[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 147 (Wednesday, July 31, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 37142-37144]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-16334]


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

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 74

[MB Docket No. 18-119; FCC 19-40]


FM Translator Interference

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.

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

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission 
(Commission) announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
has approved, for a period of three years, information collection 
requirements adopted in the Commission's Amendment of Part 74 of the 
Commission's Rules Regarding FM Translator Interference, MB Dkt. No. 
18-119, FCC 19-40, (FM Translator Interference Report and Order). This 
document is consistent with the FM Translator Interference Report and 
Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the 
Federal Register announcing OMB approval and the effective date of the 
rules.

DATES: The rule amendments to 47 CFR 74.1203(a)(3) and 47 CFR 
74.1204(f), published at 84 FR 27734 on June 14, 2019 (corrected at 84 
FR 29806 (June 25, 2019)), are effective on August 13, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cathy Williams by email at 
[email protected] and telephone at (202) 418-2918.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that OMB approved 
the new or modified information collection requirements contained in 47 
CFR 74.1203(a)(3) and 47 CFR 74.1204(f), as adopted in the FM 
Translator Interference Report and Order, FCC 19-40, published at 84 FR 
27734 (date correction published at 84 FR 29806 (June 25, 2019)). OMB 
approved OMB Control Number 3060-1263 on July 16, 2019, and OMB Control 
Number 3060-0405 on July 17, 2019. The Commission publishes this notice 
as an announcement of the effective date of those information 
collection requirements.

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 
July 16, 2019, and on July 17, 2019, for the new or modified 
information collection requirements contained in 47 CFR 74.1203(a)(3) 
and 47 CFR 74.1204(f), as

[[Page 37143]]

amended, in the FM Translator Interference Report and Order, MB Dkt. 
No. 18-119 FCC 19-40 (rel. May 9, 2019). Under 5 CFR part 1320, an 
agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of 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 Numbers 
are 3060-1263 and 3060-0405. 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: 3060-1263.
    OMB Approval Date: July 16, 2019.
    OMB Expiration Date: July 31, 2022.
    Title: Sections 74.1203(a)(3), Interference, and 74.1204(f), 
Protection of FM broadcast, FM Translator and LP100 stations.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities; Not-for-profit 
institutions; State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 270 respondents; 270 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 3-5 hours.
    Frequency of Response: Third party disclosure requirement and on 
occasion reporting requirement.
    Total Annual Burden: 1,080 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: $924,100.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The 
statutory authority for this collection of information is contained in 
Sections 1, 4(i), 4(j), 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, 316, and 319 of the 
Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j), 301, 303, 307, 308, 
309, 316, and 319.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: There is no need for 
confidentiality with this collection of information.
    Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Needs and Uses: On May 9, 2019, the Commission adopted a Report and 
Order, Amendment of Part 74 of the Commission's Rules Regarding FM 
Translator Interference, FCC 19-40, MB Docket No. 18-119 (FM Translator 
Interference Report and Order), adopting proposals to streamline the 
rules relating to interference caused by FM translators and to expedite 
the translator interference complaint resolution process. These 
measures are designed to limit or avoid protracted and contentious 
interference disputes, provide translator licensees additional 
investment certainty and flexibility to remediate interference, and 
provide affected stations earlier and expedited resolution of 
interference complaints. Under this new information collection, the 
following information collection requirements require OMB approval.
    Specifically, the FM Translator Interference Report and Order 
pertains to this new Information Collection as it codifies the 
translator interference listener complaint requirements under section 
74.1201(k) and sections 74.1203(a)(3) (actual interference) and 
74.1204(f) (predicted interference) of the rules. The Commission 
defines the requirements for a listener complaint submitted with a 
translator interference claim in section 74.1201(k) as a complaint that 
is signed and dated by the listener and contains the following 
information: (1) The complainant's full name, address, and phone 
number; (2) a clear, concise, and accurate description of the location 
where the interference is alleged to occur; (3) a statement that the 
complainant listens to the desired station using an over-the-air signal 
at least twice a month, to demonstrate the complainant is a regular 
listener; and (4) a statement that the complainant has no legal, 
employment, financial, or familial affiliation or relationship with the 
desired station, to demonstrate the complainant is disinterested. 
Electronic signatures are acceptable for this purpose.
    The FM Translator Interference Report and Order establishes a 
minimum number of listener complaints ranging from 6 to 25 depending on 
the population served within the protected contour of the complaining 
station. The Commission explains that a proportionate approach, which 
was supported by multiple commenters, would be fairer and more 
effective than a single minimum number for all complaining stations. In 
addition to the required minimum number of valid listener statements, a 
station submitting a translator interference claim package pursuant to 
either section 74.1203(a)(3) or 74.1204(f) must include: (1) A map 
plotting the specific locations of the alleged interference in relation 
to the 45 dBu contour of the complaining station; (2) a statement that 
the complaining station is operating within its licensed parameters; 
(3) a statement that the complaining station licensee has used 
commercially reasonable efforts to inform the relevant translator 
licensee of the claimed interference and attempted private resolution; 
and (4) U/D data demonstrating that at each listener location the ratio 
of undesired to desired signal strength exceeds -20 dB for co-channel 
situations, -6 dB for first-adjacent channel situations or 40 dB for 
second- or third-adjacent channel situations, calculated using the 
Commission's standard contour prediction methodology set out in Section 
73.313.
    In the FM Translator Interference Report and Order, the Commission 
outlines two paths for resolving interference if the translator decides 
to continue operation on its original channel. First, a translator 
operator may resolve each listener complaint by working with a willing 
listener to resolve reception issues. The translator operator must then 
document and certify that the desired station can now be heard on the 
listener's receiver, i.e., that the adjustment to or replacement of the 
listener's receiving equipment actually resolved the interference. 
Second, the translator operator may work with the complaining station 
to resolve station signal interference issues using rule-compliant 
suitable technical techniques. (The Commission provides flexibility to 
the parties to determine the testing parameters for demonstrating that 
the interference has been resolved, for example, the use of on-off 
testing or field strength measurements.) Once agreement is reached, the 
translator operator submits the agreed-upon remediation showing to the 
Commission.
    OMB Control Number: 3060-0405.
    OMB Approval Date: July 17, 2019.
    OMB Expiration Date: July 31, 2022.
    Title: Form 2100, Schedule 349--FM Translator or FM Booster Station 
Construction Permit Application.
    Form Number: FCC Form 2100, Schedule 349.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities; State, Local or 
Tribal Government; Not-for-profit institutions.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 1,350 respondents; 2,775 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 1-1.5 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement; Third 
party disclosure requirement.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The 
statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 
Sections 154(i), 303 and 308 of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended.
    Total Annual Burden: 3,775 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: $3,950,725.
    Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: There is no need for 
confidentiality with this information collection.

