[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 122 (Friday, June 25, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 34499-34501]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-16224]



  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 122 / Friday, June 25, 1999 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 34499]]



FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 64

[CC Docket 98-170; FCC 99-72]


Truth-in-Billing and Billing Format

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: This document seeks comment on whether several of its truth-
in-billing requirements should apply to wireless carriers, and what 
uniform labels should be used to identify line-item charges resulting 
from federal regulatory action. This document derives from our order 
adopting truth-in-billing requirements, released jointly, establishing 
common-sense billing principles to ensure that consumers are provided 
with basic information they need to make informed choices among 
telecommunications services and providers.

DATES: Written comments by the public concerning the standardized 
labels for charges relating to federal regulatory action are due on or 
before July 9, 1999. Written comments by the public concerning the 
application of the truth-in-billing principles and guidelines to CMRS 
carriers are due on or before July 26, 1999. Reply comments concerning 
the standardized labels for charges relating to federal regulatory 
action are due July 16, 1999. Reply comments concerning the application 
of the truth-in-billing principles and guidelines to CMRS carriers are 
due on or before August 9, 1999. Written comments by the public on the 
proposed information collections are due July 26, 1999. Written 
comments must be submitted by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
on the proposed information collections on or before August 24, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Office of the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, 
445 Twelfth Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554, with a copy to David 
Konuch, Federal Communications Commission, Common Carrier Bureau, 
Enforcement Division, Formal Complaints and Investigations Branch, 445 
Twelfth Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554. Parties should also file 
one copy of any documents filed in this docket with the Commission's 
copy contractor, International Transcription Services, Inc., 445 
Twelfth Street, S.W., Room CY-B400, Washington, D.C. 20554. Comments on 
the information collections contained herein should be submitted to 
Judy Boley, Federal Communications Commission, Room 1-C804, 445 12th 
Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554, or via the Internet to 
[email protected], and to Timothy Fain, OMB Desk Officer, 10236 NEOB, 
725--17th Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20503 or via the Internet to 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Konuch, Enforcement Division, 
Common Carrier Bureau. (202) 418-0960. For additional information 
concerning the information collections contained in this Further Notice 
of Proposed Rules contact Judy Boley at 202-418-0214, or via the 
Internet at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's 
Further Notice of Proposed Rules in CC Docket No. 98-170, adopted on 
April 15, 1999 and released on May 11, 1999. The full text of the 
Further Notice of Proposed Rules, including the Commissioners' 
statements, is available for inspection and copying during normal 
business hours in the FCC Reference Center, 445 Twelfth Street, S.W., 
Room CY-257, Washington, D.C. The complete text of this decision may 
also be purchased from the Commission's duplicating contractor, 
International Transcription services, Inc., 445 Twelfth Street, S.W., 
Room CY-B400, Washington, D.C. 20554.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    1. This Further Notice of Proposed Rules contains a proposed 
information collection. The Commission, as part of its continuing 
effort to reduce paperwork burdens, invites the general public and the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to comment on the information 
collections contained in this Further Notice of Proposed Rules, as 
required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. 
Public and agency comments are due at the same time as other comments 
on this Further Notice of Proposed Rules; OMB notification of action is 
due 60 days from date of publication of this Further Notice of Proposed 
Rules in the Federal Register. Comments should address: (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.

OMB Approval Number: None

    Title: Standard labels for Charges Associated with Federal 
Regulatory Requirements/CMRS Carriers' Truth-in-Billing Requirements.
    Form No.: N/A.
    Type of Review: New collection.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 3,099.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                   Number of       Hours per       Total annual
                          Collection                              respondents       response          burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Standard Labels for Charges Associated with Federal Regulatory            3099               .5           1549.5
 Requirements.................................................
CMRS Truth-in Billing Requirements............................             804             81           65,124
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Total Annual Burden: 66,673.5.
    Estimated costs per respondent: $0.
    Needs and Uses: This information collection reflects two discrete 
aspects. First, the collection includes third party disclosure 
requirements associated with the Commission's requirement that 
telephone bills use standard industry-wide labels to describe any line-
item charges associated with federal regulatory action. Uniform 
labelling will ensure that consumers are able to understand the nature 
of the charges and enable them to compare accurately the price of 
telecommunications services offered by competing carriers. The 
estimated time per response associated with standard labels is .5 
hours.
    This collection also reflects third party disclosure requirements 
that may be imposed on CMRS carriers if the Commission decides to end 
these carriers' exemption from certain Truth-in-Billing rules. The 
estimated time per response associated with the information collection 
requirements that might be extended to CMRS carriers is 81 hours.

