[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 119 (Wednesday, June 22, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37335-37337]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13264]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[PS Docket No. 22-217; DA-22-592; FR ID 91708]


Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, Electronic 
Filing of System Security and Integrity Policies and Procedures 
Documents

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Public Safety and Homeland Security 
Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission (the FCC or 
Commission), seeks comment on the forthcoming launch of the 
Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) electronic 
filing system (CEFS) for certain required filings for 
telecommunications providers and the proposal to make electronic filing 
mandatory six months after CEFS becomes active.

DATES: Submit comments on or before July 22, 2022, and reply comments 
are due on or before August 8, 2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by PS Docket No. 22-217, 
by any of the following methods:
     Federal Communications Commission's Website: https://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Parties who choose to file by paper must file an 
original and one copy of each filing. If more than one docket or 
rulemaking number appears in the caption of this proceeding, filers 
must submit two additional copies for each additional docket or 
rulemaking number. Filings can be sent by commercial overnight courier, 
or by first-class or overnight U.S. Postal Service mail. All filings 
must be addressed to the Commission's Secretary, Office of the 
Secretary, Federal Communications Commission. Commercial overnight mail 
(other than U.S. Postal Service Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be 
sent to 9050 Junction Drive, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701. U.S. Postal 
Service first-class, Express, and Priority mail must be addressed to 45 
L Street NE, Washington, DC 20554.
     People With Disabilities: Contact the FCC to request 
reasonable accommodations (accessible format documents, sign language 
interpreters, CART, etc.) by email: [email protected] or phone: 202-418-
0530 or TTY: 202-418-0432.
    For detailed instructions for submitting comments and additional 
information on the rulemaking process, see the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rosemary Cabral, Attorney Advisor, 
Policy and Licensing Division, Public Safety and Homeland Security 
Bureau, at (202) 418-0662 or [email protected]; or Chris Fedeli, 
Attorney Advisor, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau at 202-
418-1514 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's June 
1, 2022, Public Notice, PS Docket No. 22-217, DA 22-592 announcing the 
upcoming launch of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement 
Act (CALEA) electronic filing system (CEFS) for required filings for 
telecommunications providers.
    The full text of this document is available at https://www.fcc.gov/document/calea-electronic-filing-system.
    Pursuant to Sec. Sec.  1.415 and 1.419 of the Commission's rules, 
47 CFR 1.415, 1.419, interested parties may file comments and reply 
comments on or before the dates indicated on the first page of this 
document. Comments may be filed using the Commission's Electronic 
Comment Filing System (ECFS). See Electronic Filing of Documents in 
Rulemaking Proceedings, 63 FR 24121 (1998).
     Electronic Filers: Comments may be filed electronically 
using the internet by accessing the ECFS: https://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/.
     Paper Filers: Parties who choose to file by paper must 
file an original and one copy of each filing.
     Filings can be sent by commercial overnight courier, or by 
first-class or overnight U.S. Postal Service mail. All filings must be 
addressed to the Commission's Secretary, Office of the Secretary, 
Federal Communications Commission.
     Commercial overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal Service 
Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9050 Junction Drive, 
Annapolis Junction, MD 20701. U.S. Postal Service first-class, Express, 
and Priority mail must be addressed to 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 
20554.
     Effective March 19, 2020, and until further notice, the 
Commission no longer accepts any hand or messenger delivered filings. 
This is a temporary measure taken to help protect the health and safety 
of individuals, and to mitigate the transmission of COVID-19. See FCC 
Announces Closure of FCC Headquarters Open Window and Change in Hand-
Delivery Policy, Public Notice, DA 20-304 (March 19, 2020). https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-closes-headquarters-open-window-and-changes-hand-delivery-policy.
    People With Disabilities: 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 & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 (voice), 202-
418-0432 (TTY).
    The proceeding this Public Notice initiates shall be treated as a 
``permit-but-disclose'' proceeding in accordance with the Commission's 
ex parte rules, 47 CFR 1.1200 et seq. Persons making ex parte 
presentations must file a copy of any written presentation or a 
memorandum summarizing any oral presentation within two business days 
after the presentation (unless a different deadline applicable to the 
Sunshine period applies). Persons making oral ex parte presentations 
are reminded that memoranda summarizing the presentation must (1) list 
all persons attending or otherwise participating in the meeting at 
which the ex parte presentation was made, and (2) summarize all data 
presented and

[[Page 37336]]

arguments made during the presentation. If the presentation consisted 
in whole or in part of the presentation of data or arguments already 
reflected in the presenter's written comments, memoranda or other 
filings in the proceeding, the presenter may provide citations to such 
data or arguments in his or her prior comments, memoranda, or other 
filings (specifying the relevant page and/or paragraph numbers where 
such data or arguments can be found) in lieu of summarizing them in the 
memorandum. Documents shown or given to Commission staff during ex 
parte meetings are deemed to be written ex parte presentations and must 
be filed consistent with rule 1.1206(b). In proceedings governed by 
rule 1.49(f) or for which the Commission has made available a method of 
electronic filing, written ex parte presentations and memoranda 
summarizing oral ex parte presentations, and all attachments thereto, 
must be filed through the electronic comment filing system available 
for that proceeding, and must be filed in their native format (e.g., 
.doc, .xml, .ppt, searchable .pdf). Participants in this proceeding 
should familiarize themselves with the Commission's ex parte rules.

