filing Party: Draughn Arbona, CMA
CGM (America) LLC.
Synopsis: The amendment increases
the size of the vessels operating under
the agreement, and revises certain
administrative terms. The parties have
requested expedited review.
Proposed Effective Date: 12/2/2022.
Location: https://www2.fmc.gov/
FMC.Agreements.Web/Public/
AgreementHistory/58503.
express their views in writing on the
standards enumerated in the BHC Act
(12 U.S.C. 1842(c)).
Comments regarding each of these
applications must be received at the
Reserve Bank indicated or the offices of
the Board of Governors, Ann E.
Misback, Secretary of the Board, 20th
Street and Constitution Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20551–0001, not later
than November 28, 2022.
A. Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
(Prabal Chakrabarti, Senior Vice
President) 600 Atlantic Avenue, Boston,
Massachusetts 02210–2204. Comments
can also be sent electronically to
BOS.SRC.Applications.Comments@
bos.frb.org:
1. IFS 1820 Bancorp, MHC,
Newburyport, Massachusetts; to become
a mutual bank holding company by
acquiring Institution for Savings in
Newburyport and its Vicinity
(‘‘Institution for Savings’’),
Newburyport, Massachusetts, upon the
conversion of Institution for Savings
from mutual to stock form.
Dated: October 21, 2022.
William Cody,
Secretary.
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Deputy Associate Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2022–23358 Filed 10–26–22; 8:45 am]
[FR Doc. 2022–23441 Filed 10–26–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6730–02–P
BILLING CODE P
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Formations of, Acquisitions by, and
Mergers of Bank Holding Companies
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; Extension
The companies listed in this notice
have applied to the Board for approval,
pursuant to the Bank Holding Company
Act of 1956 (12 U.S.C. 1841 et seq.)
(BHC Act), Regulation Y (12 CFR part
225), and all other applicable statutes
and regulations to become a bank
holding company and/or to acquire the
assets or the ownership of, control of, or
the power to vote shares of a bank or
bank holding company and all of the
banks and nonbanking companies
owned by the bank holding company,
including the companies listed below.
The public portions of the
applications listed below, as well as
other related filings required by the
Board, if any, are available for
immediate inspection at the Federal
Reserve Bank(s) indicated below and at
the offices of the Board of Governors.
This information may also be obtained
on an expedited basis, upon request, by
contacting the appropriate Federal
Reserve Bank and from the Board’s
Freedom of Information Office at
https://www.federalreserve.gov/foia/
request.htm. Interested persons may
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16:55 Oct 26, 2022
Jkt 259001
Federal Trade Commission.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
The Federal Trade
Commission (FTC or Commission) is
seeking public comment on its proposal
to extend for an additional three years
the current Paperwork Reduction Act
(PRA) clearance for information
collection requirements contained in the
FTC’s Consumer Product Warranty Rule
(Warranty Rule or Rule). The current
clearance expires on February 28, 2023.
DATES: Comments must be received on
or before December 27, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a
comment online or on paper by
following the instructions in the
Request for Comments part of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section
below. Write ‘‘Paperwork Reduction Act
Comment: FTC File No. P072108’’ on
your comment, and file your comment
online at https://www.regulations.gov by
following the instructions on the webbased form. If you prefer to file your
comment on paper, mail your comment
SUMMARY:
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65065
to the following address: Federal Trade
Commission, Office of the Secretary,
600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite
CC–5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC
20580, or deliver your comment to the
following address: Federal Trade
Commission, Office of the Secretary,
Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW,
5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex J),
Washington, DC 20024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Laura Basford, Attorney, Division of
Marketing Practices, Bureau of
Consumer Protection, Federal Trade
Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20580, (202) 326–
2343.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Rule Concerning Disclosure of
Written Consumer Product Warranty
Terms and Conditions.
OMB Control Number: 3084–0111.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection.
Abstract: The Warranty Rule is one of
three rules 1 that the FTC implemented
pursuant to requirements of the
Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15
U.S.C. 2301 et seq. (Warranty Act or
Act).2 The Warranty Rule specifies the
information that must appear in a
written warranty on a consumer
product 3 costing more than $15. The
Rule tracks Section 102(a) of the
Warranty Act,4 specifying information
that must appear in the written warranty
and, for certain disclosures, mandates
the exact language that must be used.5
Neither the Warranty Rule nor the Act
requires that a manufacturer or retailer
warrant a consumer product in writing,
but if they choose to do so, the warranty
must comply with the Rule.
