[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 23 (Tuesday, February 4, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6185-6188]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-02111]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') is 
seeking public comment on its proposal to extend for an additional 
three years, the current Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') clearance 
for information collection requirements contained in its Funeral 
Industry Practice Rule (``Funeral Rule'' or ``Rule''). That clearance 
expires on June 30, 2020.

DATES: Comments must be filed by April 6, 2020.

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 ``Funeral Rule PRA 
Comment: FTC File No. P084401'' 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: Patricia H. Poss, Division of 
Marketing Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade 
Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20580, 
[email protected], (202) 326-2413.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title of Collection: Funeral Industry Practice Rule, 16 CFR 453.
    OMB Control Number: 3084-0025.
    Type of Review: Extension without change of currently approved 
collection.
    Affected Public: Private Sector: Businesses and other for-profit 
entities.
    Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 164,006.
    Estimated Annual Labor Costs: $5,429,859.
    Abstract: The Funeral Rule ensures that consumers who are 
purchasing funeral goods and services have access to accurate itemized 
price information so they can purchase only the funeral goods and 
services they want or need. Among other things, the Rule requires a 
funeral provider to: (1) Provide consumers a copy of the funeral 
provider's General Price List that itemizes the goods and services it 
offers; (2) show consumers a Casket Price List and an Outer Burial 
Container Price List at the outset of any discussion of those items or 
their prices, and in any event before showing consumers caskets or 
vaults; (3) provide price information from its price lists over the 
telephone; and (4) give consumers a Statement of Funeral Goods and 
Services Selected after determining the funeral arrangements with the 
consumer during an ``arrangements conference.'' The Rule requires that 
funeral providers disclose this information to consumers and maintain 
records documenting their compliance with the Rule.

Burden Statement

    Estimated burden hours for the tasks described below are based on 
the number of funeral providers (approximately 19,136),\1\ the number 
of funerals per year (an estimated 2,813,503),\2\ and the time needed 
to

[[Page 6186]]

complete the information collection tasks required by the Rule. Labor 
costs associated with the Funeral Rule are derived by applying hourly 
cost figures to the burden hours for each task.
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    \1\ The estimated number of funeral providers is from 2019 data 
provided on the National Funeral Directors Association (``NFDA'') 
website (see http://www.nfda.org/news/statistics) (within ``General 
Funeral Service Facts'').
    \2\ The estimated number of funerals conducted annually is 
derived from the National Center for Health Statistics (``NCHS''), 
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/deaths.htm. According to NCHS, 
2,813,503 deaths occurred in the United States in 2017, the most 
recent year for which final data is available. Staff believes this 
estimate overstates the number of funeral transactions conducted 
annually because not all remains go to a funeral provider covered by 
the Rule (e.g., remains sent directly to a crematory that does not 
sell urns, remains sent to a non-profit funeral provider, remains 
donated to a medical school, unclaimed remains handled by a local 
morgue or local government entity, etc.). NFDA reports its member 
home handled about 113 calls in 2018, which, if multiplied by the 
total number of homes (19,136 in 2019) would amount to approximately 
2,162,368 funerals.
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    Recordkeeping: The Rule requires that funeral providers retain 
copies of price lists and statements of funeral goods and services 
selected by consumers for one year. Commission staff estimates that 
providers will spend approximately one hour per provider per year on 
compliance with this task, resulting in a total burden of 19,136 hours 
per year (19,136 providers x 1 hour per year = 19,136 hours).
    Staff anticipates that clerical personnel, at an hourly rate of 
$12.58,\3\ will typically perform these tasks. Based on the estimated 
burden of 19,136 hours, the estimated labor cost for recordkeeping is 
$240,731.
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    \3\ Bureau of Labor Statistics, ``May 2015 National Industry-
Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates, NAICS 812200--
Death Care Services,'' available at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_812200.htm#11-0000. Clerical estimates are based on the mean 
hourly wage data for ``receptionists and information clerks.''
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    Disclosure: The Rule's disclosure requirements mandate that funeral 
providers: (1) Maintain current price lists for funeral goods and 
services, (2) provide written documentation of the funeral goods and 
services selected by consumers making funeral arrangements, and (3) 
provide information about funeral prices in response to telephone 
inquiries.
    1. Maintaining accurate price lists may require that funeral 
providers revise their price lists occasionally to reflect price 
changes. Staff estimates that this task requires 2.5 hours per provider 
per year. Thus, the total burden for covered providers is 47,840 hours 
(19,136 providers x 2.5 hours per year = 47,840 hours).
    Staff estimates that the 2.5 hours required, on average, to update 
price lists consists of approximately 1.5 hours of managerial or 
professional time, at $45.09 per hour,\4\ and one hour of clerical 
time, at $12.58 per hour, for a total annual labor cost of $1,535,090 
for maintaining price lists:
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    \4\ Id. Managerial or professional estimates are based on the 
mean hourly wage data for ``funeral service managers.''

