[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 34 (Wednesday, February 20, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7689-7691]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-4002]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION


Public Information Collections Approved by Office of Management 
and Budget

February 11, 2002.
    The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has received Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the following public 
information collections pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, Public Law 104-13. An agency may not conduct or sponsor and a 
person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless 
it displays a currently valid control number. For further information 
contact Shoko B. Hair, Federal Communications Commission, (202) 418-
1379.

Federal Communications Commission

    OMB Control No.: 3060-0973.
    Expiration Date: 11/30/2004.
    Title: Section 64.11210(e)--Sale or Transfer of Subscriber Base to 
Another Carrier (CC Dockets 00-257 and 94-129).
    Form No.: N/A.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 75 respondents; 6 hour per response 
(avg.); 450 total annual burden hours.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: $0.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion; third party disclosure.
    Description: In the First Report and Order in CC Docket No. 00-257 
and the Fourth Report and Order in CC Docket No. 94-129 (Fourth Report 
and Order), the Commission amended section 64.1120 of its rules, as 
part of its biennial regulatory review effort, to establish a 
streamlined self-certification process for the carrier-to-carrier sale 
or transfer of subscriber bases, thereby eliminating the need to obtain 
a waiver of Commission rules prior to closing a transaction. This 
process is designed to ensure that the affected subscribers have 
adequate information about the carrier change in advance, that they are 
not financially harmed by the change, and that they will experience a 
seamless transition of service from their original carrier to the 
acquiring carrier. This

[[Page 7690]]

process also will provide the Commission with information it needs to 
fulfill its consumer protection obligations. Pursuant to 64.1120(e), a 
telecommunications carrier may acquire, through a sale or transfer, 
either part or all of another telecommunications carrier's subscriber 
base without obtaining each subscriber's authorization and verification 
in accordance with Section 64.1120(c), provided that the acquiring 
carrier complies with the streamlined procedures set forth in Section 
64.1120(e)(1) through (3). a. Section 64.1120(e)(1)-(2), Notification 
and Certification to the Commission. Pursuant to 47 CFR 64.1120(e)(1)-
(3), no later than 30 days before the planned transfer of the affected 
subscribers from the selling or transferring carrier to the acquiring 
carrier, the acquiring carrier shall file with the Commission's Office 
of the Secretary a letter notification in CC Docket No. 00-257 
providing the names of the parties to the transaction, the types of 
telecommunications services to be provided to the affected subscribers, 
and the date of the transfer of the subscriber base to the acquiring 
carrier. The acquiring carrier also shall certify compliance with the 
requirement to provide advance subscriber notice in accordance with 47 
CFR 64.1120(e)(3). In addition, the acquiring carrier shall attach a 
copy of the notice sent to the affected subscribers. If, subsequent to 
the filing of the letter notification with the Commission, any material 
changes to the required information should develop, the acquiring 
carrier shall file written notification of these changes with the 
Commission no more than 10 days after the transfer date announced in 
the prior notification. See 47 CFR 64.1120(e)(1)-(2). (Number of 
respondents: 75; hours per response: 1 hour; total annual burden: 75 
hours). b. Section 64.1120(e)(3), Pre-Transfer Subscriber Notification 
and Certification to the Commission. Not later than 30 days before the 
transfer of the affected subscribers from the selling or transferring 
carrier to the acquiring carrier, the acquiring carrier shall provide 
written notice to each affected subscriber of the information specified 
in 47 CFR 64.1120(e)(3). (Number of respondents: 75; hours per 
response: 5 hours; total annual burden: 75 hours). The information will 
be used to implement Section 258 of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended. The information will expedite procedures for handling the sale 
or transfer of subscribers, while adequately protecting consumers. 
Obligation to respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits.

    OMB Control No.: 3060-0298.
    Expiration Date: 02/28/2005.
    Title: Tariffs (Other Than Tariff Review Plan)--Part 61.
    Form No.: N/A.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 3000 respondents; 45 hours per response 
(avg.); 135,000 total annual burden hours (for all collections approved 
under this control number).
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: 
$2,161,000.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion; Annually, Biennially, Third 
Party Disclosure.
    Description: Sections 201, 202, 203, 204 and 205 of the 
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 201, 202, 203, 204 
and 205, require that common carriers establish just and reasonable 
charges, practices and regulations for the services they provide. The 
schedules containing these charges, practices and regulations must be 
filed with the Commission, which is required to determine whether such 
schedules are just, reasonable and not unduly discriminatory. Part 61 
of the Commission's Rules establishes the procedures for filing tariffs 
which contain the charges, practices and regulations of the common 
carriers, supporting economic data and other related documents. The 
supporting data must also conform to other parts of the Rules such as 
Parts 36 and 69. Part 61 prescribes the framework for the initial 
establishment of and subsequent revisions to tariffs. Tariffs that do 
not conform to Part 61 requirements may be rejected. In addition to 
tariffs filed with the Commission, carriers may be required to post 
their schedules or rates and regulations. See 47 CFR 61.72. On April 
27, 2001, the Commission released the Seventh Report and Order (i.e., 
the CLEC Access Order) in CC Docket No. 96-262, which limited the 
application of the Commission's tariff rules to interstate access 
services provided by nondominant local exchange carriers (i.e., 
competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs)). Pursuant to the CLEC 
Access Order, CLEC access rates that are at or below a benchmark set by 
the Commission will be presumed to be just and reasonable and may be 
imposed by tariff. Above the benchmark, CLEC access services will be 
mandatorily detariffed. The practical effect of the CLEC Access Order 
is that some CLECs will need to revise their existing tariffs to bring 
their rates into line with the benchmark. CLECs will need to follow 
similar procedures on an annual basis for the next three years, as the 
benchmark declines pursuant to a schedule adopted by the Commission. 
The information collected through a carrier's tariff is used by the 
Commission to determine whether the services offered are just and 
reasonable as the Act requires. The tariffs and any supporting 
documentation are examined in order to determine if the services are 
offered in a just and reasonable manner. Obligation to respond: 
Mandatory.

