[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 36 (Friday, February 22, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5678-5680]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-03020]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'').

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The FTC requests that the Office of Management and Budget 
(``OMB'') extend for an additional three years the current Paperwork 
Reduction Act (``PRA'') clearance for the information collection 
requirements in its Alternative Fuels Rule (``Rule''). That clearance 
expires on May 31, 2019.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before March 25, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper, by 
following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ``Paperwork Comment: FTC 
File No. P134200'' on your comment, and file your comment online at 
https://www.regulations.gov/searchResults?rpp=25&so=DESC&sb=postedDate&po=0&cp=O&a=FTC by following 
the instructions on the web-based form. If you prefer to file your 
comment on paper, mail your comment to the following address: Federal 
Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, 
Suite CC-5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment 
to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the 
Secretary, Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW, 5th Floor, Suite 
5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the proposed information requirements for the Alternative 
Fuels Rule should be directed to Hampton Newsome, Attorney, (202) 326-
2889, Division of Enforcement, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal 
Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Alternative Fuels Rule, 16 CFR part 309.
    OMB Control Number: 3084-0094.
    Type of Review: Extension of currently approved collection.
    Abstract: Pursuant to the OMB regulations, 5 CFR part 1320, that 
implement the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., the FTC is providing a 
second opportunity for public comment while seeking OMB approval to 
renew the pre-existing clearance for the Rule. The Rule, which 
implements the Energy Policy Act of 1992, Public Law 102- 486, requires 
disclosure of specific information on labels posted on fuel dispensers 
for non-liquid alternative fuels. To ensure the accuracy of these 
disclosures, the Rule also requires that sellers maintain records 
substantiating product-specific disclosures they include on these 
labels.

[[Page 5679]]

    It is common practice for alternative fuel industry members to 
determine and monitor fuel ratings in the normal course of their 
business activities. This is because industry members must determine 
the fuel ratings of their products in order to monitor quality and to 
decide how to market them. ``Burden'' for PRA purposes is defined to 
exclude effort that would be expended regardless of any regulatory 
requirement. 5 CFR 1320.2(b)(2). Moreover, as originally anticipated 
when the Rule was promulgated in 1995, many of the information 
collection requirements and the originally estimated hours were 
associated with one-time start up tasks of implementing standard 
systems and processes.
    Other factors also limit the burden associated with the Rule. 
Certification may be a one-time event or require only infrequent 
revision. Disclosures on electric vehicle fuel dispensing systems may 
be useable for several years. Nonetheless, there is still some burden 
associated with posting labels. There also will be some minimal burden 
associated with new or revised certification of fuel ratings and 
recordkeeping. The burden on vehicle manufacturers is limited because 
only newly manufactured vehicles will require label posting and 
manufacturers produce very few new models each year.
    On November 29, 2018, the Commission sought comment on the Rule's 
information collection requirements and staff's associated PRA burden 
estimates (``November 29, 2018 Notice''). One comment was received. The 
comment opined favorably on the Rule as a whole and, in particular, on 
the Rule's required disclosure of specific information on fuel 
dispenser labels, which the comment stated leads to more informed 
consumers. Further, it advocated for the FTC receiving renewed OMB 
clearance to enable the FTC ``to properly consider [the Rule] and how 
it will affect the public'' and to ``allow the FTC more feedback and to 
create a more refined and effective rule when they enter the final rule 
phase.''
    To clarify, neither the November 29, 2018 Notice or the instant 
publication concern a rulemaking. Rather, pursuant to the PRA, the 
Commission seeks OMB's continued clearance to impose and enforce the 
Rule's recordkeeping and disclosure requirements described above and 
detailed further in the November 29, 2018 Notice. Nonetheless, pursuant 
to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the Commission sought in its 
preceding Notice public comments on (1) whether the recordkeeping and 
disclosure requirements are necessary, including whether the 
information will be practically useful; (2) the accuracy of our burden 
estimates, including whether the methodology and assumptions used are 
valid; (3) how to improve the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
disclosure requirements; and (4) how to minimize the burden of 
providing the required information to consumers. No further comment 
than that noted above was received. The Commission invites again 
further public comments pursuant to the above-stated criteria.

