[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 106 (Tuesday, June 2, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 33578-33579]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-11791]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 54

[WC Docket Nos. 19-126, 10-90; FCC 20-5; FR 16801]


Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, Connect America Fund

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.

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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, an information collection 
associated with the rules for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund 
auction contained in the Commission's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund 
Order, FCC 20-5. This document is consistent with the Rural Digital 
Opportunity Fund Order, which stated that the Commission would publish 
a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of the 
new information collection requirements.

DATES: The amendment to Sec.  54.804(a) published at 85 FR 13773, March 
10, 2020, is effective June 2, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alexander Minard, Wireline Competition 
Bureau at (202) 418-7400 or TTY (202) 418-0484. For additional 
information concerning the Paperwork Reduction Act information 
collection requirements contact Nicole Ongele at (202) 418-2991 or via 
email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Commission submitted revised information 
collection requirements for review and approval by OMB, as required by 
the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, on April 20, 2020, which 
were approved by the OMB on May 22, 2020. The information collection 
requirements are contained in the Commission's Rural Digital 
Opportunity Fund Order, FCC 20-5, published at 85 FR 13773, March 10, 
2020. The OMB Control Number is 3060-1252. The Commission publishes 
this document as an announcement of the effective date of the rules 
published March 10, 2020. If you have any comments on the burden 
estimates listed below, or how the Commission can improve the 
collections and reduce any burdens caused thereby, please contact 
Nicole Ongele, Federal Communications Commission, Room 1-A620, 445 12th 
Street SW, Washington, DC 20554. Please include the OMB Control Number, 
3060-1252, in your correspondence. The Commission will also accept your 
comments via email at [email protected].
    To request materials in accessible formats for people with 
disabilities (braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), 
send an email to [email protected] or call the Consumer and Governmental 
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY).

Synopsis

    As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3507), the Commission is notifying the public that it received OMB 
approval on May 22, 2020, for the information collection requirements 
contained in 47 CFR 54.804(a), published at 85 FR 13773, March 10, 
2020. 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 Number is 3060-1252.
    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: 3060-1252.
    OMB Approval Date: May 22, 2020.
    OMB Expiration Date: May 31, 2023.
    Title: Application to Participate in Rural Digital Opportunity Fund 
Auction, FCC Form 183.
    Form No.: FCC Form 183.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities, Not-for-profit 
institutions, and State, Local or Tribal governments.

[[Page 33579]]

    Number of Respondents and Responses: 500 respondents and 500 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 7 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. 
Statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 47 
U.S.C. 154, 254 and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended.
    Total Annual Burden: 3,500 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: No Cost.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: Although most information 
collected in FCC Form 183 will be made available for public inspection, 
the Commission will withhold certain information collected in FCC Form 
183 from routine public inspection. Specifically, the Commission will 
treat certain technical and financial information submitted in FCC Form 
183 as confidential and as though the applicant has requested that this 
information be treated as confidential trade secrets and/or commercial 
information. In addition, an applicant may use the abbreviated process 
under 47 CFR 0.459(a)(4) to request confidential treatment of certain 
financial information contained in its FCC Form 183 application. 
However, if a request for public inspection for this technical or 
financial information is made under 47 CFR 0.461, and the applicant has 
any objections to disclosure, the applicant will be notified and will 
be required to justify continued confidential treatment of its request. 
To the extent that a respondent seeks to have other information 
collected in FCC Form 183 withheld from public inspection, the 
respondent may request confidential treatment pursuant to 47 CFR 0.459.
    Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Needs and Uses: The Commission will use the information collected 
to determine whether applicants are eligible to participate in the 
Rural Digital Opportunity Fund auction. On January 30, 2020 the 
Commission adopted the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Order, WC Docket 
Nos. 19-126, 10-90, FCC 20-5 which will commit up to $20.4 billion over 
the next decade to support up to gigabit speed broadband networks in 
rural America. The funding will be allocated through a multi-round, 
reverse, descending clock auction that favors faster services with 
lower latency and encourages intermodal competition in order to ensure 
that the greatest possible number of Americans will be connected to the 
best possible networks, all at a competitive cost.
    To implement the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund auction, the 
Commission adopted new rules for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, 
including the adoption of a two-stage application process. For the 
Connect America Fund Phase II auction, applicants that wanted to 
qualify to bid in the auction were required to submit the FCC Form 183 
short-form application. Because the Connect America Fund Phase II 
auction has ended, the Commission intends to repurpose the FCC Form 183 
for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund. Any entity that wishes to 
participate will be required to submit the FCC Form 183 short-form 
application to demonstrate its qualifications to bid. Accordingly, the 
Commission revises this collection to indicate that it now intends to 
collect this information pursuant to Sec.  54.804(a) of the 
Commission's rules, replacing Sec.  54.315(a) of the Commission's 
rules. 47 CFR 54.315(a), 54.804(a). The Commission also makes several 
revisions to FCC Form 183, including text changes to reflect the Rural 
Digital Opportunity Fund. Based on the Commission's experience with 
auctions and consistent with the record, this two-stage collection of 
information balances the need to collect information essential to 
conduct a successful auction with administrative efficiency.
    Under this information collection, the Commission will collect 
information that will be used to determine whether an applicant is 
legally qualified to participate in an auction for Rural Digital 
Opportunity Fund support. To aid in collecting this information, the 
Commission will use FCC Form 183, which the public will use to provide 
the necessary information and certifications. Commission staff will 
review the information collected on FCC Form 183 as part of the pre-
auction process, prior to the start of the auction, and determine 
whether each applicant satisfies the Commission's requirements to 
participate in an auction for Rural Digital Opportunity Fund support. 
Without the information collected on FCC Form 183, the Commission will 
not be able to determine if an applicant is legally qualified to 
participate in the auction and has complied with the various applicable 
regulatory and statutory auction requirements for such participation. 
This approach is an appropriate assessment of providers for ensuring 
serious participation without being unduly burdensome.

Federal Communications Commission.
Cecilia Sigmund,
Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2020-11791 Filed 6-1-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6712-01-P