[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 236 (Thursday, December 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76728-76730]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-31545]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[GC Docket No. 10-44; DA 11-1950]


Benefits and Burdens of Requiring Commenters To File Cited 
Materials in Rulemaking Proceedings as Further Reform To Enhance 
Record-Based Decisionmaking

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This document seeks comment on procedures to improve 
transparency and efficiency in Commission proceedings. In particular, 
the Public Notice seeks comment on whether the Commission should 
require commenters to file materials they cite in pleadings submitted 
in rulemaking proceedings, so that those materials are more easily 
accessible to all interested parties.

DATES: Comments may be filed on or before January 9, 2012, and reply 
comments may be filed on or before January 23, 2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by GC Docket No. 10-44, 
by any of the following methods:
     Federal Communications Commission's Web site: http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/ecfs2/. Follow the instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Mail: See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document.
     People with Disabilities: Contact the FCC to request 
reasonable accommodations (accessible format documents, sign language 
interpreters, CART, etc.) by email: [email protected] or phone: (202) 418-
0530 or TTY: (202) 418-0432.
    For detailed instructions for submitting comments and additional 
information, see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding this 
proceeding, contact Elizabeth Lyle, Office of General Counsel, (202) 
418-1720.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of a Public Notice 
released by the Office of General Counsel on November 29, 2011. The 
full text of this document is available for public inspection and 
copying during regular business hours in the Commission's Reference 
Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th Street SW., Room CY-A257, 
Washington, DC 20554. The complete text of this document also may be 
purchased from the Commission's copy contractor, Best Copy and 
Printing, Inc., Portals II, 445 12th Street SW., Room CY-B402, 
Washington, DC 20554, telephone (202) 488-5300, facsimile (202) 488-
5563 or via email [email protected]. The full text may also be downloaded 
at http://www.fcc.gov.
    Pursuant to Sec. Sec.  1.415 and 1.419 of the Commission's rules, 
47 CFR 1.415, 1.419, interested parties may file comments and reply 
comments on or before the dates indicated on the first page of this 
document. Comments may be filed using the Commission's Electronic 
Comment Filing System (ECFS). See Electronic Filing of Documents in 
Rulemaking Proceedings, 63 FR 24121 (1998).
     Electronic Filers: Comments may be filed electronically 
using the Internet by accessing the ECFS: http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/ecfs2/.
     Paper Filers: Parties who choose to file by paper must 
file an original and one copy of each filing. If more than one docket 
or rulemaking number appears in the caption of this proceeding, filers 
must submit two additional copies for each additional docket or 
rulemaking number.
    Filings can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, by commercial 
overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. Postal Service 
mail. All filings must be addressed to the Commission's Secretary, 
Office of the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission.
     All hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings 
for the Commission's Secretary must be delivered to FCC Headquarters at 
445 12th St. SW., Room TW-A325, Washington, DC 20554. The filing hours 
are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. All hand deliveries must be held together with 
rubber bands or fasteners. Any envelopes and boxes must be disposed of 
before entering the building.
     Commercial overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal Service 
Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9300 East Hampton 
Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743.
     U.S. Postal Service first-class, Express, and Priority 
mail must be addressed to 445 12th Street SW., Washington DC 20554.

[[Page 76729]]

    Documents will be available for public inspection and copying 
during business hours at the FCC Reference Information Center, Portals 
II, Room CY-A257, 445 12th Street SW., Washington, DC 20554. The 
documents may also be purchased from BCPI, telephone (202) 488-5300, 
facsimile (202) 488-5563, TTY (202) 488-5562, email [email protected]. 
People with Disabilities: To request materials in accessible formats 
for people with disabilities (braille, large print, electronic files, 
audio format), send an email to [email protected] or call the Consumer & 
Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 
(tty). The Commission has designated this proceeding as a ``permit-but-
disclose'' proceeding in accordance with the Commission's ex parte 
rules. 47 CFR 1.1200 et seq.; Amendment of Certain of the Commission's 
Part 1 Rules of Practice and Procedure and Part 0 Rules of Commission 
Organization, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 25 FCC Rcd 2430, 2439-40 
(2010). Persons making ex parte presentations must file a copy of any 
written presentation or a memorandum summarizing any oral presentation 
within two business days after the presentation (unless a different 
deadline applicable to the Sunshine period applies). Persons making 
oral ex parte presentations are reminded that memoranda summarizing the 
presentation must (1) list all persons attending or otherwise 
participating in the meeting at which the ex parte presentation was 
made, and (2) summarize all data presented and arguments made during 
the presentation. If the presentation consisted in whole or in part of 
the presentation of data or arguments already reflected in the 
presenter's written comments, memoranda or other filings in the 
proceeding, the presenter may provide citations to such data or 
arguments in his or her prior comments, memoranda, or other filings 
(specifying the relevant page and/or paragraph numbers where such data 
or arguments can be found) in lieu of summarizing them in the 
memorandum. Documents shown or given to Commission staff during ex 
parte meetings are deemed to be written ex parte presentations and must 
be filed consistent with Sec.  1.1206(b) of the Commission's rules. In 
proceedings governed by Sec.  1.49(f) of the Commission's rules or for 
which the Commission has made available a method of electronic filing, 
written ex parte presentations and memoranda summarizing oral ex parte 
presentations, and all attachments thereto, must be filed through the 
electronic comment filing system available for that proceeding, and 
must be filed in their native format (e.g., .doc, .xml, .ppt, 
searchable .pdf). Participants in this proceeding should familiarize 
themselves with the Commission's ex parte rules.