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                                                                                                   Approx. total
         Hourly wage and labor category              Hours per     Total hourly      Number of     annual labor
                                                    respondent      labor cost      respondents        costs
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$45.09 Management Employees.....................             1.5          $67.64          19,136      $1,294,359
$12.58 Clerical Workers.........................               1           12.58  ..............         240,731
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                                                  ..............  ..............  ..............       1,535,090
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    2. The rulemaking record indicates that 87% or more of funeral 
providers provided written documentation of funeral arrangements prior 
to the enactment of the Rule and would continue to do so absent the 
Rule's requirements.\5\ Based on this data, Staff estimates that 13% of 
funeral providers (typically, small funeral homes) may prepare written 
documentation for funeral goods and services selected by consumers 
specifically due to the Rule's mandate. Staff estimates that these 
smaller funeral homes arrange, on average, approximately 20 funerals 
per year and that it would take about three minutes to record prices 
for each consumer on the standard form. This yields a total annual 
burden of 2,488 hours [(19,136 funeral providers x 13%) x (20 
statements per year x 3 minutes per statement) = 2,488 hours].
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    \5\ See 87 FR 12602 (2017). In a 2002 public comment, the 
National Funeral Directors Association asserted that nearly every 
funeral home had been providing consumers with some kind of final 
statement in writing even before the Rule took effect. Nonetheless, 
Staff retains its estimate that 13% of funeral providers may provide 
written disclosures solely due to the Rule's requirements based on 
the original rulemaking record.
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    Staff anticipates that managerial or professional staff will 
typically perform these tasks, at an hourly rate of $45.09 per hour. 
Based on the estimated burden of 2,488 hours, the associated labor cost 
would be $112,184.
    3. The Funeral Rule also requires funeral providers to provide 
information about funeral prices in response to telephone inquiries. 
The rulemaking record indicates that approximately 12% of funeral 
purchasers request funeral prices through telephone inquiries, with 
each call lasting an estimated 10 minutes.\6\ Assuming that the average 
purchaser who makes telephone inquiries places one call per funeral to 
determine prices,\7\ the estimated burden is 56,270 hours (2,813,503 
funerals per year x 12% x 10 minutes per inquiry = 56, 270 hours).
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    \6\ 82 FR at 12603.
    \7\ Although consumers who pre-plan their own arrangements may 
comparison shop and call more than one funeral home for pricing and 
other information, consumers making ``at need'' arrangements after a 
death are less likely to take the time to seek pricing information 
from more than one home. Many do not seek pricing information by 
telephone. Staff therefore believes that an average of one call per 
funeral is an appropriate estimate.
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    Staff understands that managerial or professional time is typically 
required to respond to telephone inquiries about prices, at an hourly 
rate of $45.09 per hour.\8\ Based on the estimated burden of 56,270 
hours, the associated labor cost is $2,537,214.
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    \8\ Although some funeral providers may permit staff who are not 
funeral directors to provide price information by telephone, the 
great majority reserve that task to a licensed funeral director. 
Since funeral home managers are also licensed funeral directors in 
most cases, Staff has used the mean hourly wage for ``funeral 
service managers,'' rather than ``funeral directors,'' for this 
calculation.
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    Compliance Training: Staff believes that annual training burdens 
associated with the Rule are minimal because compliance training is 
typically included in continuing education for state licensing and 
voluntary certification programs. Staff estimates that four employees 
per firm would each require one half-hour, at most, per year, for 
training attributable to the Rule's requirements.\9\ Thus, the total 
estimated time for required training is 38,272 hours (19,136 providers 
x 4 employees per firm x 0.5 hours = 38,272 hours).
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    \9\ Funeral homes, depending on size and other factors, may be 
run by as few as one owner, manager, or other funeral director or 
multiple directors at various compensation levels. Extrapolating 
from past NFDA survey input, staff has estimated that the average 
funeral home employs approximately four employees (a funeral 
services manager, funeral director, funeral service worker, and a 
clerical receptionist) that may require training associated with 
Funeral Rule compliance. Compliance training for other employees 
(e.g., drivers, maintenance personnel, attendants) would not be 
necessary.

