[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 143 (Wednesday, July 25, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35210-35212]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-15927]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration


Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Swiss-U.S. 
Privacy Shield; Invitation for Applications for Inclusion on the 
Supplemental List of Arbitrators

AGENCY: International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort 
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public 
and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on a 
continuing information collection, as required by the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before September 24, 
2018.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th 
and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230 (or via the internet 
at [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument and instructions should 
be directed to David Ritchie, International Trade Administration, 202-
482-4936 or [email protected]. More information on the 
arbitration mechanism may be found at https://www.trade.gov/td/services/odsi/swiss-us-privacyshield-framework.pdf.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework was designed by the U.S. 
Department of Commerce (DOC) and the Swiss Administration (Swiss) to 
provide companies in both Switzerland and the United States with a 
mechanism to comply with data protection requirements when transferring 
personal data from Switzerland to the United States in support of 
transatlantic commerce. On January 12, 2017, the Swiss deemed the 
Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework (Swiss Privacy Shield) adequate to 
enable data transfers under Swiss law, and on April 12, 2017, the DOC 
began accepting self-certifications from U.S. companies to join the 
program (82 FR 16375; April 12, 2017). For more information on the 
Privacy Shield, visit www.privacyshield.gov.
    As described in Annex I of the Swiss Privacy Shield, the DOC and 
the Swiss committed to implement an arbitration mechanism to provide 
Swiss individuals with the ability to invoke binding arbitration to 
determine, for residual claims, whether an organization has violated 
its obligations under the Privacy Shield. Organizations voluntarily 
self-certify to the Swiss Privacy Shield and, upon certification, the 
commitments the organization has made to comply with the Swiss Privacy 
Shield become legally enforceable under U.S. law. Organizations that 
self-certify to the Swiss Privacy Shield commit to binding arbitration 
of residual claims if the individual chooses to exercise that option. 
Under the arbitration option, a Privacy Shield Panel \a\ (consisting of 
one or three arbitrators, as agreed by the parties) has the authority 
to impose individual-specific, non-monetary equitable relief (such as 
access, correction, deletion, or return of the individual's data in 
question) necessary to remedy the violation of the Swiss Privacy Shield 
only with respect to the individual. The parties will select the 
arbitrators from the list of arbitrators described below.
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    \a\ The Privacy Shield Panel would govern arbitration 
proceedings brought under either the Swiss-U.S. or EU-U.S. Privacy 
Shield Frameworks.
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    The DOC and the Swiss Administration are developing a list of up to 
five arbitrators to supplement the list of arbitrators developed under 
the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework. To be eligible for inclusion on 
the supplemental list, applicants must be admitted to practice law in 
the United States and have expertise in both U.S. privacy law and 
European or Swiss data protection law. Applicants shall not be subject 
to any instructions from, or be affiliated with, any Privacy Shield 
organization, or the U.S., Switzerland, EU, or any EU Member State or 
any other governmental authority, public authority or enforcement 
authority.
    The DOC received emergency approval for this information collection 
on March 26, 2018 under Control Number 0625-0278. Upon receiving that 
approval, the DOC accepted applications submitted by April 30, 2018 for 
inclusion on the Supplemental List of Arbitrators. The DOC is currently 
evaluating applicants who submitted by April 30, 2018 and is thus not 
currently

[[Page 35211]]

seeking additional applications. However, the DOC is now submitting a 
request for a 3-year approval through OMB's general PRA clearance 
process, because it may seek additional applications in the future as 
appropriate.
    To be considered for inclusion on the Supplemental List of 
Arbitrators, eligible individuals are evaluated on the basis of 
independence, integrity, and expertise:
    Independence: Freedom from bias and prejudice.
    Integrity: Held in the highest regard by peers for integrity, 
fairness and good judgment.
    Demonstrates high ethical standards and commitment necessary to be 
an arbitrator.

