[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 131 (Wednesday, July 9, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 40876-40887]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-17415]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 1

[WT Docket No. 03-128; FCC 03-125]


Nationwide Programmatic Agreement

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission 
(``FCC'' or ``Commission'') seeks comment regarding a draft nationwide 
programmatic agreement that would tailor and streamline procedures for 
review of certain undertakings for communications facilities under the 
National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (``NHPA''). In addition, the 
Commission seeks comment on certain transitional issues regarding the 
treatment of NHPA proceedings pending at the time the draft nationwide 
programmatic agreement is adopted.

DATES: Submit comments on or before August 8, 2003. Submit reply 
comments on or before September 8, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Federal Communications Commission, 445 12th Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20554. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for further filing 
instructions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frank Stilwell, Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau, (202) 418-1892.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of a Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking (NPRM) in WT Dkt. No. 03-128, FCC 03-125, adopted May 27, 
2003, and released June 9, 2003. The Nationwide Agreement, upon 
amendment and final agreement, will tailor and streamline procedures 
for review of certain Undertakings for communications facilities under 
section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 
(``NHPA''), 16 U.S.C. 470 et seq. The NPRM also proposes to revise a 
related provision of the Commission's rules and initiate the use of two 
new FCC forms for Commission applicants, licensees and tower owners. 
The full text of the NPRM is available for public inspection during 
regular business hours at the FCC Reference Information Center, 445 
12th St., SW., Room CY-A257, Washington, DC 20554. The complete text 
may be purchased from the Commission's duplicating contractor: Qualex 
International, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC, 
20554, telephone 202-863-2893, facsimile 202-863-2898, or via e-mail at 
[email protected].

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This NPRM contains a new information collection as described in 
Section B of the Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis below. The 
Commission, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork 
burdens, invites the general public, Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB), and other federal agencies to comment on the information 
collection(s) contained in the NPRM as required by the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995, Pub. L. 104-13. It will be submitted to the OMB 
for review under Section 3507(d) of the PRA. Public, OMB, and other 
agency comments are due September 8, 2003. Comments should address: (a) 
Whether the new 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 of the 
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.
    A copy of any comments on the information collections contained 
herein should be submitted to Judith B. Herman, Federal Communications 
Commission, Room 1C-804, 445 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554, or 
via the Internet at [email protected], and to Kim A. Johnson, OMB 
Desk Officer, Room 10236 NEOB, 725 17th Street, NW.,

[[Page 40877]]

Washington, DC 20503 or via the Internet to [email protected].
    OMB Control Number: 3060-XXXX.
    Title: Nationwide Programmatic Agreement Regarding the Section 106 
National Historic Preservation Act Review Process.
    Form: FCC Forms 620 and 621.
    Type of Review: New collection.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit, Individuals or 
household, Not-for-profit institutions, and State, Local or Tribal 
Government.
    Number of Respondents: 12,000.
    Frequency of Response: Recordkeeping, On occasion reporting 
required, Third party disclosure.
    Total Annual Burden: 73,800 hours.
    Needs and Uses: This data is used by FCC staff, State Historic 
Preservation Officers (``SHPO''), Tribal Historic Preservation Officers 
(``THPO''), and the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation 
(``ACHP'') to take such action as may be necessary to ascertain whether 
a proposed action may affect historic properties that are listed or 
eligible for listing in the National Register as directed by section 
106 of the NHPA and the Commission's Rules.

I. Background

    1. In this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (``NPRM''), we seek 
comment on a draft Nationwide Programmatic Agreement (``Nationwide 
Agreement'') among the Federal Communications Commission 
(``Commission''), the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation 
(``Council''), and the National Conference of State Historic 
Preservation Officers (``Conference'') that would tailor and streamline 
procedures for review of certain Undertakings for communications 
facilities under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 
(``NHPA''), as well as a related revision of the Commission's rules. 
See 16 U.S.C. 470 et seq. An ``Undertaking'' subject to review under 
the NHPA is defined as ``a project, activity, or program funded in 
whole or in part under the direct or indirect jurisdiction of a Federal 
agency, including (A) those carried out by or on behalf of the agency; 
(B) those carried out with Federal financial assistance; (C) those 
requiring a Federal permit, license, or approval; and (D) those subject 
to State or local regulation administered pursuant to a delegation or 
approval by a Federal agency.'' 16 U.S.C. 470w(7). The proposed 
Nationwide Agreement would incorporate an existing Programmatic 
Agreement that excludes most collocations of antennas on existing 
structures from routine historic preservation review. See 16 FCC Rcd 
5574 (Wireless Tel. Bur. 2001). In November 2001, representatives of 
the Commission, Council and Conference, American Indian tribes, the 
communications industry, and historic preservation consultants, as part 
of a working group sponsored by the Council, began drafting a proposed 
Nationwide Agreement. Consistent with Sec.  800.14(b) of the Council's 
rules, 36 CFR 800.14(b), and Sec.  1.1307(a)(4) of the Commission's 
rules, 47 CFR 1.1307(a)(4), the draft Nationwide Agreement is intended 
to tailor the section 106 review, 16 U.S.C. 470f, in the communications 
context so as to improve compliance and streamline the review process 
for construction of towers and other Commission Undertakings. The 
Commission's environmental rules currently treat construction of 
licensed communications facilities as ``Undertakings.'' An illustrative 
list of Commission activities in relation to which Undertakings covered 
by the draft Nationwide Agreement may occur is attached. See Attachment 
2 to Attachment A. At the same time, the parties intend to advance and 
preserve the goal of the NHPA to protect historic properties, including 
historic properties to which Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian 
organizations (``NHOs'') attach religious and cultural significance.

II. Discussion

    2. We request comment on the draft Nationwide Agreement. See 
Attachment A to this NPRM. In particular, we seek comment on several 
issues that members of the Working Group have specifically raised 
during the course of negotiating the current draft Nationwide 
Agreement. For example, members of the Working Group have proposed 
certain modifications to the language in the draft Nationwide Agreement 
regarding exclusion of certain Undertakings from routine section 106 
review. See Draft Nationwide Agreement section III. These and other 
issues on which the members of the Working Group did not reach full 
consensus are indicated in footnotes throughout the draft Nationwide 
Agreement. We seek comment on these and any other issues related to the 
draft Nationwide Agreement, including issues related to the potential 
economic impact of the draft Nationwide Agreement on small entities.
    3. We also request comment regarding how the draft Nationwide 
Agreement should be crafted consistent with the Commission's 
government-to-government relationship with and trust responsibility to 
federally recognized Indian tribes (including Alaska Native Villages), 
See In the Matter of Statement of Policy on Establishing a Government-
to-Government Relationship with Indian Tribes, Policy Statement, 16 FCC 
Rcd 4078, 4080 (2000), and statutory and regulatory provisions 
governing the Commission's relationship with such Indian tribes and 
NHOs, See 16 U.S.C. 470a(d); 36 CFR 800.2(c)(2); 47 CFR 1.1308(b) Note 
(when an action interferes with or adversely affects an American Indian 
tribe's religious site, the Commission shall solicit the views of that 
American Indian tribe). Several issues in this regard have been brought 
to our attention both through tribal participation in the Working Group 
and through Commission staff consultation with the United South and 
Eastern Tribes, Inc. For instance, do the NHPA, the Council's rules or 
other governing principles require notification or more, prior to 
construction, to Indian tribes and NHOs with historic associations to 
the area in which an Undertaking is to occur, even though the parties 
to a Nationwide Agreement identify certain classes of Undertakings as 
unlikely to have an effect on historic properties and therefore 
excluded from routine review? See Draft Nationwide Agreement at section 
III.B Similarly, should the Nationwide Agreement prescribe procedures 
for licensees and applicants to invite the participation of Indian 
tribes and NHOs in the section 106 process, or should it recommend 
that, as an alternative to direct Commission consultation on each site, 
the parties implement alternative processes pursuant to guidance to be 
provided separately by the Commission after consultation with Indian 
tribes and NHOs? Id. section IV, Alternatives A and B. We seek comment 
on these issues.
    4. In addition, we request comment regarding the treatment of 
section 106 reviews that are in process at the time a Nationwide 
Agreement becomes effective. For example, to what extent should the 
timelines, processes and standards in a Nationwide Agreement replace 
the Council's rules (36 CFR part 800) for section 106 reviews that are 
pending before a SHPO/THPO, or at other stages in the process, on the 
date that a Nationwide Agreement goes into effect? We seek comment on 
this and other transitional issues.
    5. Finally, in conjunction with the proposed execution of the 
Nationwide Agreement, we propose to revise Sec.  1.1307(a)(4) of our 
rules.\1\ Under Sec.  1.1307(a)(4), applicants are required to evaluate 
whether their proposed

[[Page 40878]]

facilities may affect districts, sites, buildings, structures or 
objects, significant in American history, architecture, archeology, 
engineering or culture, that are listed, or are eligible for listing, 
in the National Register of Historic Places and, if so, to file an 
Environmental Assessment and obtain a Finding of No Significant Impact 
(or procure completion by the Commission of an Environmental Impact 
Statement) prior to construction.\2\ The Note to Sec.  1.1307(a)(4) 
provides guidance as to how applicants should perform this evaluation 
consistent with the NHPA. In order to make clear that the procedures in 
the Nationwide Agreement will be binding on applicants, and that non-
compliance with these procedures would subject a party to potential 
enforcement action by the Commission, we propose to amend Sec.  
1.1307(a)(4) by removing the Note and adding the following language to 
the text of 47 CFR 1.1307(a)(4):

    The National Register is updated in the Federal Register. To 
ascertain whether a proposed action may affect properties that are 
listed or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic 
Places, an applicant shall follow the procedures set forth in the 
rules of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, 36 CFR part 
800, as modified and supplemented by the Nationwide Programmatic 
Agreement for the Collocation of Wireless Antennas, Appendix B to 
Part 1 of this Chapter, and the Nationwide Programmatic Agreement 
for Review of Effects on Historic Properties for Certain 
Undertakings Approved by the Federal Communications Commission, 
Appendix C to Part 1 of this Chapter.

