[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 179 (Monday, September 20, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52102-52103]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19393]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 25

[IB Docket No. 18-314; FCC 20-159; FR ID 46198]


Further Streamlining FCC Rules Governing Satellite Services

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 new information collection requirements associated with a 
new rule adopted in Further Streamlining FCC Rules Governing Satellite 
Services, FCC 20-159, which stated that the Commission would publish a 
document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of the 
new rule.

DATES: The addition of 47 CFR 25.136(h), published at 86 FR 11880 on 
March 1, 2021, is effective September 20, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Clay DeCell, [email protected], 202-
418-0803.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that OMB approved 
the information collection requirements in 47 CFR 25.136(h) on August 
26, 2021. This rule was adopted in Further Streamlining FCC Rules 
Governing Satellite Services, FCC 20-159. The Commission publishes this 
document as an announcement of the effective date for this new rule. 
The other rule amendments adopted in Further Streamlining FCC Rules 
Governing Satellite Services did not require OMB approval and became 
effective on March 31, 2021. See 86 FR 11880 (Mar. 1, 2021).
    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 Cathy Williams, Federal Communications 
Commission, Room 3.317, 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 20554, regarding 
OMB Control Number 3060-1215. Please include the OMB Control Number 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 final 
OMB approval on August 26, 2021, for the information collection 
requirements contained in 47 CFR 25.136(h). 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 for the information collection requirements in 47 CFR 
25.136(h) is 3060-1215. 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: 3060-1215.
    OMB Approval Date: August 26, 2021.
    OMB Expiration Date: August 31, 2024.
    Title: Use of Spectrum Bands Above 24 GHz for Mobile Radio 
Services.
    Form Number: N/A.

[[Page 52103]]

    Respondents: Business or other for-profit, not-for-profit 
institutions, and state, local and tribal government.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: 1,670 respondents; 1,670 
responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: .5-10 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement; third 
party disclosure requirement; upon commencement of service, or within 3 
years of effective date of rules; and at end of license term, or 2024 
for incumbent licensees.
    Obligation to Respond: Statutory authority for this collection are 
contained in sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 201, 225, 227, 301, 302, 
302a, 303, 304, 307, 309, 310, 316, 319, 332, and 336 of the 
Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 157, 
160, 201, 225, 227, 301, 302, 302a, 303, 304, 307, 309, 310, 316, 319, 
332, 336, Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, as 
amended, 47 U.S.C. 1302.
    Total Annual Burden: 790 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: $581,250.
    Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: There is no need for 
confidentiality with this collection of information.
    Needs and Uses: On November 19, 2020, the Commission released a 
Report and Order, FCC 20-159, in IB Docket No. 18-314, titled, 
``Further Streamlining Part 25 Rules Governing Satellite Services.'' In 
this Report and Order, among other rule changes, the Commission adopted 
an optional, extended build-out period for earth station licensees. The 
optional build-out period increases the allowable time for an earth 
station to be brought into operation from within one year after 
licensing, to within: Up to five years and six months for earth 
stations operating with geostationary satellites; or, up to six years 
and six months for earth stations operating with non-geostationary 
satellites. As a companion provision to this new build-out period 
option, the Commission adopted a requirement for earth station 
licensees subject to 47 CFR 25.136 to re-coordinate with licensees of 
Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service (UMFUS) stations if the earth 
station is brought into operation later than one year after the date of 
the license grant. The earth station licensee must complete re-
coordination within one year before its commencement of operation. The 
re-coordination should account for any demographic or geographic 
changes as well as changes to the earth station equipment or 
configuration. A re-coordination notice must also be filed with the 
Commission before commencement of earth station operations.
    This information collection is used by UMFUS licensees to provide 
accurate information on the earth station operations notwithstanding 
the substantially longer earth station build-out period that was 
adopted. The collection also counterbalances the potential chilling of 
some UMFUS developments that might otherwise result from the extended 
earth station build-out periods, and thereby serves as an important 
check on potential warehousing. Without such information, the 
Commission would not be able to regulate the shared use of 
radiofrequencies among earth stations and UMFUS stations in the public 
interest, in accordance with the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-19393 Filed 9-17-21; 8:45 am]
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