Summary of Public Notice

    This Public Notice seeks comment on additional procedures to 
improve transparency and efficiency in Commission proceedings. In 
particular, the Public Notice seeks comment on whether the Commission 
should require commenters to file materials they cite in pleadings 
submitted in rulemaking proceedings, so that those materials are more 
easily accessible to all interested parties. The Commission bases its 
decisions on record evidence, properly disclosed, with the least 
possible burden on filers, and strives to tailor its procedures to 
those ends. Transparency, robust public participation, and informed 
decision-making are key values that the Commission and its staff strive 
to uphold in all proceedings. In some proceedings, particularly large 
and complicated rulemakings, staff may analyze materials that parties 
have not submitted in the record, including materials such as state 
statutes, academic articles, blog posts, and company financial reports. 
This material may or may not contribute to the Commission's final 
decision, and seeking comment specifically on all the sources viewed by 
staff would greatly enlarge the record and tax the time and resources 
of the Commission and parties, with potentially little benefit.
    In an effort to balance these considerations, staff has submitted 
collections of materials into the record of at least two major 
proceedings. In the Preserving the Open Internet proceeding, staff 
added the full text of various sources, including FCC working papers, 
transcripts from FCC workshops, comments submitted in other Commission 
rulemaking proceedings, public financial filings, academic literature, 
news articles, blog posts, corporate and non-profit research reports, 
material from industry participants' Web sites, and investment firm 
conference call transcripts. See Letter from Carol Simpson, Deputy 
Chief, Competition Policy Division, Wireline Competition Bureau, FCC, 
to Marlene S. Dortch, Secretary, FCC, GN Docket No. 09-191, WC Docket 
No. 07-52 (Dec. 13, 2010); Letter from Carol Simpson, Deputy Chief, 
Competition Policy Division, Wireline Competition Bureau, FCC, to 
Marlene S. Dortch, Secretary, FCC, GN Docket No. 09-191, WC Docket No. 
07-52 (Dec. 10, 2010). In the Connect America Fund proceeding, staff 
added citations to similar materials, including material from other 
federal and state government entities, books, and data already released 
by the Commission or the Universal Service Administrative Company. See 
Letter from Jennifer Prime, Legal Counsel, Wireline Competition Bureau, 
FCC, to Marlene Dortch, Secretary, FCC, WC Docket No. 10-90 et al. 
(Oct. 19, 2011); Letter from Jennifer Prime, Legal Counsel, Wireline 
Competition Bureau, FCC, to Marlene Dortch, Secretary, FCC, WC Docket 
No. 10-90 et al. (Oct. 17, 2011); Letter from Jennifer Prime, Legal 
Counsel, Wireline Competition Bureau, FCC, to Marlene Dortch, 
Secretary, FCC, WC Docket No. 10-90 et al. (Oct. 7, 2011). Materials 
also included such things as state statutes, pleadings and decisions 
from state administrative proceedings, and data and reports available 
on the Commission's Web site. In many instances, filings that the 
Commission staff placed in the record had been cited by commenters in 
their filings, and the staff's submission was intended to make the 
materials more accessible. In both proceedings, however, a small number 
of commenters voiced concern that such submissions, toward the end of 
the proceeding, might not serve their intended purpose of promoting 
transparent decision-making and might, indeed, limit opportunities for 
meaningful responsive comment. See, e.g., Letter from Todd D. Daubert & 
J. Isaac Himowitz, Counsel for SoutherinLINC Wireless and the Universal 
Service for America Coalition, to Chairman Genachowski, WC Docket No. 
10-90 et al., at 3 (Oct. 21, 2011); Letter from David A. LaFuria, 
Counsel to Allied Wireless Communications Corp. et al., WC Docket No. 
10-90 et al. (Oct. 20, 2011); see also Preserving the Open Internet, 
Broadband Industry Practices, Report and Order, 25 FCC Rcd 17905, 
18049-50 (2010) (dissenting Stmt. of Cmmr. McDowell), recon. and pets. 
for review pending.
    In light of these developments, the Public Notice seeks comment on 
filing requirements that may improve transparency and informed 
decision-making in future rulemaking proceedings. In particular, the 
Public Notice seeks comment on requiring parties to submit full copies 
of any materials cited in their pleadings or ex parte submissions. Such 
a requirement may be viable under the Commission's current electronic 
filing processes, when it would not previously have been feasible. 
Further, it could help to ensure

[[Page 76730]]

that the record timely and unambiguously includes those materials that 
parties to our proceedings believe to be germane and informative. In 
the context of formal complaint proceedings, the Commission's rules 
already require parties to provide ``all non-Commission authorities 
relied upon which are not routinely available in national reporting 
systems, such as unpublished decisions or slip opinions of courts or 
administrative agencies.'' See 47 CFR 1.721(f).
    What would be the benefits and burdens of such a new procedural 
requirement in rulemaking proceedings? Should any such rule distinguish 
among types of documents cited? For example, should data be treated 
differently from other forms of information and should economic 
analysis be treated differently from a law review article, court 
decision, or other government publication? Should ease of access to the 
cited information matter? If so, how should ease of access be 
determined? Are there some circumstances in which materials could not 
practically be placed in the record, such as when third parties do not 
permit copying (e.g., daily newsletters), the material is very bulky, 
or the material is in the form of a database? Would parties need to 
place an entire document in the record or would an excerpt suffice? 
Should the inclusion of an Internet address (URL) where the document 
can be viewed be deemed sufficient to satisfy the filing requirement 
for that document? Might this proposal diminish the quality of the 
comments received by the Commission, for instance if the additional 
burden of providing supporting materials outweighs their perceived 
value to the commenter? Would this proposal impose an undue paperwork 
burden on filers? Should the proposal be adopted in additional, or 
different, categories of proceedings?

Federal Communications Commission.
Julie A. Veach,
Deputy General Counsel, Office of General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2011-31545 Filed 12-7-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P