    \1\ 47 CFR 1.1307(a)(4).
    \2\ Id.; see also 47 CFR 1.1308, 1.1311.
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    We seek comment on this proposed revision to our rules. The 
Nationwide Programmatic Agreement for the Collocation of Wireless 
Antennas may be found at 66 FR 17554, April 2, 2001.

III. Procedural Matters

A. Ex Parte Rules--Permit-But-Disclose Proceeding

    6. This matter shall be treated as a ``permit-but-disclose'' 
proceeding in accordance with the Commission's ex parte rules. Id. 
Sec. Sec.  1.1200-1.1216. Persons making oral ex parte presentations 
are reminded that memoranda summarizing the presentations must contain 
summaries of the substance of the presentations and not merely a 
listing of the subjects discussed. More than a one or two sentence 
description of the views and arguments presented is generally required. 
See Id. Sec.  1.1206(b)(2). Other requirements pertaining to oral and 
written presentations are set forth in Sec.  1.1206(b) of the 
Commission's rules. See Id. Sec.  1.1206(b). Under the Council's rules, 
the Council and Conference must be parties to the Nationwide Agreement. 
Therefore, for purposes of the Commission's ex parte rules, in this 
proceeding we shall treat presentations from these entities and their 
staffs as exempt presentations under 47 CFR 1.1204(a)(5).

B. Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    7. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as 
amended (``RFA''),\3\ the Commission has prepared this present Initial 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (``IRFA'') of the possible significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities of the 
policies and rules proposed in this NPRM. 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 NPRM 
provided in paragraph 7 of the item. The Commission will send a copy of 
the NPRM, including this IRFA, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 
Small Business Administration.\4\ In addition, the NPRM and IRFA (or 
summaries thereof) will be published in the Federal Register.\5\
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    \3\ See 5 U.S.C. 603. The RFA, see 5 U.S.C. 601 through 612, has 
been amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness 
Act of 1996 (``SBREFA''), Public Law No. 104-121, Title II, 110 
Stat. 857 (1996).
    \4\ See 5 U.S.C. 603(a).
    \5\ See 5 U.S.C. 603(a).
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C. Need for, and Objectives of, the NPRM

    8. The NPRM seeks comment on a draft Nationwide Programmatic 
Agreement (``Nationwide Agreement'') among the Federal Communications 
Commission (``Commission''), the Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation (``Council'') and the National Conference of State 
Historic Preservation Officers (``Conference''). The Nationwide 
Agreement would tailor and streamline procedures for review of certain 
Undertakings for communications facilities under the National Historic 
Preservation Act of 1966 (``NHPA'').\6\ In November 2001, 
representatives of the Commission, Council, Conference, American Indian 
tribes, the communications industry, and historic preservation 
consultants, as part of a working group sponsored by the Council, began 
drafting a proposed Nationwide Agreement. Consistent with the Council's 
rules, the draft Nationwide Agreement is intended to tailor the section 
106 review \7\ in the communications context so as to improve 
compliance and streamline the review process for construction of towers 
and other Commission Undertakings.
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    \6\ See 16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.
    \7\ Section 106 of the NHPA, codified at 16 U.S.C. 470f, 
requires federal agencies to take into account the effects of 
certain of their undertakings on historic properties, listed or 
eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places, 
and to afford the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation a 
reasonable opportunity to comment with regard to such undertakings.
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    9. The Commission proposes to adopt the Nationwide Agreement in 
order to clarify and streamline the obligations \8\ of its regulatees 
\9\ (``Applicants'') with respect to assisting the Commission in 
meeting its responsibilities under the NHPA. For example, the draft 
Nationwide Agreement would exclude from routine Section 106 review \10\ 
certain Undertakings that are unlikely to affect historic 
properties.\11\ For those Undertakings that would remain subject to 
review, the draft Nationwide Agreement would specify standards and 
procedures that Applicants shall follow when completing the section 106 
review. For example, the Nationwide Agreement sets forth the manner in 
which Applicants should seek participation of Indian Tribes and Native 
Hawaiian Organizations; should seek tribal consultation; should seek 
public participation and consulting parties; should identify, evaluate, 
and assess effects on historic properties;

[[Page 40879]]

and, should submit materials for review by the State Historic 
Preservation Officer (SHPO) or Tribal Historic Preservation Officer 
(THPO) and the Commission. In addition, the draft Nationwide Agreement 
includes provisions for emergency situations;\12\ inadvertent or post-
review discovery of adverse effects on historic properties; 
construction prior to completion of the section 106 process; public 
comments; and amendment or termination of the Agreement. Finally, the 
Nationwide Agreement proposes to prescribe two standardized forms for 
making submissions to the SHPO or THPO.
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    \8\ See 47 CFR 1.1307(a)(4).
    \9\ Commission regulatees, in this instance, include licensees, 
tower owners, and applicants for authorization to construct 
facilities in the wireless, media, and satellite services.
    \10\ Commission Applicants are required to review whether a 
proposed tower or antenna may affect historic properties that are 
either listed or eligible for inclusion in the National Register, 
including properties that may affect sites of religious or cultural 
importance to Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. To do 
this, Applicants must begin the section 106 process by first 
presenting documentation of the review to the State Historic 
Preservation Officer and any relevant Tribal Historic Preservation 
Officers.
    \11\ An ``Undertaking'' subject to review under the NHPA is 
defined as ``a project, activity, or program funded in whole or in 
part under the direct or indirect jurisdiction of a Federal agency, 
including (A) those carried out by or on behalf of the agency; (B) 
those carried out with Federal financial assistance; (C) those 
requiring a Federal permit, license, or approval; and (D) those 
subject to State or local regulation administered pursuant to a 
delegation or approval by a Federal agency.'' 16 U.S.C. 470w(7). The 
Commission's environmental rules currently treat construction of 
licensed communications facilities as ``Undertakings.'' An 
illustrative list of Commission activities in relation to which 
Undertakings covered by the draft Nationwide Agreement may occur is 
provided here as Attachment 2 to Appendix A (``Nationwide 
Programmatic Agreement for Review of Effects on Historic Properties 
for Certain Undertakings Approved by the Federal Communications 
Commission'').
    \12\ The draft Nationwide Agreement outlines the manner in which 
applicants should complete section 106 reviews in those 
circumstances when emergency service is needed in a specific 
location.
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    10. The Commission further proposes to amend Sec.  1.1307(a)(4) in 
order to make clear that the procedures in the Nationwide Agreement 
will be binding on applicants, and that non-compliance with these 
procedures would subject a party to potential enforcement action by the 
Commission. Specifically, Sec.  1.1307(a)(4) would be amended to 
specify that in order to ascertain whether a proposed action may affect 
properties that are listed or eligible for listing in the National 
Register,\13\ an Applicant shall follow the procedures set forth in the 
rules of the Council, as modified and supplemented by the Nationwide 
Programmatic Agreement for the Collocation of Wireless Antennas, 66 FR 
17554, April 2, 2001, and this Nationwide Agreement.
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    \13\ ``Listed'' properties are those properties for which an 
application for inclusion in the National Register of Historic 
Places (``National Register'') has been approved. Under Sec.  
800.16(l)(2) of the regulations of the Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation, 36 CFR 800.16(l)(2), the term ``eligible for inclusion 
in the National Register'' includes both properties formally 
determined as such by the Keeper of the National Register in 
accordance with applicable regulations of the Secretary of the 
Interior and all other properties that the meet the National 
Register criteria. Information on the characteristics of properties 
that meet these criteria is available at the National Register web 
site: http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr.
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D. Legal Basis

    11. We tentatively conclude that we have authority under sections 
1, 4(i), 301, 303(q), 303(r), 309(a), 309(j), and 319 of the 
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 301, 
303(q), 303(r), 309(a), 309(j), and 319, section 106 of the National 
Historic Preservation Act of 1966, 16 U.S.C. 470f, and Sec.  800.14(b) 
of the rules of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, 36 CFR 
800.14(b), to adopt the proposals set forth in the NPRM.

C. Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to Which 
the Rules Will Apply

    12. The RFA directs agencies to provide a description of, and where 
feasible, an estimate of the number of small entities that may be 
affected by proposed rules.\14\ The RFA generally defines the term 
``small entity'' as having the same meaning as the terms ``small 
business,'' ``small organization,'' and ``small governmental 
jurisdiction.'' \15\ In addition, the term ``small business'' has the 
same meaning as the term ``small business concern'' under the Small 
Business Act.\16\ A ``small business concern'' is one which: (1) Is 
independently owned and operated; (2) is not dominant in its field of 
operation; and (3) satisfies any additional criteria established by the 
Small Business Administration (SBA).\17\
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    \14\ 5 U.S.C. 604(a)(3).
    \15\ 5 U.S.C. 601(6).
    \16\ 5 U.S.C. 601(3) (incorporating by reference the definition 
of ``small business concern'' in the Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 
632). Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 601(3), the statutory definition of a 
small business applies ``unless an agency, after consultation with 
the Office of Advocacy of the Small Business Administration and 
after opportunity for public comment, establishes one or more 
definitions of such term which are appropriate to the activities of 
the agency and publishes such definition(s) in the Federal 
Register.''
    \17\ 15 U.S.C. 632.
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    13. The draft Nationwide Agreement and NPRM could result in rule 
changes that, if adopted, would impose requirements on entities that 
may construct facilities that may significantly affect the environment 
under Sec.  1.1307 of the Commission's rules. This includes various 
classes of Commission licensees as well as non-licensee tower owners. 
To assist the Commission in analyzing the total number of potentially 
affected small entities, commenters are requested to provide estimates 
of the number of small entities that may be affected by any rule 
changes resulting from the NPRM.
Wireless Telecommunications
    14. Cellular Licensees. The SBA has developed a small business size 
standard for small businesses in the category ``Cellular and Other 
Wireless Telecommunications.'' \18\ Under that SBA category, a business 
is small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees.\19\ According to the 
Bureau of the Census, only twelve firms from a total of 1238 cellular 
and other wireless telecommunications firms operating during 1997 had 
1,000 or more employees.\20\ Therefore, even if all twelve of these 
firms were cellular telephone companies, nearly all cellular carriers 
were small businesses under the SBA's definition.
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    \18\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 517212.
    \19\ Id.
    \20\ U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, 1997 
Economic Census, Information--Subject Series, Establishment and Firm 
Size, Table 5--Employment Size of Firms Subject to Federal Income 
Tax at 64, NAICS code 517212 (October 2000).
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    15. 220 MHz Radio Service--Phase I Licensees. The 220 MHz service 
has both Phase I and Phase II licenses. Phase I licensing was conducted 
by lotteries in 1992 and 1993. There are approximately 1,515 such non-
nationwide licensees and four nationwide licensees currently authorized 
to operate in the 220 MHz band. The Commission has not developed a 
definition of small entities specifically applicable to such incumbent 
220 MHz Phase I licensees. To estimate the number of such licensees 
that are small businesses, we apply the definition under the SBA rules 
applicable to ``Cellular and Other Wireless Telecommunication'' 
companies. This category provides that a small business is a wireless 
company employing no more than 1,500 persons.\21\ According to the 
Bureau of the Census, only twelve firms from a total of 1238 cellular 
and other wireless telecommunications firms operating during 1997 had 
1,000 or more employees.\22\ If this general ratio continues in 2003 in 
the context of Phase I 220 MHz licensees, we estimate that nearly all 
such licensees are small businesses under the SBA's small business 
standard.
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    \21\ 13 CFR 121.201.
    \22\ U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, 1997 
Economic Census, Information--Subject Series, Establishment and Firm 
Size, Table 5--Employment Size of Firms Subject to Federal Income 
Tax at 64, NAICS code 517212 (October 2000).
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    16. 220 MHz Radio Service--Phase II Licensees. The Phase II 220 MHz 
service is subject to spectrum auctions. In the 220 MHz Third Report 
and Order, we adopted a small business size standard for defining 
``small'' and ``very small'' businesses for purposes of determining 
their eligibility for special provisions such as bidding credits and 
installment payments.\23\ This small business standard indicates that a 
``small business'' is an entity that, together with its affiliates and 
controlling principals, has average gross revenues not exceeding $15 
million for the preceding

[[Page 40880]]

three years.\24\ A ``very small business'' is defined as an entity 
that, together with its affiliates and controlling principals, has 
average gross revenues that do not exceed $3 million for the preceding 
three years.\25\ The SBA has approved these small size standards.\26\ 
Auctions of Phase II licenses commenced on September 15, 1998, and 
closed on October 22, 1998.\27\ In the first auction, 908 licenses were 
auctioned in three different-sized geographic areas: three nationwide 
licenses, 30 Regional Economic Area Group (EAG) Licenses, and 875 
Economic Area (EA) Licenses. Of the 908 licenses auctioned, 683 were 
sold.\28\ Thirty-nine small businesses won licenses in the first 220 
MHz auction. The second auction included 225 licenses: 216 EA licenses 
and 9 EAG licenses. Fourteen companies claiming small business status 
won 158 licenses.\29\
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    \23\ Amendment of Part 90 of the Commission's Rules to Provide 
for the Use of the 220-222 MHz Band by the Private Land Mobile Radio 
Service, PR Docket No. 89-552, Third Report and Order, 12 FCC Rcd 
10943, 11068-70, paras. 291-295 (1997) (220 MHz Third Report and 
Order).
    \24\ Id. at paragraph 291.
    \25\ Id.
    \26\ See Letter to Daniel Phythyon, Chief, Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, from 
Aida Alvarez, Administrator, Small Business Administration, dated 
January 6, 1998.
    \27\ See generally ``220 MHz Service Auction Closes,'' Public 
Notice, 14 FCC Rcd 605 (WTB 1998).
    \28\ ``FCC Announces It is Prepared to Grant 654 Phase II 220 
MHz Licenses after Final Payment is Made,'' Public Notice, 14 FCC 
Rcd 1085 (WTB 1999).
    \29\ ``Phase II 220 MHz Service Spectrum Auction Closes,'' 
Public Notice, 14 FCC Rcd 11218 (WTB 1999).
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    17. 700 MHz Guard Band Licenses. In the 700 MHz Guard Band Order, 
we adopted size standards for ``small businesses'' and ``very small 
businesses'' for purposes of determining their eligibility for special 
provisions such as bidding credits and installment payments.\30\ A 
small business is an entity that, together with its affiliates and 
controlling principals, has average gross revenues not exceeding $40 
million for the preceding three years.\31\ Additionally, a ``very small 
business'' is an entity that, together with its affiliates and 
controlling principals, has average gross revenues that are not more 
than $15 million for the preceding three years.\32\ An auction of 52 
Major Economic Area (MEA) licenses commenced on September 6, 2000, and 
closed on September 21, 2000.\33\ Of the 104 licenses auctioned, 96 
licenses were sold to 9 bidders. Five of these bidders were small 
businesses that won a total of 26 licenses. A second auction of 700 MHz 
Guard Band licenses commenced on February 13, 2001 and closed on 
February 21, 2001. All eight of the licenses auctioned were sold to 
three bidders. One of these bidders was a small business that won a 
total of two licenses.\34\
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    \30\ See Service Rules for the 746-764 MHz Bands, and Revisions 
to Part 27 of the Commission's Rules, WT Docket No. 99-168, Second 
Report and Order, 15 FCC Rcd 5299 (2000).
    \31\ Id. at paragraphs 106-108.
    \32\ Id. at paragraphs 106-108.
    \33\ See generally, ``220 MHz Service Auction Closes: Winning 
Bidders in the Auction of 908 Phase II 220 MHz Service Licenses,'' 
Public Notice, DA 98-2143 (rel. October 23, 1998).
    \34\ ``700 MHz Guard Bands Auction Closes: Winning Bidders 
Announced,'' Public Notice, 16 FCC 4590 (WTB 2001).
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    18. Lower 700 MHz Band Licenses. We adopted criteria for defining 
three groups of small businesses for purposes of determining their 
eligibility for special provisions such as bidding credits.\35\ We have 
defined a small business as an entity that, together with its 
affiliates and controlling principals, has average gross revenues not 
exceeding $40 million for the preceding three years.\36\ A very small 
business is defined as an entity that, together with its affiliates and 
controlling principals, has average gross revenues that are not more 
than $15 million for the preceding three years.\37\ Additionally, the 
lower 700 MHz Service has a third category of small business status 
that may be claimed for Metropolitan/Rural Service Area (MSA/RSA) 
licenses. The third category is entrepreneur, which is defined as an 
entity that, together with its affiliates and controlling principals, 
has average gross revenues that are not more than $3 million for the 
preceding three years. An auction of 740 licenses (one license in each 
of the 734 MSAs/RSAs and one license in each of the six Economic Area 
Groupings [EAGs]) commenced on August 27, 2002, and closed on September 
18, 2002.\38\ Of the 740 licenses available for auction, 484 licenses 
were sold to 102 winning bidders. Seventy-two of the winning bidders 
claimed small business, very small business or entrepreneur status and 
won a total of 329 licenses.
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    \35\ See Reallocation and Service Rules for the 698-746 MHz 
Spectrum Band (Television Channels 52-59), GN Docket No. 01-74, 
Report and Order, 17 FCC Rcd 1022 (2002).
    \36\ Id. at paragraph 172.
    \37\ Id. at paragraph 172.
    \38\ See ``Lower 700 MHz Band Auction Closes,'' 17 FCC Rcd 17272 
(2002).
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    19. Upper 700 MHz Band Licenses. The Commission released a Report 
and Order, authorizing service in the upper 700 MHz band.\39\ No 
auction has been held yet.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \39\ Service Rules for the 746-764 and 776-794 MHz Bands, and 
Revisions to Part 27 of the Commission's Rules, WT Docket No. 99-
168, Second Memorandum Opinion and Order, 16 FCC Rcd 1239 (2001).
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    20. Private and Common Carrier Paging. In the Paging Second Report 
and Order, we adopted a size standard for ``small businesses'' for 
purposes of determining their eligibility for special provisions such 
as bidding credits and installment payments.\40\ A small business is an 
entity that, together with its affiliates and controlling principals, 
has average gross revenues not exceeding $15 million for the preceding 
three years.\41\ The SBA has approved this definition.\42\ An auction 
of Metropolitan Economic Area (MEA) licenses commenced on February 24, 
2000, and closed on March 2, 2000.\43\ Of the 985 licenses auctioned, 
440 were sold. 57 companies claiming small business status won 
licenses. An auction of Metropolitan Economic Area (MEA) and Economic 
Area (EA) licenses commenced on October 30, 2001, and closed on 
December 5, 2001.\44\ Of the 15,514 licenses auctioned, 5,323 were 
sold. 132 companies claiming small business status purchased 3,724 
licenses. At present, there are approximately 24,000 Private Paging 
site-specific licenses and 74,000 Common Carrier Paging licenses. 
According to the most recent Trends in Telephone Service, 608 carriers 
reported that they were engaged in the provision of either paging or 
``other mobile'' services.\45\ Of these, we estimate that 589 are 
small, under the SBA-approved small business size standard. We estimate 
that the majority of private and common carrier paging providers would 
qualify as small entities under the SBA definition.
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    \40\ Revision of Part 22 and Part 90 of the Commission's Rules 
to Facilitate Future Development of Paging Systems, WT Docket No. 
96-18, Second Report and Order, 12 FCC Rcd 2732, 2811-2812, 
paragraphs 178-181 (Paging Second Report and Order); see also 
Revision of Part 22 and Part 90 of the Commission's Rules to 
Facilitate Future Development of Paging Systems, WT Docket No. 96-
18, Memorandum Opinion and Order on Reconsideration, 14 FCC Rcd 
10030, paras. 98-107 (1999).
    \41\ Paging Second Report and Order, 12 FCC Rcd at 2811, 
paragraph 179.
    \42\ See Letter to Amy J. Zoslov, Chief, Auctions and Industry 
Analysis Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, from Aida 
Alvarez, Administrator, Small Business Administration, dated 
December 2, 1998.
    \43\ See generally ``220 MHz Service Auction Closes,'' Public 
Notice, 14 FCC Rcd 605 (WTB 1998).
    \44\ See generally ``220 MHz Service Auction Closes,'' Public 
Notice, 14 FCC Rcd 605 (WTB 1998).
    \45\ See Trends in Telephone Service, Industry Analysis 
Division, Wireline Competition Bureau , Table 5.3--Number of 
Telecommunications Service Providers that are Small Businesses (May 
2002).
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    21. Broadband Personal Communications Service (PCS). The broadband 
PCS spectrum is divided into six frequency blocks designated A through 
F, and the Commission has held auctions for each block. The