Estimated Annual Hours Burden:
216,752 hours.
Estimated Annual Labor Cost Burden:
$29,652,215.
As required by Section 3506(c)(2)(A)
of the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), the
FTC is providing this opportunity for
public comment before requesting that
OMB extend the existing clearance for
the information collection requirements
contained in the Warranty Rule.
Burden Statement:
Total annual hours burden: 216,752
hours.
In its 2019 submission to OMB, the
FTC estimated that the information
1 The other two rules relate to the pre-sale
availability of warranty terms and minimum
standards for informal dispute settlement
mechanisms that are incorporated into a written
warranty.
2 40 FR 60168 (Dec. 31, 1975).
3 The definition of consumer product excludes
products purchased solely for commercial or
industrial use. 16 CFR 701.1(b).
4 15 U.S.C. 2302(a).
5 40 FR 60168, 60169–60170.
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collection burden of including the
disclosures required by the Warranty
Rule was 242,296 hours per year.
Although the Rule’s information
collection requirements have not
changed, the current estimate decreases
the number of manufacturers subject to
the Rule based on recent Census data.6
Further, because most warrantors likely
would continue to disclose the
information required by the Rule, even
if there were no statute or rule requiring
them to do so, staff’s estimates likely
overstate the PRA-related burden
attributable to the Rule. Moreover, the
Warranty Rule has been in effect since
1976, and warrantors have long since
modified their warranties to include the
information the Rule requires.
Based on conversations with various
warrantors’ representatives over the
years, staff has concluded that eight
hours per year is a reasonable estimate
of warrantors’ PRA-related burden
attributable to the Warranty Rule. This
estimate includes the number of hours
warrantors may need to ensure new
warranties and any changes to existing
warranties comply with the Rule. Based
on recent Census data, staff now
estimates that there are 27,094
manufacturers covered by the Rule.7
This results in an annual burden
estimate of approximately 216,752
hours (27,094 manufacturers x 8 hours
of burden per year).
Total annual labor costs: $29,652,215.
Labor costs are derived by applying
appropriate hourly cost figures to the
burden hours described above. The
work required to comply with the
Warranty Rule—ensuring that new
warranties and changes to existing
warranties comply with the Rule—
requires a mix of legal analysis (50%),
legal support (paralegals) (25%) and
clerical help (25%). Staff estimates that
half of the total burden hours (108,376
hours) requires legal analysis at an
average hourly wage of $250 for legal
professionals,8 resulting in a labor cost
6 The Number of Firms and Establishments,
Employment, and Annual Payroll by State,
Industry, and Enterprise Employment Size: 2019,
release date: 2/11/2022, available at https://
www.census.gov/programs-surveys/susb/technicaldocumentation/methodology.html.
7 Because some manufacturers likely make
products that are not priced above $15 or not
intended for household use—and thus would not be
subject to the Rule—this figure is likely an
overstatement.
8 Staff has derived an hourly wage rate for legal
professionals based upon industry knowledge. The
hourly wage rates for legal support workers and for
clerical support are based on mean hourly wages
available at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/
ocwage.htm (‘‘Occupational Employment and
Wages–May 2021,’’ U.S. Department of Labor,
released March 31, 2022, Table 1 (‘‘National
employment and wage data from the Occupational
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16:55 Oct 26, 2022
Jkt 259001
of $27,094,000. Assuming that 25% of
the total burden hours requires legal
support at the average hourly wage of
$28.46, and that the remaining 25%
requires clerical work at an average
hourly wage of $18.75; the resulting
labor cost is approximately $2,558,215
($1,542,190 + $1,016,025). Thus, the
total annual labor cost is approximately
$29,652,215 ($27,094,000 for legal
professionals + $1,542,190 for legal
support + $1,016,025 for clerical
workers).