Expertise

    Required: Admission to practice law in the United States.
    Level of demonstrated expertise in U.S. privacy law and European or 
Swiss data protection law.
    Other expertise that may be considered includes any of the 
following:
    Relevant educational degrees and professional licenses.
    Relevant professional or academic experience or legal practice.
    Relevant training or experience in arbitration or other forms of 
dispute resolution.
    Evaluation of applications for inclusion on the list of arbitrators 
is undertaken by the DOC and the Swiss Administration. Selected 
applicants remain on the list for a period of 3 years, absent 
exceptional circumstances, change in eligibility, or for cause, 
renewable for one additional period of 3 years.
    The DOC selected the International Centre for Dispute Resolution-
American Arbitration Association (ICDR-AAA) as administrator for 
Privacy Shield arbitrations brought under either the Swiss-U.S. or EU-
U.S. Privacy Shield Frameworks.\b\ Among other things, the ICDR-AAA 
facilitates arbitrator fee arrangements, including the collection and 
timely payment of arbitrator fees and other expenses. Arbitrators are 
expected to commit their time and effort when included on the 
supplemental Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield List of Arbitrators and to take 
reasonable steps to minimize the costs or fees of the arbitration.
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    \b\ For more information about the selection process and the 
role of the administrator, see https://www.privacyshield.gov/Arbitration-Fact-Sheet.
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    Arbitrators are subject to a code of conduct consistent with Annex 
I of the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework and generally accepted 
ethical standards for arbitrators. The DOC and the Swiss Administration 
agreed to adopt the arbitral procedures adopted under the EU-U.S. 
Privacy Shield Framework to govern the arbitral proceedings, subject to 
considerations identified in Annex I of the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield 
Framework, including that materials submitted to arbitrators will be 
treated confidentially and will only be used in connection with the 
arbitration. For more information, please visit https://www.privacyshield.gov/article?id=G-Arbitration-Procedures where you can 
find information on the arbitration procedures. (Please note that the 
Arbitration procedures apply to both the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield 
Framework and the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework.)

Applications

    Applications must be typewritten and should be headed ``Application 
for Inclusion on the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Supplemental List of 
Arbitrators.'' Applications should include the following information, 
and each section of the application should be numbered as indicated:

--Name of applicant.
--Address, telephone number, and email address.

1. Independence

--Description of the applicant's affiliations with any organization 
that has self-certified under either the Swiss-U.S. or EU-U.S. Privacy 
Shield Frameworks, or the U.S., Switzerland, any EU Member State or any 
other governmental authority, public authority, or enforcement 
authority.

2. Integrity

--On a separate page, the names, addresses, telephone, and fax numbers 
of three individuals willing to provide information concerning the 
applicant's qualifications for service, including the applicant's 
character, reputation, reliability, and judgment.
--Description of the applicant's willingness and ability to make time 
commitments necessary to be an arbitrator.

3. Expertise

--Demonstration of admittance to practice law in the United States.
--Relevant academic degrees and professional training and licensing.
--Current employment, including title, description of responsibility, 
name and address of employer, and name and telephone number of 
supervisor or other reference.
--Employment history, including the dates and addresses of each prior 
position and a summary of responsibilities.
--Description of expertise in U.S. privacy law and European or Swiss 
data protection law.
--Description of training or experience in arbitration or other forms 
of dispute resolution, if applicable.
--A list of publications, testimony, and speeches, if any, concerning 
U.S. privacy law and European or Swiss data protection law, with copies 
appended.

II. Method of Collection

    As stated above, the DOC is not currently seeking additional 
applications, but may do so in the future as appropriate. OMB reviewed 
and approved this information collection on an emergency basis as of 
March 26, 2018 under Control Number 0625-0278. As the emergency 
approval is only valid for 180 days, the DOC is now submitting a 
request for a 3-year approval through OMB's full PRA clearance process. 
Future applications would be submitted to the U.S. Department of 
Commerce, either by email or by fax. More information on the 
arbitration mechanism may be found at https://www.trade.gov/td/services/odsi/swiss-us-privacyshield-framework.pdf.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0625-0278.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Review: Regular submission.
    Affected Public: Private Individuals.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 20.
    Estimated Time per Response: 240 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 80.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0.

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or

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included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

Sheleen Dumas,
Departmental Lead PRA Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2018-15927 Filed 7-24-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DR-P