    OMB Control No.: 3060-0989.
    Expiration Date: 11/30/2004.
    Title: Procedures for Applicants Requiring Section 214 
Authorization for Domestic Interstate Transmission Lines Acquired 
through Corporate Control.
    Form No.: N/A.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 25 respondents; 65 hour per response 
(avg.); 1625 total annual burden hours.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: $20,375.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion.
    Description: In a Public Notice (DA 01-1654), released 7/20/01, the 
Commission announced procedures for common carriers requiring 
authorization under section 214 of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended to acquire domestic interstate transmission lines through an 
acquisition of control. Under section 214, carriers must obtain 
Commission approval before constructing, acquiring, or operating an 
interstate transmission line. 47 CFR 63.01 confers blanket authority 
under section 214 for common carriers to construct, acquire, and 
operate domestic transmission lines without prior Commission approval. 
This blanket authority, however, expressly does not apply when there is 
a transfer of interstate lines resulting from an acquisition of 
corporate control.
    Pursuant to the Public Notice, domestic section 214 applications 
involving acquisitions of corporate control, at a minimum, should 
specify: (1) A description of the transaction and the parties involved; 
(2) the type of services the parties provide and the locations where 
those services are provided; (3) any applications pending or to be 
filed with the FCC that relate to the same transaction; (4) a copy of 
the relevant merger agreement, if any; and (5) a statement as to how 
granting the application will serve the public convenience and 
necessity, taking into account any adverse effect on competition in any 
relevant market. In all instances, applications for domestic section 
214 authority involving

[[Page 7691]]

acquisitions of corporate control should identify the application as 
one for ``domestic'' service in the cover letter of the first page of 
the applications. All domestic section 214 applications involving 
acquisitions of corporate control must be accompanied by the relevant 
filing fee, and a certification pursuant to FCC Rules 1.2001 through 
1.2003 that no party to the application is subject to a denial of 
Federal benefits pursuant to section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 
1988 (21 U.S.C. Sec. 853(a)). See 47 CFR 1.1105 (fee schedule); 1.2001-
2003 (Anti-Drug Abuse certification). After an applicant files an 
application, interested third parties may file comments on or before a 
due date set forth by the FCC or Common Carrier Bureau (Bureau) in a 
Public Notice. The information will be used to ensure that applicants 
comply with the requirements of 47 U.S.C. 214. Obligation to respond: 
Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
    OMB Control No.: 3060-0391.
    Expiration Date: 2/28/2005.
    Title: Program to Monitor the Impacts of the Universal Service 
Support Mechanisms, CC Docket Nos. 98-202, 96-45.
    Form No.: N/A.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 1439 respondents; 40 minutes to 1.5 hours 
per response (avg.); 1716 total annual burden hours.
    Estimated Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: $0.
    Frequency of Response: Annually.
    Description: Both now and prior to the Telecommunications Act of 
1996, the Commission has taken steps to promote universal access to 
telephone service. In 1987, the Commission, acting on the 
recommendation of the Separations Joint Board, adopted a monitoring 
program to address universal service and separations issues raised in 
CC Docket No. 80-286. Because that monitoring program (and the 
Monitoring Reports derived from the program) integrated information 
from all fifty states, Commission and state staff worked closely to 
prepare accurate and useful analyses. The Monitoring Reports have been 
and continue to be widely used by the public, state commissions, and 
industry because they provide valuable information on universal service 
support in all states. Currently the monitoring program consists of one 
item. Information on network usage and growth: This information is 
generally maintained by all companies that settle their accounts with 
the National Exchange Carriers Association (NECA) on a cost basis. This 
information is collected by NECA. The data collected are: local dial 
equipment minutes, intrastate toll dial equipment minutes, interstate 
toll dial equipment minutes, total dial equipment minutes, interstate 
dial equipment minute factors, and interstate access minutes. The 
monitoring program is necessary for the Commission, the Joint Board, 
Congress, and the general public to assess the impact of the new 
universal service support mechanisms. Failure to implement the program 
would make it impossible to determine the impact of these mechanisms 
and to assure that the implementation of section 254 fulfills the 
intent of Congress and furthers the public interest. Obligation to 
respond: Mandatory.
    Public reporting burden for the collections of information are as 
noted above. Send comments regarding the burden estimates or any other 
aspect of the collections of information, including suggestions for 
reducing the burden to Performance Evaluation and Records Management, 
Washington, DC 20554.

    Federal Communications Commission.
William Caton,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-4002 Filed 2-19-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-U