Total Capital and Start-Up Costs
The Rule imposes no appreciable
current capital or start-up costs that
businesses do not already spend in the
normal course of business. To comply
with the Warranty Rule, warrantors
need only the ordinary office equipment
to draft new warranties and to change
the wording of existing warranties to
include the required disclosures. Thus,
compliance requires no capital
equipment or special technology apart
from what the manufacturer or seller
would already be using as part of the
normal course of business, such as
computer or other word processing
equipment, and photocopying
equipment. Similarly, distribution of the
warranty does not impose any special
capital costs apart from the packaging
and printing equipment already in use
by the business. It is not possible to
state with any precision what fraction of
the cost of that equipment could be
attributed to distributing the warranty.
Total Operation/Maintenance/Purchase
of Services Costs
The only ongoing costs involved with
compliance are those costs associated
with maintenance and repair of
computer word processing and
photocopying equipment used to
generate the warranty document that
contains the required disclosures. These
are costs that the seller or manufacturer
already bears in the normal cost of
business; it is unlikely that Warranty
Rule compliance would impose
significant incremental costs. Likewise,
the cost of distributing warranty
information involves such things as the
purchase of supplies (such as paper),
the maintenance of equipment, or the
purchase of services to print, package,
and distribute the warranty. These are
costs that would be already built into
the packaging and distribution of the
product itself and which are already
assumed as part of the normal course of
business.
Employment Statistics survey by occupation, May
2021’’).
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Request for Comments
Pursuant to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of
the PRA, the FTC invites comments on:
(1) whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
agency, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
(2) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate
of the burden of the proposed collection
of information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) ways to enhance the quality, utility,
and clarity of the information to be
collected; and (4) ways to minimize the
burden of maintaining records and
providing disclosures to consumers. All
comments must be received on or before
December 27, 2022.
You can file a comment online or on
paper. For the FTC to consider your
comment, we must receive it on or
before December 27, 2022. Write
‘‘Paperwork Reduction Act Comment:
FTC File No. P072108’’ on your
comment. Your comment—including
your name and your state—will be
placed on the public record of this
proceeding, including the https://
www.regulations.gov website.
Due to the public health emergency in
response to the COVID–19 outbreak and
the agency’s heightened security
screening, postal mail addressed to the
Commission will be subject to delay. We
encourage you to submit your comments
online through the https://
www.regulations.gov website.
If you prefer to file your comment on
paper, write ‘‘Paperwork Reduction Act
Comment: FTC File No. P072108’’ on
your comment and on the envelope, and
mail your comment to the following
address: Federal Trade Commission,
Office of the Secretary, 600
Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite CC–
5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20580;
or deliver your comment to the
following address: Federal Trade
Commission, Office of the Secretary,
Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW,
5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex J),
Washington, DC 20024. If possible,
submit your paper comment to the
Commission by courier or overnight
service.
Because your comment will become
publicly available at https://
www.regulations.gov, you are solely
responsible for making sure that your
comment does not include any sensitive
or confidential information. In
particular, your comment should not
include any sensitive personal
information, such as your or anyone
else’s Social Security number; date of
birth; driver’s license number or other
state identification number, or foreign
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country equivalent; passport number;
financial account number; or credit or
debit card number. You are also solely
responsible for making sure that your
comment does not include any sensitive
health information, such as medical
records or other individually
identifiable health information. In
addition, your comment should not
include any ‘‘trade secret or any
commercial or financial information
which . . . . is privileged or
confidential’’ —as provided by Section
6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and
FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)—
including in particular competitively
sensitive information such as costs,
sales statistics, inventories, formulas,
patterns, devices, manufacturing
processes, or customer names.
Comments containing material for
which confidential treatment is
requested must be filed in paper form,
must be clearly labeled ‘‘Confidential,’’
and must comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c).
In particular, the written request for
confidential treatment that accompanies
the comment must include the factual
and legal basis for the request, and must
identify the specific portions of the
comment to be withheld from the public
record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c). Your
comment will be kept confidential only
if the General Counsel grants your
request in accordance with the law and
the public interest. Once your comment
has been posted publicly at
www.regulations.gov, we cannot redact
or remove your comment unless you
submit a confidentiality request that
meets the requirements for such
treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and
the General Counsel grants that request.
The FTC Act and other laws that the
Commission administers permit the
collection of public comments to
consider and use in this proceeding, as
appropriate. The Commission will
consider all timely and responsive
public comments that it receives on or
before December 27, 2022. For
information on the Commission’s
privacy policy, including routine uses
permitted by the Privacy Act, see
https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/
privacy-policy.