[[Page 40881]]

Commission has created a small business size standard for Blocks C and 
F as an entity that has average gross revenues of less than $40 million 
in the three previous calendar years.\46\ For Block F, an additional 
small business size standard for ``very small business'' was added and 
is defined as an entity that, together with its affiliates, has average 
gross revenues of not more than $15 million for the preceding three 
calendar years.\47\ These small business size standards, in the context 
of broadband PCS auctions, have been approved by the SBA.\48\ No small 
businesses within the SBA-approved small business size standards bid 
successfully for licenses in Blocks A and B. There were 90 winning 
bidders that qualified as small entities in the Block C auctions. A 
total of 93 ``small'' and ``very small'' business bidders won 
approximately 40% of the 1,479 licenses for Blocks D, E, and F.\49\ On 
March 23, 1999, the Commission reauctioned 155 C, D, E, and F Block 
licenses; there were 113 small business winning bidders. Based on this 
information, we conclude that the number of small broadband PCS 
licensees include the 90 winning C Block bidders and the 93 qualifying 
bidders in the D, E, and F blocks plus the 113 winning bidders in the 
re-auction, for a total of 296 small entity broadband PCS providers as 
defined by the SBA small business standards and the Commission's 
auction rules.
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    \46\ See Amendment of Parts 20 and 24 of the Commission's 
Rules--Broadband PCS Competitive Bidding and the Commercial Mobile 
Radio Service Spectrum Cap, WT Docket No. 96-59, Report and Order, 
11 FCC Rcd 7824, paragraphs 57-60 (1996); see also 47 CFR 24.720(b).
    \47\ See Amendment of Parts 20 and 24 of the Commission's 
Rules--Broadband PCS Competitive Bidding and the Commercial Mobile 
Radio Service Spectrum Cap, Report and Order, 11 FCC Rcd 7824, 
paragraph 60 (1996).
    \48\ See Letter to Amy Zoslov, Chief, Auctions and Industry 
Analysis Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, Federal 
Communications Commission, from A. Alvarez, Small Business 
Administration, dated December 2, 1998.
    \49\ FCC News, Broadband PCS, D, E and F Block Auction Closes, 
No. 71744 (rel. January 14, 1997).
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    22. Narrowband PCS. To date, two auctions of narrowband personal 
communications services (PCS) licenses have been conducted. For 
purposes of the two auctions that have already been held, ``small 
businesses'' were entities with average gross revenues for the prior 
three calendar years of $40 million or less.\50\ Through these 
auctions, the Commission has awarded a total of 41 licenses, out of 
which 11 were obtained by small businesses. To ensure meaningful 
participation of small business entities in future auctions, the 
Commission has adopted a two-tiered small business size standard in the 
Narrowband PCS Second Report and Order. A ``small business'' is an 
entity that, together with affiliates and controlling interests, has 
average gross revenues for the three preceding years of not more than 
$40 million.\51\ A ``very small business'' is an entity that, together 
with affiliates and controlling interests, has average gross revenues 
for the three preceding years of not more than $15 million.\52\ The SBA 
has approved these small business size standards.\53\ There is also one 
megahertz of narrowband PCS spectrum that has been held in reserve and 
that the Commission has not yet decided to release for licensing. The 
Commission cannot predict accurately the number of licenses that will 
be awarded to small entities in future actions. However, four of the 16 
winning bidders in the two previous narrowband PCS auctions were small 
businesses, as that term was defined under the Commission's rules. The 
Commission assumes, for purposes of this analysis that a large portion 
of the remaining narrowband PCS licenses will be awarded to small 
entities. The Commission also assumes that at least some small 
businesses will acquire narrowband PCS licenses by means of the 
Commission's partitioning and disaggregation rules.
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    \50\ In the Matter of Amendment of the Commission's Rules to 
Establish New Personal Communications Services, Narrowband PCS, 
Second Report and Order and Second Further Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking, 15 FCC Rcd 10456, 10476, paragraph 40 (May 18, 2000).
    \51\ Id. at 15 FCC Rcd 10476, paragraph 40.
    \52\ Id. at 15 FCC Rcd 10476, paragraph 40.
    \53\ See Letter to Amy Zoslov, Chief, Auctions and Industry 
Analysis Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, Federal 
Communications Commission, from A. Alvarez, Administrator, Small 
Business Administration (Dec. 2, 1998).
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    23. 800 and 900 MHz Specialized Mobile Radio (SMR). Pursuant to 47 
CFR 90.814(b) (1), the Commission has established a small business size 
standard for purposes of auctioning SMR licenses in the 900 MHz band, 
the upper 200 channels of the 800 MHz band, and the lower 230 channels 
of the 800 MHz band as a firm that has had average annual gross 
revenues of $15 million or less in the three preceding calendar 
years.\54\ The SBA has approved this small business size standard for 
the 800 MHz and 900 MHz auctions.\55\ Sixty winning bidders for 
geographic area licenses in the 900 MHz SMR band qualified as small 
businesses under the $15 million size standard. The auction of the 525 
800 MHz SMR geographic area licenses for the upper 200 channels began 
on October 28, 1997, and was completed on December 8, 1997. Ten (10) 
winning bidders for geographic area licenses for the upper 200 channels 
in the 800 MHz SMR band qualified as small businesses under the $15 
million size standard.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \54\ 47 CFR 90.814(b)(1).
    \55\ See Letter to Tom Sugrue, Chief, Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, from 
Aida Alvarez, Administrator, Small Business Administration, dated 
August 10, 1999.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    24. The auction of the 1,050 800 MHz SMR geographic area licenses 
for the General Category channels began on August 16, 2000, and was 
completed on September 1, 2000. Eleven (11) winning bidders for 
geographic area licenses for the General Category channels in the 800 
MHz SMR band qualified as small businesses under the $15 million size 
standard. In an auction completed on December 5, 2000, a total of 2,800 
Economic Area licenses in the lower 80 channels of the 800 MHz SMR 
service were sold. Of the 22 winning bidders, 19 claimed ``small 
business'' status. Thus, 40 winning bidders for geographic licenses in 
the 800 MHz SMR band qualified as small business. In addition, there 
are numerous incumbent site-by-site SMR licensees and licensees with 
extended implementation authorizations on the 800 and 900 MHz bands. We 
do not know how many firms provide 800 MHz or 900 MHz geographic area 
SMR pursuant to extended implementation authorizations, nor how many of 
these providers have annual revenues of no more than $15 million. One 
firm has over $15 million in revenues. We assume, for purposes of this 
analysis, that all of the remaining existing extended implementation 
authorizations are held by small entities, as that small business size 
standard is established by SBA.
    25. Private Land Mobile Radio (PLMR). PLMR systems serve an 
essential role in a range of industrial, business, land transportation, 
and public safety activities. These radios are used by companies of all 
sizes operating in all U.S. business categories. The SBA has not 
developed a definition of small entity specifically applicable to PLMR 
licensees due to the vast array of PLMR users. For purposes of this 
IRFA, we will use the SBA's definition applicable to radiotelephone 
(wireless) companies--that is, an entity with no more than 1,500 
persons.\56\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \56\ 13 CFR 121.201.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    26. The Commission is unable at this time to estimate the number of 
small businesses which could be impacted by the rules. The Commission's 
1994

[[Page 40882]]