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    As required by the RFA, the Commission has prepared this present

[[Page 34500]]

IRFA of the possible, significant, economic impact on small entities of 
the policies and rules proposed in this Further Notice of Proposed 
Rules. Written public comments are requested on this IRFA. Comments 
must be identified as responses to the IRFA and must be filed by the 
deadlines for comments on the Further Notice of Proposed Rules provided 
below in section IV(E). The Commission will send a copy of this Further 
Notice of Proposed Rules, including this IRFA, to the Chief Counsel for 
Advocacy of the Small Business Administration. In addition, the Further 
Notice of Proposed Rules and IRFA (or summaries thereof) will be 
published in the Federal Register.
    2. Need for, and Objectives of, the Proposed Rules. This Further 
Notice of Proposed Rules seeks comment on a specific proposed rule 
concerning labelling of charges relating to federal regulatory action. 
In addition, the Further Notice of Proposed Rules seeks comment on 
whether certain of our truth-in-billing requirements should be 
applicable to CMRS carriers. The proposals made in this Further Notice 
of Proposed Rules are necessary to ensure that consumers receive clear 
and accurate telecommunications bills.
    3. Legal Basis. The proposed action is authorized under sections 
4(i) and 4(j), 201, 208, 254 and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 
1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j), 201, 208, 254, and 
303(r).
    4. Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to 
Which the Proposed Rules Will Apply. For purposes of this Further 
Notice of Proposed Rules, the Regulatory Flexibility Act defines a 
``small business'' to be the same as a ``small business concern'' under 
the Small Business Act (SBA), 15 U.S.C. 632, unless the Commission has 
developed one or more definitions that are appropriate to its 
activities. Under the SBA, ``small business concern'' is one that: (1) 
is independently owned and operated; (2) is not dominant in its field 
of operation; and (3) meets any additional criteria established by the 
SBA. In the FRFA pertaining to this action, we described in detail the 
small entities potentially subject to the rules adopted in this Order. 
These same entities possibly would be affected by the proposal made in 
this Further Notice of Proposed Rules. For purposes of this IRFA, 
therefore, we incorporate the list of potentially affected entities 
contained in section IV(A)(3).
    5. Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping and Other 
Compliance Requirements. We seek comment on a proposal designed to 
increase the accuracy and understandability of telephone bills to 
consumers. Comment is requested on a proposal to require uniform labels 
on line-item charges resulting from federal regulatory action.
    6. Federal Rules that may Duplicate, Overlap, or Conflict with the 
Proposed Rule. None.
    7. Any significant alternatives minimizing impact on small entities 
and are consistent with stated objectives. None.

Summary of Further Notice of Proposed Rules

I. Application of Rules to CMRS Carriers

    8. As we indicated in the Order, we seek comment on whether the 
remaining truth-in-billing rules we adopt in the wireline context 
should apply to CMRS carriers. More specifically, we seek comment on 
whether such rules should be imposed on CMRS carriers in order to 
protect consumers. As we stated in the Order, we believe that all 
consumers expect and should receive bills that are fair, clear, and 
truthful. However, absent evidence that there is a problem with 
wireless bills, it might not be necessary to apply the remaining rules 
in the CMRS context. Commenters may wish to address the applicability 
of a section 10 forbearance analysis. Those commenters who wish to 
apply such an analysis should address the specific elements of the 
standard set forth in section 10. We also seek comment on the extent to 
which the presence of a competitive market is relevant to consumers' 
ability to protect themselves from the harms we address here.
    9. We also note growing evidence that some consumers are 
substituting wireless for wireline service. To what extent does this 
phenomenon affect our application of our guidelines to wireless 
providers? We also seek comment more generally on the benefit that 
consumers would derive from application of certain of the guidelines 
relative to the burden that such application would impose on CMRS 
carriers. First, as we indicated in the Order, all consumers are 
entitled to fair, clear, and reasonable practices. We seek comment on 
how to implement this principle in the CMRS context. For instance, we 
seek comment on the current billing practices of CMRS providers, 
including the types and descriptions of charges CMRS providers include 
in their bills.
    10. Second, we seek comment on whether identifying new service 
providers and ``deniable'' charges makes sense in the wireless context. 
For example, because CMRS carriers are excluded from equal access 
obligations, it appears that CMRS carriers will rarely if ever be 
required to indicate a new long distance service provider on the bill. 
Similarly, CMRS carriers indicate in their comments that, unlike the 
practice in connection with billing for wireline carriers that can give 
rise to cramming, CMRS carriers do not at this time include charges for 
services rendered by third party entities. We seek comment on these 
assertions. Do CMRS providers bill for any other service providers? If 
so, for what types of services and how pervasive are these billing 
practices? Likewise, CMRS carriers, as non-LECs, that do their own 
billing do not have to distinguish between ``deniable'' and 
``nondeniable'' charges because non payment of charges on a CMRS bill 
would not result in termination of basic local wireline service. 
Therefore, our guideline to identify ``deniable'' charges may have no 
relevance, and add no benefit, to consumers' CMRS bills.

