[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 98 (Monday, May 21, 2018)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 23378-23380]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-10767]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Parts 20 and 68

[CG Docket No. 13-46, WT Docket Nos. 07-250 and 10-254; FCC 17-135]


Hearing Aid Compatibility Standards

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, 
the information collection associated with rules adopted in the 
Commission's document Access to Telecommunication Equipment and 
Services by Persons with Disabilities; Amendment of the Commission's 
Rules Governing Hearing Aid-Compatible Mobile Handsets et. al., Report 
and Order and Order on Reconsideration (Order). This document is 
consistent with the Order, which stated that the Commission would 
publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective 
date of those rules.

DATES: The additions of Sec. Sec.  68.501 through 68.504 (subpart F), 
published at 83 FR 8624, February 28, 2018, are effective May 21, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susan Bahr, Disability Rights Office, 
Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, at (202) 418-0573, or email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that, on May 1, 
2018, OMB approved, for a period of three years, the information 
collection requirements contained in the Commission's Order, FCC 17-
135, published at 83 FR 8624, February 28, 2018. The OMB Control Number 
is 3060-0687. The Commission publishes this document as an announcement 
of the effective date of the rules. If you have any comments on the 
burden estimates listed below, or how the Commission can improve the 
collections and reduce any burdens caused thereby, please contact Cathy 
Williams, Federal Communications Commission, Room 1-C823, 445 12th 
Street SW, Washington, DC 20554. Please include the OMB Control Number, 
3060-0687, in your correspondence. The Commission will also accept your 
comments via the internet if you send them to [email protected].
    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 and Governmental 
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (844) 432-2275 (videophone), 
or (202) 418-0432 (TTY).

Synopsis

    As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3507), the FCC is notifying the public that it received OMB approval on 
May 1, 2018, for the information collection requirements contained in 
the Commission's rules at Sec. Sec.  68.501 through 68.504.
    Under 5 CFR 1320, an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection 
of

[[Page 23379]]

information unless it displays a current, valid OMB Control Number.
    No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply 
with a collection of information subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act 
that does not display a current, valid OMB Control Number. The OMB 
Control Number is 3060-0687.
    The foregoing notice is required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, Public Law 104-13, October 1, 1995, and 44 U.S.C. 3507.
    The total annual reporting burdens and costs for the respondents 
are as follows:
    OMB Control Number: 3060-0687.
    OMB Approval Date: May 1, 2018.
    OMB Expiration Date: May 31, 2021.
    Title: Access to Telecommunications Equipment and Services by 
Persons with Disabilities, CC Docket No. 87-124.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Businesses or other for-profit entities; not-for-
profit entities.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 331 respondents; 3,028 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: .25 hours (15 minutes) to 24 hours.
    Frequency of Response: Annual and on-occasion reporting 
requirements; Third party disclosure requirement.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The 
statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 
section 710 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 
610.
    Total Annual Burden: 7,236 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: $991,618.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: An assurance of 
confidentiality is not offered because this information collection does 
not require the collection of personally identifiable information from 
individuals.
    Privacy Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Needs and Uses: This information collection pertains to the 
extension of the currently approved information collection requirements 
concerning hearing aid compatibility (HAC) for wireline handsets used 
with the legacy telephone network, updated estimates of existing 
burdens that were included in the February 2015 PRA submission to OMB, 
and new information collection requirements related to HAC for wireline 
handsets used with advanced communications services (ACS), such as 
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). These handsets are known as ACS 
telephonic customer premises equipment (ACS telephonic CPE).
    Beginning in the 1980s, the Commission adopted a series of 
regulations to implement statutory directives requiring wireline 
telephone handsets in the United States (for use with the legacy 
telephone network) to be hearing aid compatible. In 2010, the Twenty-
First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA), Public 
Law 111-260, sec. 102, 710(b), 124 Stat. 2751, 2753 (CVAA) (codified at 
47 U.S.C. 610(b)), amended by Public Law 111-265, 124 Stat. 2795 
(technical corrections to the CVAA), amended section 710(b) of the 
Communications Act of 1934 to apply the HAC requirements to ACS 
telephonic CPE, including VoIP telephones. In accordance with this 
provision, the Commission adopted Access to Telecommunications 
Equipment and Services by Persons with Disabilities et al., Report and 
Order and Order on Reconsideration, FCC 17-135, released October 26, 
2017, which amended the HAC rules to cover ACS telephonic CPE to the 
extent such devices are designed to be held to the ear and provide two-
way voice communication via a built-in speaker.
    The information collections contain third-party disclosure and 
labeling requirements. The information is used to inform consumers who 
purchase or use wireline telephone equipment whether the telephone is 
hearing aid compatible; to ensure that manufacturers comply with 
applicable regulations and technical criteria; to ensure that 
information about ACS telephonic CPE is available in a database 
administered by the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments 
(ACTA); and to facilitate the filing of complaints about the ACS 
telephonic CPE.