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[[Page 6187]]

    Based on past consultations with funeral directors, FTC staff 
estimates that funeral homes will require no more than two hours of 
training per year of licensed and non-licensed funeral home staff to 
comply with the Funeral Rule,\10\ with four employees of varying types 
each spending one half-hour on training. FTC staff further estimates 
labor costs for employee time required for compliance training as 
follows: (a) Funeral service manager ($45.09 per hour); (b) non-manager 
funeral director ($27.61); (c) funeral service workers ($19.70 per 
hour); and (d) a clerical receptionist or administrative staff member 
($12.58).\11\ This amounts to $1,004,640, cumulatively, for all funeral 
homes:
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    \10\ Rule compliance is generally included in continuing 
education requirements for licensing and voluntary certification 
programs. Moreover, as noted above, the FTC provides its compliance 
guide to all funeral providers at no cost, and it is available on 
the FTC website. Additionally, the NFDA provides online guidance for 
compliance with the Rule: http://www.nfda.org/onlinelearning-ftc.html.
    \11\ Bureau of Labor Statistics, ``May 2015 National Industry-
Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates, NAICS 812200--
Death Care Services,'' available at http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_812200.htm#11-0000 (mean hourly wages for funeral service 
managers, funeral directors, funeral service workers, and 
receptionists and information clerks).

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                                                                                                   Approx. total
         Hourly wage and labor category              Hours per     Total hourly      Number of     annual labor
                                                    respondent      labor cost      respondents        costs
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$45.09 Management Employees.....................             0.5          $22.55          19,136        $431,517
$27.61 Non-manager Funeral Directors............             0.5           13.81  ..............         264,268
$19.70 Funeral Service Workers..................             0.5            9.85  ..............         188,490
$12.58 Clerical Workers.........................             0.5            6.29  ..............         120,365
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                                                  ..............  ..............  ..............       1,004,640
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    Capital and other non-labor costs: Staff estimates that the Rule 
imposes minimal capital costs and no current start-up costs. Funeral 
homes already have access, for ordinary business purposes, to the 
ordinary office equipment needed for compliance, so the Rule likely 
imposes minimal additional capital expense.
    Compliance with the Rule, nonetheless, does entail some expense to 
funeral providers for printing and duplication of required disclosures. 
Assuming, as required by the Rule, that one copy of the general price 
list is provided to consumers for each funeral or cremation conducted, 
at a cost of 25[cent] per copy,\12\ this would amount to 2,813,503 
copies per year at a cumulative industry cost of $703,376 (2,813,503 
funerals per year x 25[cent] per copy). In addition, small funeral 
providers that furnish consumers with a statement of funeral goods and 
services solely because of the Rule's mandate will incur printing and 
copying costs. Assuming that those 2,488 providers (19,136 funeral 
providers x 13%) use the standard two-page form shown in the compliance 
guide, at 25 cents per copy, at an average of twenty funerals per year, 
the added cost burden would be $12,440 (2,488 providers x 20 funerals 
per year x 25[cent]). Thus, estimated non-labor costs total $715,816 
($703,376 + 12,440).
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    \12\ Although copies of the casket price list and outer burial 
container price list must be shown to consumers, the Rule does not 
require that they be given to consumers. Thus, the cost of printing 
a single copy of these two disclosures to show consumers is de 
minimis, and is not included in this estimate of printing costs.
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Request for Comment

    Pursuant to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC invites 
comments on: (1) Whether the disclosure and recordkeeping 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) 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.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. For the FTC to consider 
your comment, we must receive it on or before April 6, 2020. Write 
``Funeral Rule PRA Comment: FTC File No. P084401'' on your comment. 
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.
    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. 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.
    If you file your comment on paper, write ``Funeral Rule PRA 
Comment: FTC File No. P084401'' 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 public record, 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

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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--as legally required by FTC 
Rule 4.9(b)--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 April 6, 2020. 
For information on the Commission's privacy policy, including routine 
uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy.

Heather Hippsley,
Deputy General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2020-02111 Filed 2-3-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6750-01-P