Josephine Liu,
Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2022–23419 Filed 10–26–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750–01–P
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Community Living
Agency Information Collection
Activities: Proposed Collection; Public
Comment Request; of ACL’s Lifespan
Respite Program Grantee Performance
Measurement Reporting Tool
Administration for Community
Living, Department of Health and
Human Services.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The Administration for
Community Living (ACL) is announcing
an opportunity for the public to
comment on the proposed collection of
information listed above. Under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(PRA), Federal agencies are required to
publish a notice in the Federal Register
concerning each proposed collection of
data or other information and to allow
60 days for public comment in response
to the notice. This information
collection (IC) solicits comments on the
IC requirements, outlined in the
Lifespan Respite Care Reauthorization
Act of 2020, Section 2904, which
requires Lifespan Respite Care Program
grantees to report data, information, and
metrics for the purpose of program
evaluation. Such data, information, and
metrics are to be used to identify ‘‘. . .
effective programs and activities funded
. . .’’ through ACL’s Lifespan Respite
Care Program grants.
DATES: Comments on the collection of
information must be submitted
electronically by 11:59 p.m. (EST) or
postmarked by December 27, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Submit electronic
comments on the collection of
information to: Emily Anozie, Email:
emily.anozie@acl.hhs.gov, Phone: (202)
795–7347. Submit written comments on
the collection of information to
Administration for Community Living,
330 C Street SW, Washington, DC,
20201, Attention: Emily Anozie.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Emily Anozie, Email emily.anozie@
acl.hhs.gov, or Phone (202) 795–7347.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the
PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501–3520), Federal
agencies must obtain approval from the
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for each collection of
information they conduct or sponsor.
‘‘Collection of information’’ is defined
in the PRA and includes agency
requests or requirements that members
of the public submit reports, keep
records, or provide information to a
third party. The PRA requires Federal
agencies to provide a 60-day notice in
SUMMARY:
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65067
the Federal Register concerning each
proposed collection of information
before submitting the collection to OMB
for approval. To comply with this
requirement, ACL is publishing a notice
of the proposed collection of
information set forth in this document.
With respect to the following collection
of information, ACL invites comments
on our burden estimates or any other
aspect of this collection of information,
including:
(1) whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of ACL’s functions,
including whether the information will
have practical utility;
(2) the accuracy of ACL’s estimate of
the burden of the proposed collection of
information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used
to determine burden estimates;
(3) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected;
(4) ways to minimize the burden of
the collection of information on
respondents, including through the use
of automated collection techniques
when appropriate, and other forms of
information technology; and
(5) this IC collects Caregiver and Care
Recipient demographics. Demographic
questions include information about
age, gender identity, transgender, sexual
orientation, geographic location,
ethnicity, and race. Racial equity and
sexual orientation and gender identity
(SOGI) data elements are consistent
with recommendations regulated under
Executive Order on Advancing Racial
Equity and Support for Underserved
Communities Through the Federal
Government and the Executive Order on
Advancing Equality for Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and
Intersex Individuals.
ACL’s Office of Supportive and
Caregiver Services aims to improve
Lifespan Respite Care Program grantee
performance measurement and tracking
through a new quantitative grantee
reporting tool. The existing reporting
template used by most ACL grantees
funded from discretionary sources
consists of four open-ended, narrative
questions related to program
implementation and outputs, making
comparisons between different grant
periods and grantees challenging. The
proposed tool will allow ACL to meet
the additional requirements stated in
Section 2904 of the Lifespan Respite
Care Reauthorization Act of 2020, by
adding quantitative data elements to the
existing reporting requirements in
accordance with program statute. This
tool will allow for more effective
tracking of how federal funds are being
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 207 (Thursday, October 27, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65065-65067]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-23419]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; Extension
AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) is seeking
public comment on its proposal to extend for an additional three years
the current Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) clearance for information
collection requirements contained in the FTC's Consumer Product
Warranty Rule (Warranty Rule or Rule). The current clearance expires on
February 28, 2023.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 27, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper by
following the instructions in the Request for Comments part of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ``Paperwork Reduction
Act Comment: FTC File No. P072108'' on your comment, and file your
comment online at https://www.regulations.gov by following the
instructions on the web-based form. If you prefer to file your comment
on paper, mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade
Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite
CC-5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the
following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary,
Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW, 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex
J), Washington, DC 20024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Basford, Attorney, Division of
Marketing Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade
Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580, (202)
326-2343.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Rule Concerning Disclosure of Written Consumer Product
Warranty Terms and Conditions.