Annual Report on PLMRs \57\ indicates that at the end of fiscal year 
1994 there were 1,087,267 licensees operating 12,481,989 transmitters 
in the PLMR bands below 512 MHz. Because any entity engaged in a 
commercial activity is eligible to hold a PLMR license, the revised 
rules in this context could potentially impact every small business in 
the United States.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \57\ Federal Communications Commission, 60th Annual Report, 
Fiscal Year 1994, at paragraph 116.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    27. Fixed Microwave Services. Microwave services include common 
carrier,\58\ private-operational fixed,\59\ and broadcast auxiliary 
radio services.\60\ At present, there are approximately 22,015 common 
carrier fixed licensees and 61,670 private operational-fixed licensees 
and broadcast auxiliary radio licensees in the microwave services. For 
purposes of this IRFA, we will use the SBA's definition applicable to 
radiotelephone (wireless) companies--that is, an entity with no more 
than 1,500 persons.\61\ We estimate that all of the Fixed Microwave 
licensees (excluding broadcast auxiliary licensees) would qualify as 
small entities under the SBA definition for radiotelephone (wireless) 
companies.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \58\ 47 CFR 101 et seq. (formerly, part 21 of the Commission's 
rules).
    \59\ Persons eligible under parts 80 and 90 of the Commission's 
rules can use Private Operational-Fixed Microwave services. See 47 
CFR parts 80 and 90. Stations in this service are called 
operational-fixed to distinguish them from common carrier and public 
fixed stations. Only the licensee may use the operational-fixed 
station, and only for communications related to the licensee's 
commercial, industrial, or safety operations.
    \60\ Auxiliary Microwave Service is governed by part 74 of Title 
47 of the Commission's rules. See 47 CFR part 74. Available to 
licensees of broadcast stations and to broadcast and cable network 
entities, broadcast auxiliary microwave stations are used for 
relaying broadcast television signals from the studio to the 
transmitter, or between two points such as a main studio and an 
auxiliary studio. The service also includes mobile TV pickups, which 
relay signals from a remote location back to the studio.
    \61\ 13 CFR 121.201.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    28. Public Safety Radio Services. Public Safety radio services 
include police, fire, local government, forestry conservation, highway 
maintenance, and emergency medical services.\62\ There are a total of 
approximately 127,540 licensees within these services. Governmental 
entities \63\ as well as private businesses comprise the licensees for 
these services. All governmental entities with populations of less than 
50,000 fall within the definition of a small entity.\64\
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    \62\ With the exception of the special emergency service, these 
services are governed by subpart B of part 90 of the Commission's 
rules, 47 CFR 90.15 through 90.27. The police service includes 
approximately 27,000 licensees that serve state, county, and 
municipal enforcement through telephony (voice), telegraphy (code) 
and teletype and facsimile (printed material). The fire radio 
service includes approximately 23,000 licensees comprised of private 
volunteer or professional fire companies as well as units under 
governmental control. The local government service that is presently 
comprised of approximately 41,000 licensees that are state, county, 
or municipal entities that use the radio for official purposes not 
covered by other public safety services. There are approximately 
7,000 licensees within the forestry service which is comprised of 
licensees from state departments of conservation and private forest 
organizations who set up communications networks among fire lookout 
towers and ground crews. The approximately 9,000 state and local 
governments are licensed to highway maintenance service provide 
emergency and routine communications to aid other public safety 
services to keep main roads safe for vehicular traffic. The 
approximately 1,000 licensees in the Emergency Medical Radio Service 
(EMRS) use the 39 channels allocated to this service for emergency 
medical service communications related to the delivery of emergency 
medical treatment. 47 CFR 90.15 through 90.27. The approximately 
20,000 licensees in the special emergency service include medical 
services, rescue organizations, veterinarians, handicapped persons, 
disaster relief organizations, school buses, beach patrols, 
establishments in isolated areas, communications standby facilities, 
and emergency repair of public communications facilities. 47 CFR 
90.33 through 90.55.
    \63\ 47 CFR 1.1162.
    \64\ 5 U.S.C. 601(5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    29. Offshore Radiotelephone Service. This service operates on 
several UHF TV broadcast channels that are not used for TV broadcasting 
in the coastal areas of states bordering the Gulf of Mexico.\65\ There 
are presently approximately 55 licensees in this service. We are unable 
to estimate at this time the number of licensees that would qualify as 
small under the SBA's definition for radiotelephone (wireless) 
communications.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \65\ This service is governed by subpart I of part 22 of the 
Commission's rules. See 47 CFR 22.1001 through 22.1037.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    30. Wireless Communications Services. This service can be used for 
fixed, mobile, radiolocation and digital audio broadcasting satellite 
uses. The Commission defined ``small business'' for the wireless 
communications services (WCS) auction as an entity with average gross 
revenues of $40 million for each of the three preceding years, and a 
``very small business'' as an entity with average gross revenues of $15 
million for each of the three preceding years. The SBA has approved 
these definitions.\66\ The FCC auctioned geographic area licenses in 
the WCS service. In the auction, there were seven winning bidders that 
qualified as very small business entities, and one that qualified as a 
small business entity. We conclude that the number of geographic area 
WCS licensees affected includes these eight entities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \66\ See Letter to Amy Zoslov, Chief, Auctions and Industry 
Analysis Division from A. Alvarez, Administrator, SBA (December 2, 
1998).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    31. 39 GHz Service. The Commission defined ``small entity'' for 39 
GHz licenses as an entity that has average gross revenues of less than 
$40 million in the three previous calendar years.\67\ An additional 
classification for ``very small business'' was added and is defined as 
an entity that, together with its affiliates, has average gross 
revenues of not more than $15 million for the preceding three calendar 
years.\68\ These regulations defining ``small entity'' in the context 
of 39 GHz auctions have been approved by the SBA. The auction of the 
2,173 39 GHz licenses began on April 12, 2000 and closed on May 8, 
2000. The 18 bidders who claimed small business status won 849 
licenses. Consequently, the Commission estimates that 18 or fewer 39 
GHz licensees are small entities that may be affected by the rules and 
policies adopted herein.
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    \67\ See In the Matter of Amendment of the Commission's Rules 
Regarding the 37.0-38.6 GHz and 38.6-40.0 GHz Band, Report and 
Order, 12 FCC Rcd 18600 (1997).
    \68\ Id.
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    32. Multipoint Distribution Service. MDS involves a variety of 
transmitters, which are used to relay programming to the home or 
office.\69\ Hundreds of stations were licensed prior to implementation 
of section 309(j) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.\70\ 
For these pre-auction licenses, the applicable standard is SBA's small 
business size standard for ``other telecommunications'' (annual 
receipts of $11 million or less).\71\ We are unable to estimate the 
number of pre-auction MDS licensees that are small businesses. The 
Commission has defined ``small entity'' for purposes of the 1996 
auction of MDS as an entity that, together with its affiliates, has 
average gross annual revenues that are not more than $40 million for 
the preceding three calendar years.\72\ This definition of a small 
entity in the context of MDS auctions has been approved by the SBA.\73\ 
The MDS

[[Page 40883]]