Synopsis

    In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (the FCC or 
Commission), Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, announces its 
plan to make electronic filing available for CALEA System Security and 
Integrity Policies and Procedures documents (SSI Plans), which must be 
filed by all covered providers, and must be updated whenever there is a 
change in those SSI Plans or following a merger or divestiture. SSI 
Plans are confidential filings that have been traditionally filed by 
paper with the Commission. In the Public Notice, the Commission 
describes the planned CALEA Electronic Filing System (CEFS), and 
provides details about how confidential SSI Plan filing via CEFS will 
work. We ask members of the public for comment about the CEFS, and we 
specifically ask for comment on our proposal to make electronic filing 
mandatory of SSI Plans instead of paper filing, and the timing of this 
requirement starting six months after CEFS is made available for 
voluntary filing. Commenters suggesting proposed alternatives should 
explain the basis for their proposals.

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Certification

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended (RFA), requires 
that a regulatory flexibility analysis be prepared for notice-and-
comment rulemaking proceedings, unless the agency certifies that ``the 
rule will not, if promulgated, have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities.'' The RFA generally defines the 
term ``small entity'' as having the same meaning as the terms ``small 
business,'' ``small organization,'' and ``small governmental 
jurisdiction.'' In addition, the term ``small business'' has the same 
meaning as the term ``small business concerns'' under the Small 
Business Act. A ``small business concern'' is one that: (1) is 
independently owned and operated; (2) is not dominant in its field of 
operation; and (3) satisfies any additional criteria established by the 
Small Business Administration (SBA). Accordingly, the Public Safety and 
Homeland Security Bureau (Bureau) has prepared this Initial Regulatory 
Flexibility Certification (IRFC) certifying that the rules and policies 
proposed in the Public Notice will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities.
    In 1994, Congress enacted the Communications Assistance for Law 
Enforcement (CALEA), Public Law 103-414, 108 Stat. 4279 to define the 
statutory obligations of telecommunications carriers to assist law 
enforcement in executing electronic surveillance pursuant to court 
order or other lawful authorization. Congress amended the 
Communications Act of 1934 to add Sections 229(b) and (c) to facilitate 
compliance and FCC oversight of the requirements of CALEA. CALEA is 
intended to preserve the ability of law enforcement agencies to conduct 
electronic surveillance while protecting the privacy of information 
outside the scope of the investigation. CALEA requires that 
telecommunications carriers and manufacturers of telecommunications 
equipment design their equipment, facilities, and services to ensure 
that they have the necessary surveillance capabilities to comply with 
legal requests for information. Communications services and facilities 
utilizing Circuit Mode equipment, packet mode equipment, facilities-
based broadband internet access providers and providers of 
interconnected Voice over internet Protocol (VoIP) service are all 
subject to CALEA. These compliance requirements include wireless 
services, routing and soft switched services, and internet-based 
telecommunications present in applications used by telecommunications 
devices.
    Telecommunications carriers must file and maintain up-to-date 
System Security and Integrity (SSI) plans with the Commission, as those 
plans are described in 47 CFR 1.20005. This information includes a 
description of how the service provider complies with CALEA, and 
carrier contact information. Such information is not disclosed to the 
public. This information collection has been approved by the Office of 
Management and Budget, control number 3060-0809.
    In this Public Notice, we propose to modernize the Commission's 
procedures governing the filing of CALEA SSI plans that 
telecommunications carriers must follow to submit their plans for 
Commission review. Presently, CALEA SSI plans are filed in paper. We 
propose to require telecommunications carriers to submit CALEA SSI 
plans electronically in the CALEA Electronic Filing System (CEFS). We 
also propose that mandatory filing begin six months after the Bureau 
announces the availability of CEFS for voluntary filing. We believe 
these proposals will provide telecommunications carriers certainty and 
streamline the process for filing CALEA SSI plans.
    The entities subject to the proposed electronic filing requirement 
are new telecommunications carriers and telecommunications carriers 
that must update their SSI plans, and consequently, the streamlined 
filing process we propose in the Public Notice are specific to those 
entities and their obligations under CALEA. Moreover, the electronic 
filing process does not impose increased reporting burdens on 
telecommunications carriers, including small businesses; nor do we 
expect the electronic filing process to result in increased costs for 
such businesses. The new electronic database will reduce paperwork and 
the time burden on small entities. The CEFS presents a public-facing 
web form containing data entry fields for collection of key portions of 
the required data that will help ensure filers supply necessary 
information in their SSI Plans. The use of the web form and electronic 
filing will reduce the time burden imposed on small entities when 
deficient paper SSI plans must be returned to filers for correction. 
The automated CEFS for SSI Plan submission replaces a cumbersome and 
space-consuming paper process, streamlines the review process using a 
web-based checklist system, and enhances recordkeeping and retrieval 
capabilities for small entities.
    Consequently, there will not be a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities. Therefore, we certify that the 
proposed requirements in the Public Notice will not have a significant 
economic impact

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on a substantial number of small entities. The Public Notice and this 
initial certification will be sent to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of 
the SBA and will be published in the Federal Register.

Federal Communications Commission.
David L. Furth,
Deputy Chief.
[FR Doc. 2022-13264 Filed 6-21-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P