II. Standard Labels for Line-Item Charges

    11. As discussed in section II(C)(2)(c), we adopt the guideline 
that carriers must use standardized labels to refer to certain charges 
relating to federal regulatory action. We seek comment, however, on the 
specific labels that carriers should adopt. We tentatively conclude 
that the following labels would be appropriate: ``Long Distance 
Access'' to identify charges related to interexchange carriers'' costs 
for access to the networks of local exchange carriers; ``Federal 
Universal Service'' to describe line items seeking to recover from 
customers carriers' universal service contributions; and ``Number 
Portability'' to describe charges relating to local number portability. 
We tentatively conclude that such labels will adequately identify the 
charges and provide consumers with a basis for comparison among 
carriers, while at the same time be sufficiently succinct such that 
most carriers will be able to use them without requiring that they 
modify the field lengths of their current billing systems. We seek 
comment on these tentative conclusions. In addition, we seek comment on 
alternative labels, or appropriate abbreviations for the labeling of 
these charges. For example, the Florida Commission suggests the terms 
``Federal Long Distance Access Fee,'' ``FCC Long Distance Access Fee,'' 
or ``Interstate Long Distance Access Fee'' to identify access charges, 
and ``Federal Universal Service Fee,'' ``FCC Universal Service Fee,'' 
or ``Interstate Universal Service Fee'' for universal service related 
charges. Commenters

[[Page 34501]]

should explain the merit and basis for their proposed labels, 
including, for example whether their proposals were chosen or evaluated 
by consumer focus groups. Indeed, we believe that consumer groups, with 
input from industry, can contribute greatly to our consideration of the 
appropriate labels. Finally, we seek comment on how carriers should 
identify line items that combine two or all of these charges into a 
single charge. We encourage parties to attempt to reach consensus on 
the appropriate labels.

III. Procedural Matters

    12. Interested parties may file comments concerning the 
standardized labels for charges relating to federal regulatory action 
no later than 14 days after publication of this Further Notice of 
Proposed Rules in the Federal Register. Parties shall file comments 
concerning application of the truth-in-billing principles and 
guidelines to CMRS carriers no later than 30 days after publication of 
the Further Notice of Proposed Rules in the Federal Register. Parties 
may file reply comments no later than 21 days after publication of the 
Further Notice of Proposed Rules in the Federal Register concerning 
charges relating to federal regulatory action, and no later than 45 
days after Federal Register publication concerning the CMRS issues 
raised in the Further Notice of Proposed Rules. Comments will be 
limited to 15 pages, not including appendices. Comments may be filed 
using the Commission's Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS) or by 
filing paper copies. See Electronic Filing of Documents in Rulemaking 
Proceedings, 63 FR 24,121 (1998).
    13. Comments filed through the ECFS can be sent as an electronic 
file via the Internet to <http://www.fcc.gov/e-file/ecfs.html>. 
Generally, only one copy of an electronic submission must be filed. If 
multiple docket or rulemaking numbers appear in the caption of this 
proceeding, however, commenters must transmit one electronic copy of 
the comments to each docket or rulemaking number referenced in the 
caption. In completing the transmittal screen, commenters should 
include their full name, Postal Service mailing address, and the 
applicable docket or rulemaking number. Parties may also submit an 
electronic comment by Internet e-mail. To get filing instructions for 
e-mail comments, commenters should send an e-mail to [email protected], and 
should include the following words in the body of the message, ``get 
form [email protected]. The First Report and Order and Further 
Notice of Proposed Rules can be downloaded in WP or ASCII text at: 
http//www.fcc.gov/dtf/.

IV. Ordering Clauses

    18. Accordingly, It is ordered, pursuant to sections 1, 4(i) and 
(j), 201-209, 254, and 403 of the Communications Act, as amended, 47 
U.S.C. Secs. 151, 154(i), 154(j), 201-209, 254, and 403, that this 
Further Notice of Proposed Rules Is hereby adopted and comments Are 
requested as described above.
    19. It is further ordered that the Commission's Office of Public 
Affairs, Reference Operations Division, Shall send a copy of this 
Further Notice of Proposed Rules, including the Initial Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 
Business Administration.

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 64

    Communications common carriers, Consumer protection, 
Telecommunications.

Federal Communications Commission.
Magalie Roman Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 99-16224 Filed 6-24-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P