auctions resulted in 67 successful bidders obtaining licensing 
opportunities for 493 BTAs. Of the 67 auction winners, 61 met the 
definition of a small business, but only 42 remain small businesses.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \69\ For purposes of this item, MDS includes the single channel 
Multipoint Distribution Service (MDS) and the Multichannel 
Multipoint Distribution Service (MMDS). For the number of incumbents 
and auction winners who qualify, see In the Matter of Amendment of 
Parts 1, 21, 73, 74 and 101 of the Commission's Rules to Facilitate 
the Provision of Fixed and Mobile Broadband Access, Educational and 
Other Advanced Services in the 2150-2162 and 2500-2690 MHz Bands, 
Notice of Proposed Rule Making and Memorandum Opinion and Order, FCC 
03-56 (rel. April 2, 2003) (``MDS/ITFS NPRM and MO&O'').
    \70\ 47 U.S.C. 309(j).
    \71\ See 13 CFR 121.201.
    \72\ 47 CFR 1.2110(a)(1).
    \73\ See Amendment of Parts 21 and 74 of the Commission's Rules 
With Regard to Filing Procedures in the Multipoint Distribution 
Service and in the Instructional Television Fixed Service and 
Implementation of section 309(j) of the Communications Act--
Competitive Bidding, MM Docket No. 94-131 and PP Docket No. 93-253, 
Report and Order, 10 FCC Rcd 9589 (1995).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    33. Local Multipoint Distribution Service. The auction of the 1,030 
Local Multipoint Distribution Service (LMDS) licenses began on February 
18, 1998, and closed on March 25, 1998. The Commission defined ``small 
entity'' for LMDS licenses as an entity that has average gross revenues 
of less than $40 million in the three previous calendar years.\74\ An 
additional classification for ``very small business'' was added and is 
defined as an entity that, together with its affiliates, has average 
gross revenues of not more than $15 million for the preceding three 
calendar years.\75\ These regulations defining ``small entity'' in the 
context of LMDS auctions have been approved by the SBA.\76\ There were 
93 winning bidders that qualified as small entities in the LMDS 
auctions. A total of 93 small and very small business bidders won 
approximately 277 A Block licenses and 387 B Block licenses. On March 
27, 1999, the Commission re-auctioned 161 licenses; there were 40 small 
business winning bidders. Based on this information, we conclude that 
the number of small LMDS licenses includes the 93 winning bidders in 
the first auction and the 40 winning bidders in the re-auction, for a 
total of 133 small entity LMDS providers as defined by the SBA and the 
Commission's auction rules.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \74\ See Local Multipoint Distribution Service, Second Report 
and Order, 62 FR 23148, April 29, 1997.
    \75\ Id.
    \76\ See Letter to Daniel Phythyon, Chief, Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau (FCC) from A. Alvarez, Administrator, SBA 
(January 6, 1998).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    34. 218-219 MHz Service. The first auction of 218-219 MHz spectrum 
resulted in 178 entities winning licenses for 594 Metropolitan 
Statistical Areas (MSAs). Of the 594 licenses, 557 were won by 178 
entities qualifying as a small business. For that auction, we defined a 
small business as an entity that, together with its affiliates, has no 
more than a $6 million net worth and, after federal income taxes 
(excluding any carry over losses), has no more than $2 million in 
annual profits each year for the previous two years.\77\ In the 218-219 
MHz Report and Order and Memorandum Opinion and Order, we defined a 
small business as an entity that, together with its affiliates and 
persons or entities that hold interests in such an entity and their 
affiliates, has average annual gross revenues not to exceed $15 million 
for the preceding three years.\78\ A very small business is defined as 
an entity that, together with its affiliates and persons or entities 
that hold interests in such an entity and its affiliates, has average 
annual gross revenues not to exceed $3 million for the preceding three 
years.\79\ We cannot estimate, however, the number of licenses that 
will be won by entities qualifying as small or very small businesses 
under our rules in future auctions of 218-219 MHz spectrum. Given the 
success of small businesses in the previous auction, and the prevalence 
of small businesses in the subscription television services and message 
communications industries, we assume for purposes of this IRFA that in 
future auctions, all of the licenses may be awarded to small businesses 
by these revised rules.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \77\ Implementation of Section 309(j) of the Communications 
Act--Competitive Bidding, PP WT Docket No. 93-253, Fourth Report and 
Order, 59 FR 24947, May 13, 1994.
    \78\ In the Matter of Amendment of Part 95 of the Commission's 
Rules to Provide Regulatory Flexibility in the 218-219 MHz Service, 
WT Docket No. 98-169, Report and Order and Memorandum Opinion and 
Order, 64 FR 59656, November 3, 1999.
    \79\ Amendment of Part 95 of the Commission's Rules to Provide 
Regulatory Flexibility in the 218-219 MHz Service, Report and Order 
and Memorandum Opinion and Order, 64 FR 59656, November 3, 1999.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    35. 24 GHz Service. The rules that we adopt could affect incumbent 
licensees who were relocated to the 24 GHz band from the 18 GHz band, 
and applicants who wish to provide services in the 24 GHz band. The 
Commission did not develop a definition of small entities applicable to 
existing licensees in the 24 GHz band. We believe that there are only 
two licensees in the 24 GHz band.
    36. Location and Monitoring Service (LMS). Multilateration LMS 
systems use non-voice radio techniques to determine the location and 
status of mobile radio units. For purposes of auctioning LMS licenses, 
the Commission has defined ``small business'' as an entity that, 
together with controlling interests and affiliates, has average annual 
gross revenues for the preceding three years not to exceed $15 
million.\80\ A ``very small business'' is defined as an entity that, 
together with controlling interests and affiliates, has average annual 
gross revenues for the preceding three years not to exceed $3 
million.\81\ These definitions have been approved by the SBA.\82\ An 
auction for LMS licenses commenced on February 23, 1999 and closed on 
March 5, 1999. Of the 528 licenses auctioned, 289 licenses were sold to 
four small businesses. We conclude that the number of LMS licensees 
affected by this NPRM includes these four entities. We cannot 
accurately predict the number of remaining licenses that could be 
awarded to small entities in future LMS auctions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \80\ Amendment of Part 90 of the Commission's Rules to Adopt 
Regulations for Automatic Vehicle Monitoring Systems, Second Report 
and Order, 13 FCC Rcd 15182 paragraph 20 (1998); see also 47 CFR 
90.1103.
    \81\ Id.
    \82\ See Letter to Letter to Thomas J. Sugrue, Chief, Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, from 
Aida Alvarez, Administrator, Small Business Administration (Feb. 22, 
1999).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Media Services (Broadcast & Cable)
    37. Commercial Television Services. The SBA defines a television 
broadcasting station that has no more than $12.0 million in annual 
receipts as a small business.\83\ Television broadcasting stations 
consist of establishments primarily engaged in broadcasting visual 
programs by television to the public, except cable and other pay 
television services.\84\ Included in this industry are commercial, 
religious, educational, and other television stations.\85\ Also 
included are establishments primarily engaged in television 
broadcasting and which produce taped television program materials.\86\
    38. There were 1,695 full-service television stations operating in 
the United States as of December 2001.\87\ According to Census Bureau 
data for 1997, there were 906 Television Broadcasting firms, total, 
that operated for the entire year.\88\ Of this total, 734 firms had 
annual receipts of $9,999,999.00 or less and an additional 71 had 
receipts of $10 million to $24,999,999.00.\89\ Thus, under this

[[Page 40884]]

standard, the majority of firms can be considered small.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \83\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 515120.
    \84\ Economics and Statistics Administration, Bureau of Census, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1992 Census of Transportation, 
Communications and Utilities, Establishment and Firm Size, Series 
UC92-S-1, Appendix A-9 (1995).
    \85\ Id.; see Executive Office of the President, Office of 
Management and Budget, Standard Industrial Classification Manual, at 
13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification System 
(NAICS) code 515120.
    \86\ 1992 Census, Series UC92-S-1, at Appendix A-9.
    \87\ FCC News Release, Broadcast Station Totals as of December 
31, 2001 (released May 21, 2002).
    \88\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 515120.
    \89\ Id. The census data do not provide a more precise estimate.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commercial Radio Services
    39. The SBA defines a radio broadcasting station that has no more 
than $6 million in annual receipts as a small business.\90\ A radio 
broadcasting station is an establishment primarily engaged in 
broadcasting aural programs by radio to the public.\91\ Included in 
this industry are commercial, religious, educational, and other radio 
stations.\92\ Radio broadcasting stations which primarily are engaged 
in radio broadcasting and which produce radio program materials are 
similarly included.\93\ According to Census Bureau data for 1997, there 
were 4,476 Radio Stations (firms), total, that operated for the entire 
year.\94\ Of this total 4,265 had annual receipts of $4,999,999.00 or 
less, and an additional 103 firms had receipts of $5 million to 
$9,999,999.00.\95\ Thus, under this standard, the great majority of 
firms can be considered small.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \90\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 515112.
    \91\ 1992 Census, Series UC92-S-1, at Appendix A-9.
    \92\ Id.
    \93\ Id.
    \94\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 515112.
    \95\ Id. The census data do not provide a more precise estimate.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    40. Cable Systems. The Commission has developed, with SBA's 
approval, its own definition of small cable system operators. Under the 
Commission's rules, a ``small cable company'' is one serving fewer than 
400,000 subscribers nationwide.\96\ Based on our most recent 
information, we estimate that there were 1,439 cable operators that 
qualified as small cable companies at the end of 1995.\97\ Since then, 
some of those companies may have grown to serve more than 400,000 
subscribers, and others may have been involved in transactions that 
caused them to be combined with other cable operators. Consequently, we 
estimate that there are fewer than 1,439 small entity cable system 
operators that may be affected by the rules proposed herein.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \96\ 47 CFR 67.901(3). The Commission developed this definition 
based on its determination that a small cable system operator is one 
with annual revenues of $100 million or less. Implementation of 
Sections of the 1992 Cable Act: Rate Regulation, Sixth Report and 
Order and Eleventh Order on Reconsideration, 10 FCC Rcd 6393 (1995). 
13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification System 
(NAICS) code 515210.
    \97\ Paul Kagan Associates, Inc., Cable TV Investor, Feb. 29, 
1996 (based on figures for Dec. 30, 1995).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    41. The Communications Act also contains a definition of a small 
cable system operator, which is ``a cable operator that, directly or 
through an affiliate, serves in the aggregate less than 1% of all 
subscribers in the United States and is not affiliated with any entity 
or entities whose gross annual revenue in the aggregate exceeds 
$250,000,000.'' \98\ The Commission has determined that there are 
67,700,000 subscribers in the United States.\99\ Therefore, we found 
that an operator serving fewer than 677,000 subscribers shall be deemed 
a small operator, if its annual revenues, when combined with the total 
annual revenues of all of its affiliates, do not exceed $250 million in 
the aggregate.\100\ Based on available data, we find that the number of 
cable operators serving 677,000 subscribers or less totals 
approximately 1,450.\101\ Since we do not request nor collect 
information on whether cable system operators are affiliated with 
entities whose gross annual revenues exceed $250,000,000, we are unable 
at this time to estimate with greater precision the number of cable 
system operators that would qualify as small cable operators under the 
definition in the Communications Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \98\ 47 U.S.C. 543(m)(2).
    \99\ FCC Announces New Subscriber Count for the Definition of 
Small Cable Operator, Public Notice DA 01-158 (January 24, 2001).
    \100\ 47 CFR 76.1403(b).
    \101\ Paul Kagan Associates, Inc., Cable TV Investor, Feb. 29, 
1996 (based on figures for Dec. 30, 1995).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    42. Auxiliary, Special Broadcast and Other Program Distribution 
Services. This service involves a variety of transmitters, generally 
used to relay broadcast programming to the public (through translator 
and booster stations) or within the program distribution chain (from a 
remote news gathering unit back to the station). The Commission has not 
developed a definition of small entities applicable to broadcast 
auxiliary licensees. The applicable definitions of small entities are 
those, noted previously, under the SBA rules applicable to radio 
broadcasting stations and television broadcasting stations. The SBA 
defines a television broadcasting station that has no more than $12.0 
million in annual receipts as a small business,\102\ and it defines a 
radio broadcasting station that has no more than $6 million in annual 
receipts as a small business.\103\
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    \102\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 515120.
    \103\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 515112.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    43. The Commission estimates that there are approximately 3,600 
translators and boosters. The Commission does not collect financial 
information on any broadcast facility, and the Department of Commerce 
does not collect financial information on these auxiliary broadcast 
facilities. We believe that most, if not all, of these auxiliary 
facilities could be classified as small businesses by themselves. We 
also recognize that most commercial translators and boosters are owned 
by a parent station which, in some cases, would be covered by the 
revenue definition of small business entity discussed above. These 
stations would likely have annual revenues that exceed the SBA maximum 
to be designated as a small business (either $5 million for a radio 
station or $10.5 million for a TV station). Furthermore, they do not 
meet the Small Business Act's definition of a ``small business 
concern'' because they are not independently owned and operated.
Satellite Services
    44. The Commission has not developed a small business size standard 
applicable to licensees in the international services. However, the SBA 
has developed a size standard for a small business within the category 
of Other Telecommunications. Under that SBA size standard, such a 
business is small if it has $12.5 million or less in average annual 
receipts.\104\ According to Census Bureau data for 1997, there were a 
total of 439 other communications services providers, operating for the 
entire year.\105\ Of the 439, a total of 430 had annual receipts of 
less than $10.0 million. Consequently, the Commission estimates that 
most Other Telecommunications providers are small entities that may be 
affected by the rules and policies adopted herein.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \104\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 517410.
    \105\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    45. International Broadcast Stations. Commission records show that 
there are approximately 19 international high frequency broadcast 
station authorizations. We do not request nor collect annual revenue 
information, and are unable to estimate the number of international 
high frequency broadcast stations that would constitute a small 
business under the SBA definition.
    46. Fixed Satellite Transmit/Receive Earth Stations. There are 
approximately 4,303 earth station authorizations, a portion of which 
are Fixed Satellite Transmit/Receive Earth Stations. We do not request 
nor collect annual revenue information, and are unable to estimate the 
number of the earth stations that would constitute a small business 
under the SBA definition.
    47. Fixed Satellite Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) Systems. 
These stations operate on a primary