OMB Control Number: 3084-0111.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Abstract: The Warranty Rule is one of three rules \1\ that the FTC
implemented pursuant to requirements of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act,
15 U.S.C. 2301 et seq. (Warranty Act or Act).\2\ The Warranty Rule
specifies the information that must appear in a written warranty on a
consumer product \3\ costing more than $15. The Rule tracks Section
102(a) of the Warranty Act,\4\ specifying information that must appear
in the written warranty and, for certain disclosures, mandates the
exact language that must be used.\5\ Neither the Warranty Rule nor the
Act requires that a manufacturer or retailer warrant a consumer product
in writing, but if they choose to do so, the warranty must comply with
the Rule.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The other two rules relate to the pre-sale availability of
warranty terms and minimum standards for informal dispute settlement
mechanisms that are incorporated into a written warranty.
\2\ 40 FR 60168 (Dec. 31, 1975).
\3\ The definition of consumer product excludes products
purchased solely for commercial or industrial use. 16 CFR 701.1(b).
\4\ 15 U.S.C. 2302(a).
\5\ 40 FR 60168, 60169-60170.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated Annual Hours Burden: 216,752 hours.
Estimated Annual Labor Cost Burden: $29,652,215.
As required by Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, 44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A), the FTC is providing this opportunity for public comment
before requesting that OMB extend the existing clearance for the
information collection requirements contained in the Warranty Rule.
Burden Statement:
Total annual hours burden: 216,752 hours.
In its 2019 submission to OMB, the FTC estimated that the
information
[[Page 65066]]
collection burden of including the disclosures required by the Warranty
Rule was 242,296 hours per year. Although the Rule's information
collection requirements have not changed, the current estimate
decreases the number of manufacturers subject to the Rule based on
recent Census data.\6\ Further, because most warrantors likely would
continue to disclose the information required by the Rule, even if
there were no statute or rule requiring them to do so, staff's
estimates likely overstate the PRA-related burden attributable to the
Rule. Moreover, the Warranty Rule has been in effect since 1976, and
warrantors have long since modified their warranties to include the
information the Rule requires.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ The Number of Firms and Establishments, Employment, and
Annual Payroll by State, Industry, and Enterprise Employment Size:
2019, release date: 2/11/2022, available at https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/susb/technical-documentation/methodology.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Based on conversations with various warrantors' representatives
over the years, staff has concluded that eight hours per year is a
reasonable estimate of warrantors' PRA-related burden attributable to
the Warranty Rule. This estimate includes the number of hours
warrantors may need to ensure new warranties and any changes to
existing warranties comply with the Rule. Based on recent Census data,
staff now estimates that there are 27,094 manufacturers covered by the
Rule.\7\ This results in an annual burden estimate of approximately
216,752 hours (27,094 manufacturers x 8 hours of burden per year).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ Because some manufacturers likely make products that are not
priced above $15 or not intended for household use--and thus would
not be subject to the Rule--this figure is likely an overstatement.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total annual labor costs: $29,652,215.
Labor costs are derived by applying appropriate hourly cost figures
to the burden hours described above. The work required to comply with
the Warranty Rule--ensuring that new warranties and changes to existing
warranties comply with the Rule--requires a mix of legal analysis
(50%), legal support (paralegals) (25%) and clerical help (25%). Staff
estimates that half of the total burden hours (108,376 hours) requires
legal analysis at an average hourly wage of $250 for legal
professionals,\8\ resulting in a labor cost of $27,094,000. Assuming
that 25% of the total burden hours requires legal support at the
average hourly wage of $28.46, and that the remaining 25% requires
clerical work at an average hourly wage of $18.75; the resulting labor
cost is approximately $2,558,215 ($1,542,190 + $1,016,025). Thus, the
total annual labor cost is approximately $29,652,215 ($27,094,000 for
legal professionals + $1,542,190 for legal support + $1,016,025 for
clerical workers).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ Staff has derived an hourly wage rate for legal
professionals based upon industry knowledge. The hourly wage rates
for legal support workers and for clerical support are based on mean
hourly wages available at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.htm (``Occupational Employment and Wages-May 2021,'' U.S.