[[Page 37144]]

    Needs and Uses: On May 9, 2019, the Commission adopted a Report and 
Order, Amendment of Part 74 of the Commission's Rules Regarding FM 
Translator Interference, FCC 19-40, MB Docket No. 18-119, adopting 
proposals to streamline the rules relating to interference caused by FM 
translators and to expedite the translator interference complaint 
resolution process. These measures are designed to limit or avoid 
protracted and contentious interference disputes, provide translator 
licensees additional investment certainty and flexibility to remediate 
interference, and provide affected stations earlier and expedited 
resolution of interference complaints.
    In the FM Translator Interference Report and Order, the Commission 
adopted its proposal to offer additional flexibility to FM translator 
licensees, by allowing them to resolve interference issues using the 
effective and low-cost method of submitting a minor modification 
application to change frequency to any available same-band FM channel. 
This method will reduce the number of opposition pleadings filed and 
the obligation to defend an interference claim.
    Specifically, the FM Translator Interference Report and Order 
pertains to this Information Collection as it modifies Section 
74.1233(a)(1) of the rules to define an FM translator station's change 
to any available same-band frequency using a minor modification 
application, filed using FCC Form 349, upon a showing of interference 
to or from any other broadcast station. Prior to the FM Translator 
Interference Report and Order, if an existing FM translator caused 
actual interference, as prohibited by Section 74.1203(a), it was 
limited to remedial channel changes, filing FCC Form 349 as a minor 
change application, to only first, second, or third adjacent, or IF 
channels. A change to any other channel was considered a major change 
on FCC Form 349, which could only be submitted during a filing window. 
The FM Translator Interference Report and Order enables more translator 
stations to cure interference by simply changing channels within the 
same band by filing Form 349 as a minor change application, rather than 
other costlier and less efficient remedies.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-16334 Filed 7-30-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6712-01-P