[[Page 40885]]

basis, and frequency coordination with terrestrial microwave systems is 
not required. Thus, a single ``blanket'' application may be filed for a 
specified number of small antennas and one or more hub stations. There 
are 485 current VSAT System authorizations. We do not request nor 
collect annual revenue information, and are unable to estimate the 
number of VSAT systems that would constitute a small business under the 
SBA definition.
    48. Mobile Satellite Stations. There are 21 licensees. On February 
10, 2003, the Commission released a Report and Order and Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking allowing licensees in the Mobile Satellite Services 
to use their spectrum for Ancillary Terrestrial Communications 
(ATC).\106\ Licensees may construct towers to provide ATC service. We 
do not request nor collect annual revenue information, and are unable 
to estimate the number of mobile satellite earth stations that would 
constitute a small business under the SBA definition.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \106\ In the Matter of Flexibility for Delivery of 
Communications by Mobile Satellite Service Providers in the 2 GHz 
Band, the L-Band, and the 1.6/2.4 GHz Bands, Report and Order and 
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, FCC 03-15 (rel. Feb 10, 2003).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    49. Radio Determination Satellite Earth Stations. There are four 
licensees. We do not request nor collect annual revenue information, 
and are unable to estimate the number of radio determination satellite 
earth stations that would constitute a small business under the SBA 
definition.
    50. Digital Audio Radio Services (DARS). Commission records show 
that there are 2 Digital Audio Radio Services authorizations. We do not 
request nor collect annual revenue information, and, therefore, we 
cannot estimate the number of small businesses under the SBA 
definition.
Non-Licensee Tower Owners
    51. The Commission's rules require that any entity proposing to 
construct an antenna structure 200 feet or higher or within the glide 
slope of an airport must register the antenna structure with the 
Commission on FCC Form 854.\107\ For this and other reasons, non-
licensee tower owners may be subject to the requirements proposed in 
the NPRM and draft Nationwide Programmatic Agreement. As of April 2003, 
approximately 92,855 towers were included in the Antenna Structure 
Registration database. This includes both towers registered to 
licensees and towers registered to non-licensee tower owners. The 
Commission does not keep information from which we can easily determine 
how many of these towers are registered to non-licensees or how many 
non-licensees have registered towers.\108\ Moreover, the SBA has not 
developed a size standard for small businesses in the category ``Tower 
Owners.'' Therefore, we are unable to estimate the number of non-
licensee tower owners that are small entities. We assume, however, that 
nearly all non-licensee tower companies are small businesses under the 
SBA's definition for cellular and other wireless telecommunications 
services.\109\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \107\ 47 CFR 17.4.
    \108\ We note, however, that approximately 13,000 towers are 
registered to 10 cellular carriers with 1,000 or more employees.
    \109\ 13 CFR 121.201, North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS) code 517212. Under this category, a business is small 
if it has 1,500 or fewer employees.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

D. Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other 
Compliance Requirements

    52. Specific requirements that the draft Nationwide Agreement would 
impose on Applicants include, first, determining whether an exclusion 
applies to their proposed construction project, thereby obviating the 
need to submit Section 106 materials to the SHPO/THPO.\110\ Applicants 
should maintain records to verify the applicability of any 
exclusion.\111\ If alternative language proposed by the Navajo Nation 
is adopted, Applicants will also be required to provide notification of 
most excluded projects to potentially affected Indian tribes.\112\ If 
no exclusion applies, the language discussed in the Telecommunications 
Working Group includes specific steps that Applicants shall follow to 
identify Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian Organizations (NHOs) that 
may attach religious and cultural significance to potentially affected 
historic properties. These steps offer those tribes and NHOs a full 
opportunity to participate in the process; to refer Indian tribes' 
requests for government-to-government consultation to the Commission; 
and to maintain confidentiality of private or sensitive 
information.\113\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \110\ Nationwide Agreement, section III.A.
    \111\ Id.
    \112\ Id., section III.B.
    \113\ Id., IV.D.--IV.H., IV.J, Alternative A. Alternative B, 
proposed by the United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc., encourages 
Indian tribes and NHOs to agree to protocols for relations between 
applicants and tribes or NHOs in lieu of direct government 
consultation, but does not specify such protocols.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    53. The draft Nationwide Agreement also sets forth required 
procedures for seeking local government and public participation; 
considering public comments and forwarding them to the SHPO/THPO; and 
for identifying consulting parties.\114\ In addition, the draft 
Nationwide Agreement sets forth standards for applicants to apply in 
defining the area of potential effects (APE); in identifying Historic 
Properties within the APE; in evaluating the historic significance of 
identified properties; and in assessing the effects of the Undertaking 
on Historic Properties.\115\ Once identification, evaluation, and 
assessment are complete, the draft Nationwide Agreement requires 
Applicants to provide the SHPO/THPO and consulting parties with a 
Submission Packet including the appropriate form, which requires 
specified information about the Applicant, the project, and its 
review.\116\ The draft Nationwide Agreement also sets forth procedures 
for Applicants to follow upon receiving certain responses from the 
SHPO/THPO. It also sets forth procedures for developing Memoranda of 
Agreement to mitigate adverse effects.\117\ Finally, the draft 
Nationwide Agreement prescribes procedures for Applicants to follow in 
the event of inadvertent or post-review discoveries,\118\ and sets 
forth potential measures that the Commission may require Applicants to 
take in response to a complaint alleging construction prior to 
compliance with section 106.\119\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \114\ Id., Part V.
    \115\ Id., Part VI. To a substantial extent, these standards are 
taken directly from the Council's rules.
    \116\ Id., section VII.A.1. and Attachments 3 and 4.
    \117\ Id., sections VII.B.3, VII.C.2, VII.C.3, VII.C.6, and 
VII.D.
    \118\ Id., Part IX.
    \119\ Id., section X.C.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

E. Steps Taken To Minimize Significant Economic Impact on Small 
Entities, and Significant Alternatives Considered

    54. The RFA requires an agency to describe any significant, 
specifically small business, alternatives that it has considered in 
developing its approach, which may include the following four 
alternatives (among others): (1) The establishment of differing 
compliance or reporting requirements or timetables that take into 
account the resources available to small entities; (2) the 
clarification, consolidation, or simplification of compliance or 
reporting requirements under the rule for small entities; (3) the use 
of performance, rather than design, standards; and (4) an exemption 
from coverage of the rule, or any part thereof, for small 
entities.\120\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \120\ 5 U.S.C. 603(c).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    55. In general, the alternative of exempting small entities from 
the requirements proposed in the NPRM

