[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 193 (Friday, October 4, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53149-53151]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-21667]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The FTC plans to ask the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
to extend for an additional three years the current Paperwork Reduction 
Act (PRA) clearance for information collection requirements contained 
in the FTC's Consumer Product Warranty Rule (Warranty Rule or Rule). 
The current clearance expires on January 31, 2020.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 3, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper by 
following the instructions in the Request for Comments part of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ``Warranty Rule; PRA 
Comment: FTC File No. P072108'' on your comment, and file your comment 
online at https://www.regulations.gov 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: Christine M. Todaro, Attorney, 
Division of Marketing Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal 
Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580, 
(202) 326-3711.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), 44 
U.S.C. 3501-3520, federal agencies must get OMB approval for each 
collection of information they conduct, sponsor, or require. 
``Collection of information'' means agency requests or requirements to 
submit reports, keep records, or provide information to a third party. 
44 U.S.C. 3502(3); 5 CFR 1320.3(c). As required by Section 
3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC is providing this opportunity for 
public comment before requesting that OMB extend the existing PRA 
clearance for the information collection requirements associated with 
the Commission's Rule Concerning Disclosure of Written Consumer Product 
Warranty Terms and Conditions (Warranty Rule or Rule), 16 CFR 701 (OMB 
Control Number 3084-0111).

[[Page 53150]]

    The Warranty Rule is one of three rules \1\ that the FTC 
implemented pursuant to requirements of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 
15 U.S.C. 2301 et seq. (Warranty Act or Act).\2\ The Warranty Rule 
specifies the information that must appear in a written warranty on a 
consumer product \3\ costing more than $15. The Rule tracks Section 
102(a) of the Warranty Act,\4\ specifying information that must appear 
in the written warranty and, for certain disclosures, mandates the 
exact language that must be used.\5\ Neither the Warranty Rule nor the 
Act requires that a manufacturer or retailer warrant a consumer product 
in writing, but if they choose to do so, the warranty must comply with 
the Rule.
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    \1\ The other two rules relate to the pre-sale availability of 
warranty terms and minimum standards for informal dispute settlement 
mechanisms that are incorporated into a written warranty.
    \2\ 40 FR 60168 (Dec. 31, 1975).
    \3\ The definition of consumer product excludes products 
purchased solely for commercial or industrial use. 16 CFR 701.1(b).
    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 2302(a).
    \5\ 40 FR 60168, 60169-60170.
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Warranty Rule Burden Statement

    Total annual hours burden: 142,384 hours.
    In its 2016 submission to OMB, the FTC estimated that the 
information collection burden of including the disclosures required by 
the Warranty Rule was 140,280 hours per year. Although the Rule's 
information collection requirements have not changed, the current 
estimate slightly increases the number of manufacturers subject to the 
Rule based on recent Census data. Further, because most warrantors 
likely would continue to disclose the information required by the Rule, 
even if there were no statute or rule requiring them to do so, staff's 
estimates likely overstate the PRA-related burden attributable to the 
Rule. Moreover, the Warranty Rule has been in effect since 1976, and 
warrantors have long since modified their warranties to include the 
information the Rule requires.
    Based on conversations with various warrantors' representatives 
over the years, staff has concluded that eight hours per year is a 
reasonable estimate of warrantors' PRA-related burden attributable to 
the Warranty Rule.\6\ This estimate includes the number of hours 
warrantors may need to ensure new warranties and any changes to 
existing warranties comply with the Rule. Based on recent Census data, 
staff now estimates that there are 17,798 manufacturers covered by the 
Rule.\7\ This results in an annual burden estimate of approximately 
142,384 hours (17,798 manufacturers x 8 hours of burden per year).
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    \6\ FTC staff has previously contacted two manufacturing 
associations--the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers and 
the National Association of Manufacturers--and we have not located 
additional data that further clarifies this figure.
    \7\ Because some manufacturers likely make products that are not 
priced above $15 or not intended for household use--and thus would 
not be subject to the Rule--this figure is likely an overstatement.
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    Total annual labor costs: $19,381,310.
    Labor costs are derived by applying appropriate hourly cost figures 
to the burden hours described above. The work required to comply with 
the Warranty Rule--ensuring that new warranties and changes to existing 
warranties comply with the Rule--requires a mix of legal analysis 
(50%), legal support (paralegals) (25%) and clerical help (25%). Staff 
estimates that half of the total burden hours (71,192 hours) requires 
legal analysis at an average hourly wage of $250 for legal 
professionals,\8\ resulting in a labor cost of $17,798,000. Assuming 
that 25% of the total burden hours requires legal support at the 
average hourly wage of $26.20, and that the remaining 25% requires 
clerical work at an average hourly wage of $18.28; the resulting labor 
cost is approximately $1,583,310 ($932,615 + $650,695). Thus, the total 
annual labor cost is approximately $19,381,310 ($17,798,000 for legal 
professionals + $932,615 for legal support + $650,695 for clerical 
workers).
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    \8\ Staff has derived an hourly wage rate for legal 
professionals based upon industry knowledge. The hourly wage rates 
for legal support workers and for clerical support are based on mean 
hourly wages found at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.htm 
(``Occupational Employment and Wages-May 2018,'' U.S. Department of 
Labor, released March 2019, Table 1 (``National employment and wage 
data from the Occupational Employment Statistics survey by 
occupation, May 2018'').
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    Total annual capital or other non-labor costs: $0.
    The Rule imposes no appreciable current capital or start-up costs. 
As stated above, warrantors likely have already modified their 
warranties to include the information the Rule requires. Rule 
compliance does not require the use of any capital goods, other than 
ordinary office equipment, which providers would already have available 
for general business use.

Request for Comments

    Pursuant to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC invites 
comments on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the 
accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed 
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize 
the burden of the collection of information on those who are to 
respond. All comments must be received on or before December 3, 2019.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. For the FTC to consider 
your comment, we must receive it on or before December 3, 2019. Write 
``Warranty Rule; PRA Comment: FTC File No. P072108'' 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. 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 ``Warranty Rule; PRA 
Comment: FTC File No. P072108'' on your comment and on the envelope, 
and 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. If possible, submit your paper comment to the 
Commission by courier or overnight service.
    Because your comment will be placed on the publicly accessible FTC 
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;

[[Page 53151]]

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.\9\ 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.
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    \9\ See FTC Rule 4.9(c).
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    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 December 3, 
2019. You can find more information, including routine uses permitted 
by the Privacy Act, in the Commission's privacy policy, at https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy.

Heather Hippsley,
Deputy General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2019-21667 Filed 10-3-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6750-01-P