Wireline Handsets Used With the Legacy Telephone Network

     47 CFR 68.224 requires that every non-hearing aid 
compatible wireline telephone used with the legacy wireline network 
that is offered for sale to the public contain in a conspicuous 
location on the surface of its packaging a statement that the telephone 
is not hearing aid compatible. If the handset is offered for sale 
without a surrounding package, then the telephone must be affixed with 
a written statement that the telephone is not hearing aid compatible. 
In addition, each handset must be accompanied by instructions in 
accordance with 47 CFR 68.218(b)(2).
     47 CFR 68.300 requires that all wireline telephones used 
with the legacy wireline network that are manufactured in the United 
States (other than for export) or imported for use in the United States 
and that are hearing aid compatible have the letters ``HAC'' 
permanently affixed.

ACS Telephonic CPE

     New Sec.  68.502(a) of the Commission's rules contains 
information collection requirements for ACS telephonic CPE that are 
similar to the HAC label and notice requirements in 47 CFR 68.224 and 
68.300 (discussed above), i.e., the ``HAC'' labeling requirement for 
hearing aid compatible equipment, and the package information for non-
hearing aid compatible equipment, apply to ACS telephonic CPE.
     New Sec.  68.501 of the Commission's rules requires 
responsible parties to obtain certifications of their equipment by 
using a third-party Telecommunications Certification Body (TCB) or a 
Supplier's Declaration of Conformity. (A responsible party is the 
party, such as the manufacturer, that is responsible for the compliance 
of ACS telephonic CPE with the hearing aid compatibility rules and 
other applicable technical criteria. A Supplier's Declaration of 
Conformity is a procedure whereby a responsible party makes 
measurements or takes steps to ensure that CPE complies with technical 
standards, which results in a document by the same name.) Section 
68.501 of the Commission's rules applies to ACS telephonic CPE rule 
sections defining the roles of TCBs and the uses of Supplier's 
Declarations of Conformity for wireline handsets used with the legacy 
telephone network.
     New Sec.  68.504 of the Commission's rules requires 
information about ACS telephonic CPE to be included in a database 
administered by ACTA. (ACTA is an organization, previously created 
pursuant to FCC regulations, whose key function is to maintain a 
database of telephone equipment.) In addition, ACS telephonic CPE must 
be labeled as required by ACTA.
     New Sec.  68.502(b) through (d) of the Commission's rules 
requires responsible parties to: Warrant that ACS telephonic CPE 
complies with applicable regulations and technical criteria; give the 
user instructions required by ACTA for ACS telephonic CPE that is 
hearing aid compatible; give the user a notice for ACS telephonic CPE 
that is not hearing aid compatible; and notify the purchaser or user of 
ACS telephonic CPE whose approval is revoked, that the purchaser or 
user must discontinue its use.
     New Sec.  68.503 of the Commission's rules requires 
manufacturers of ACS telephonic CPE to designate an agent for service 
of process for complaints that may be filed at the FCC.


[[Page 23380]]


Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-10767 Filed 5-18-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6712-01-P