Department of Labor, released March 31, 2022, Table 1 (``National
employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment Statistics
survey by occupation, May 2021'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Capital and Start-Up Costs
The Rule imposes no appreciable current capital or start-up costs
that businesses do not already spend in the normal course of business.
To comply with the Warranty Rule, warrantors need only the ordinary
office equipment to draft new warranties and to change the wording of
existing warranties to include the required disclosures. Thus,
compliance requires no capital equipment or special technology apart
from what the manufacturer or seller would already be using as part of
the normal course of business, such as computer or other word
processing equipment, and photocopying equipment. Similarly,
distribution of the warranty does not impose any special capital costs
apart from the packaging and printing equipment already in use by the
business. It is not possible to state with any precision what fraction
of the cost of that equipment could be attributed to distributing the
warranty.
Total Operation/Maintenance/Purchase of Services Costs
The only ongoing costs involved with compliance are those costs
associated with maintenance and repair of computer word processing and
photocopying equipment used to generate the warranty document that
contains the required disclosures. These are costs that the seller or
manufacturer already bears in the normal cost of business; it is
unlikely that Warranty Rule compliance would impose significant
incremental costs. Likewise, the cost of distributing warranty
information involves such things as the purchase of supplies (such as
paper), the maintenance of equipment, or the purchase of services to
print, package, and distribute the warranty. These are costs that would
be already built into the packaging and distribution of the product
itself and which are already assumed as part of the normal course of
business.
Request for Comments
Pursuant to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC invites
comments on: (1) whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the
accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology
and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize
the burden of maintaining records and providing disclosures to
consumers. All comments must be received on or before December 27,
2022.
You can file a comment online or on paper. For the FTC to consider
your comment, we must receive it on or before December 27, 2022. Write
``Paperwork Reduction Act Comment: FTC File No. P072108'' on your
comment. Your comment--including your name and your state--will be
placed on the public record of this proceeding, including the https://www.regulations.gov website.
Due to the public health emergency in response to the COVID-19
outbreak and the agency's heightened security screening, postal mail
addressed to the Commission will be subject to delay. We encourage you
to submit your comments online through the https://www.regulations.gov
website.
If you prefer to file your comment on paper, write ``Paperwork
Reduction Act Comment: FTC File No. P072108'' on your comment and on
the envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal
Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW,
Suite CC-5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20580; or deliver your comment
to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the
Secretary, Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW, 5th Floor, Suite
5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20024. If possible, submit your paper
comment to the Commission by courier or overnight service.
Because your comment will become publicly available at https://www.regulations.gov, you are solely responsible for making sure that
your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential
information. In particular, your comment should not include any
sensitive personal information, such as your or anyone else's Social
Security number; date of birth; driver's license number or other state
identification number, or foreign
[[Page 65067]]
country equivalent; passport number; financial account number; or
credit or debit card number. You are also solely responsible for making
sure that your comment does not include any sensitive health
information, such as medical records or other individually identifiable
health information. In addition, your comment should not include any
``trade secret or any commercial or financial information which . . . .
is privileged or confidential'' --as provided by Section 6(f) of the
FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)--
including in particular competitively sensitive information such as
costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, patterns, devices,
manufacturing processes, or customer names.
Comments containing material for which confidential treatment is
requested must be filed in paper form, must be clearly labeled
``Confidential,'' and must comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c). In particular,
the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the
comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and
must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from
the public record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c). Your comment will be kept
confidential only if the General Counsel grants your request in
accordance with the law and the public interest. Once your comment has
been posted publicly at www.regulations.gov, we cannot redact or remove
your comment unless you submit a confidentiality request that meets the
requirements for such treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and the General
Counsel grants that request.
The FTC Act and other laws that the Commission administers permit
the collection of public comments to consider and use in this
proceeding, as appropriate. The Commission will consider all timely and
responsive public comments that it receives on or before December 27,
2022. For information on the Commission's privacy policy, including
routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy.
Josephine Liu,
Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2022-23419 Filed 10-26-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P