Estimated Annual Burden 1


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    \1\ The calculations underlying these estimates are detailed in 
the related November 29, 2018 Notice. See 83 FR at 61381.
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    Hours: Recordkeeping (2,000) + certification (400) + labeling 
(3,600) = 6,000 hours.
    Labor Costs: Recordkeeping ($31,037) + certification ($13,112) and 
labeling ($118,008) = $162,157.
    Non-Labor Cost: $3,040 (estimated annual fuel labeling costs).

Request for Comment

    You can file a comment online or on paper. For the FTC to consider 
your comment, we must receive it on or before March 25, 2019. Write 
``Paperwork Comment: FTC File No. P134200'' on your comment. Postal 
mail addressed to the Commission is subject to delay due to heightened 
security screening. As a result, we encourage you to submit your 
comments online, or to send them to the Commission by courier or 
overnight service. To make sure that the Commission considers your 
online comment, you must file it through the https://www.regulations.gov website by following the instructions on the web-
based form provided. Your comment--including your name and your state--
will be placed on the public record of this proceeding, including the 
https://www.regulations.gov website. As a matter of discretion, the 
Commission tries to remove individuals' home contact information from 
comments before placing them on www.regulations.gov.
    If you file your comment on paper, write ``Paperwork Comment: FTC 
File No. P134200'' on your comment and on the envelope, and mail it to 
the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the 
Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite CC-5610 (Annex J), 
Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the following address: 
Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Constitution Center, 
400 7th Street SW, 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 
20024. If possible, submit your paper comment to the Commission by 
courier or overnight service.
    Because your comment will be placed on the publicly accessible 
website at www.regulations.gov, you are solely responsible for making 
sure that your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential 
information. In particular, your comment should not include any 
sensitive personal information, such as your or anyone else's Social 
Security number; date of birth; driver's license number or other state 
identification number, or foreign country equivalent; passport number; 
financial account number; or credit or debit card number. You are also 
solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include 
any sensitive health information, such as medical records or other 
individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment 
should not include any ``trade secret or any commercial or financial 
information which . . . is privileged or confidential''--as provided by 
Section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 
16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)--including in particular competitively sensitive 
information such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, 
patterns, devices, manufacturing processes, or customer names.
    Comments containing material for which confidential treatment is 
requested must be filed in paper form, must be clearly labeled 
``Confidential,'' and must comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c). In particular, 
the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the 
comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and 
must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from 
the public record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c). Your comment will be kept 
confidential only if the General Counsel grants your request in 
accordance with the law and the public interest. Once your comment has 
been posted publicly at www.regulations.gov, we cannot redact or remove 
your comment unless you submit a confidentiality request that meets the 
requirements for such treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and the General 
Counsel grants that request.
    The FTC Act and other laws that the Commission administers permit 
the collection of public comments to consider and use in this 
proceeding as appropriate. The Commission will consider all timely and 
responsive public comments that it receives on or before March 25, 
2019. For information

[[Page 5680]]

on the Commission's privacy policy, including routine uses permitted by 
the Privacy Act, see https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy. For supporting documentation and other information underlying 
the PRA discussion in this Notice, see http://www.reginfo.gov/public/jsp/PRA/praDashboard.jsp.
    Comments on the information collection requirements subject to 
review under the PRA also should be submitted to OMB. If sent by U.S. 
mail, they should be addressed to: Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for 
the Federal Trade Commission, New Executive Office Building, Docket 
Library, Room 10102, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503. Comments 
sent to OMB by U.S. postal mail are subject to delays due to heightened 
security precautions and also can be sent by email to 
[email protected].

Heather Hippsley,
Deputy General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2019-03020 Filed 2-21-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P