[[Page 40886]]

and draft Nationwide Agreement was rejected. The NHPA requires that all 
Federal Undertakings be evaluated for their potential effects on 
districts, sites, buildings, structures or objects, which are 
significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering 
or culture, and which are listed, or are eligible for listing, in the 
National Register of Historic Places. Neither the NHPA nor the 
Council's rules contemplates any exemption from review depending on the 
size or resources of the non-federal entity which initiates the 
undertaking. The impact of the requirements proposed in the draft 
Nationwide Agreement will be the same on all entities whether large or 
small. All of these projected reporting, record keeping, and other 
compliance requirements will be imposed in the same way, on all 
entities to be affected. Therefore, no special or undue burden will be 
placed on small entities.
    56. However, because of our concern with minimizing burden on small 
entities, and as an alternative to stricter and potentially more 
burdensome regulation, several provisions of the draft Nationwide 
Agreement are expected to reduce economic burdens on small entities. 
For example, the exclusions from routine Section 106 review listed in 
Part III of the draft Nationwide Agreement will relieve Applicants, 
whether large or small, from the burden of performing unnecessary 
review for projects that are unlikely to affect historic properties. 
The standards set forth in Part VI will add predictability to the 
process, and the procedures and the time frames for review in Part VII 
will reduce costly uncertainty and delay. In addition, the prescribed 
forms will facilitate preparation of a sufficient submission packet on 
the first effort, thereby avoiding the need for costly and time-
consuming resubmissions, which may be especially burdensome for small 
entities.
    57. We note that Applicants routinely retain consultants to perform 
most of the steps associated with section 106 reviews. We anticipate 
that the use of consultants to perform these tasks would continue to be 
prevalent under the Nationwide Agreement. Applicants will typically 
comply with the standards and procedures set forth in the draft 
Nationwide Agreement by using consultants to perform specialized tasks 
due to their relative cost effectiveness and efficiency in completing 
section 106 reviews. We believe that the rules proposed for adoption 
herein will in no way serve to impose any requirements on small 
entities that would make the use of consultants more burdensome than 
would normally be the case.
    58. The draft Nationwide Agreement may impose specific burdens on 
small entities in some instances. However, we believe these burdens are 
the minimum necessary to accomplish the draft Nationwide Agreement's 
purpose. Thus, the Commission, after discussion with the members of the 
Working Group, believes that the forms include the minimum information 
necessary for appropriate review by a SHPO, THPO, or the Commission. 
Similarly, the provisions for tribal and public participation (Parts IV 
and V) are intended to embody the least burdensome procedures on 
applicants that will afford these parties a complete and legally 
sufficient opportunity to participate in the process.\121\ The 
submission and review processes set forth in Part VII have also been 
developed with the goal of reducing burdens insofar as possible.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \121\ We point out that the NPRM seeks comment on two 
alternative sets of provisions for tribal participation and 
consultation that reflect different views of what is required in 
this regard.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    59. The NPRM seeks comment on the draft Nationwide Agreement 
generally, including issues related to its potential economic impact on 
small entities.

F. Federal Rules That May Duplicate, Overlap, or Conflict With the 
Proposed Rules

    60. None. The draft Nationwide Agreement would modify and 
supplement the procedures set forth in the rules of the Council,\122\ 
as expressly contemplated in those rules.\123\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \122\ 36 CFR part 800.
    \123\ 36 CFR 800.14(b).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

G. Comment Dates

    61. Pursuant to Sec.  1.415 and Sec.  1.419 of the Commission's 
rules, See Id. 1.415, 1.419, interested parties may file comments on or 
before August 8, 2003, and may file reply comments on or before 
September 8, 2003. All filings should refer to Docket No. 03-128. 
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 24121, May 1, 1998. Comments 
filed through 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. In completing the transmittal 
screen, commenters should include their full name, postal service 
mailing address, and the applicable docket numbers, which in this 
instance is Docket No. 03-128. Parties may also submit an electronic 
comment by Internet e-mail. To receive 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 
.'' A sample form and directions will be 
sent in reply. Or you may obtain a copy of the SCII Electronic 
Transmittal Form (FORM-ET) at http://www.fcc.gov/e-file/email.html.
    62. Parties who choose to file by paper must file an original and 
six copies of each, and are hereby notified that effective December 18, 
2001, the Commission's contractor, Vistronix, Inc., will receive hand-
delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings for the Commission's 
Secretary at a new location in downtown Washington, DC. The address is 
236 Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Suite 110, Washington, DC 20002. The 
filing hours at this location will be 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. All hand 
deliveries must be held together with rubber bands or fasteners. Any 
envelopes must be disposed of before entering the building.
    63. This facility is the only location where hand-delivered or 
messenger-delivered paper filings for the Commission's Secretary will 
be accepted. Accordingly, the Commission will no longer accept these 
filings at 9300 East Hampton Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. In 
addition, this is a reminder that, effective October 18, 2001, the 
Commission discontinued receiving hand-delivered or messenger-delivered 
filings for the Secretary at its headquarters location at 445 12th 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554.
    64. Other messenger-delivered documents, including documents sent 
by overnight mail (other than United States Postal Service (USPS) 
Express Mail and Priority Mail), must be addressed to 9300 East Hampton 
Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. This location will be open 8 a.m. to 
5:30 p.m. The USPS first-class mail, Express Mail, and Priority Mail 
should continue to be addressed to the Commission's Secretary, Office 
of the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission at 445 12th Street, 
SW., Washington, DC 20554. The USPS mail addressed to the Commission's 
headquarters actually goes to our Capitol Heights facility for 
screening prior to delivery at the Commission.

[[Page 40887]]



------------------------------------------------------------------------
 If you are sending this type of document    It should be addressed for
    or using this delivery method . . .           delivery to . . .
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hand-delivered or messenger-delivered       236 Massachusetts Avenue,
 paper filings for the Commission's          NE., Suite 110, Washington,
 Secretary.                                  DC 20002 (8 a.m. to 7
                                             p.m.).
Other messenger-delivered documents,        9300 East Hampton Drive,
 including documents sent by overnight       Capitol Heights, MD 20743
 mail (other than United States Postal       (8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.).
 Service Express Mail and Priority Mail).
United States Postal service first-class    445 12th Street, SW.,
 mail, Express Mail, and Priority Mail.      Washington, DC 20554.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    65. Parties who choose to file by paper should also submit their 
comments on diskette. These diskettes should be submitted to the filing 
window at 236 Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Suite 110, Washington, DC 
20002. Such a submission should be on a 3.5 inch diskette formatted in 
an IBM compatible format using Microsoft Word or compatible software. 
The diskette should be accompanied by a cover letter and should be 
submitted in ``read only'' mode. The diskette should be clearly labeled 
with the commenter's name, proceeding (including the docket numbers, in 
this case, Docket No. 03-128), type of pleading (comment or reply 
comment), date of submission, and the name of the electronic file on 
the diskette. The label should also include the following phrase: 
``Disk Copy--Not an Original.'' Each diskette should contain only one 
party's pleading, preferably in a single electronic file. In addition, 
commenters must send diskette copies to the Commission's copy 
contractor, Qualex International, Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., CY-
B402, Washington, DC 20554.
    66. Regardless of whether parties choose to file electronically or 
by paper, parties should also file one copy of any documents filed in 
this docket with the Commission's copy contractor, Qualex 
International, Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., CY-B402, Washington, 
DC 20554 (telephone 202-863-2893; facsimile 202-863-2898) or via e-mail 
at [email protected]. Commission staff will forward copies of all 
comments received to the Council and the Conference.
    67. Comments and reply comments must include a short and concise 
summary of the substantive arguments raised in the pleading. Comments 
and reply comments must also comply with Sec.  1.48 and all other 
applicable sections of the Commission's rules. See 47 CFR 1.48. We 
direct all interested parties to include the name of the filing party 
and the date of the filing on each page of their comments and reply 
comments. All parties are encouraged to utilize a table of contents, 
regardless of the length of their submission. We also strongly 
encourage that parties track the organization set forth in the NPRM in 
order to facilitate our internal review process.
    68. The full text of this document is available for public 
inspection and copying during regular business hours at the FCC 
Reference Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room 
CY-A257, Washington, DC 20554. This document may also be purchased from 
the Commission's duplicating contractor, Qualex International, Portals 
II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC, 20554 
(telephone 202-863-2893, facsimile 202-863-2898) or via e-mail 
[email protected]. Alternative formats (computer diskette, large print, 
audio cassette and Braille) are available to persons with disabilities 
by contacting Brian Millin at (202) 418-7426, TTY (202) 418-7365, or at 
[email protected].

IV. Ordering Clauses

    69. It is ordered, pursuant to sections 1, 4(i), 303(q), 303(r), 
309(a), 309(j) and 319 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 
47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 303(q), 303(r), 309(a), 309(j) and 319, section 
106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, 16 U.S.C. 470f, 
and Sec.  800.14(b) of the rules of the Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation, 36 CFR 800.14(b), that this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 
is hereby adopted.
    70. It is further ordered that the Commission's Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference Information Center, shall send a 
copy of this Notice, including the Initial Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration.
    71. The Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, Reference Information 
Center, shall send a copy of this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 
including the Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, to the Chief 
Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration.

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 1

    Practice and procedure.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.

Proposed Rules

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal 
Communications Commission proposes to amend 47 CFR part 1 as follows:

PART 1--PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE

    1. The authority citation for 47 CFR part 1 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j), 155, 225, 303(r), 309 
and 325(e).

    2. Section 1.1307 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(4) to read 
as follows:


Sec.  1.1307  Actions that may have a significant environmental effect, 
for which Environmental Assessments (EAs) must be prepared.

    (a) * * *
    (4) Facilities that may affect districts, sites, buildings, 
structures or objects, significant in American history, architecture, 
archeology, engineering or culture, that are listed, or are eligible 
for listing, in the National Register of Historic Places. (See 16 
U.S.C. 470w(5); 36 CFR parts 60 and 800.) The National Register is 
updated in the Federal Register. To ascertain whether a proposed action 
may affect properties that are listed or eligible for listing in the 
National Register of Historic Places, an applicant shall follow the 
procedures set forth in the rules of the Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation, 36 CFR part 800, as modified and supplemented by the 
Nationwide Programmatic Agreement for the Collocation of Wireless 
Antennas, Appendix B to part 1 of this chapter, and the Nationwide 
Programmatic Agreement for Review of Effects on Historic Properties for 
Certain Undertakings Approved by the Federal Communications Commission, 
Appendix C to part 1 of this chapter.\1\
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    \1\ The FCC intends to add Appendices B and C to part 1 when 
this proposed rule is finalized.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

* * * * *
[FR Doc. 03-17415 Filed 7-8-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P