[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 2, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27514-27516]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09277]


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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: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) is seeking public 
comment on its proposal to extend for

[[Page 27515]]

an additional three years the Office of Management and Budget clearance 
for information collection requirements in its Fuel Rating Rule (the 
Rule). The current clearance expires on September 30, 2023.

DATES: Comments must be filed by July 3, 2023.

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 ``Fuel Rating Rule, PRA 
Comment, P145403,'' 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: Hampton Newsome, Attorney, Division of 
Enforcement, Federal Trade Commission, Room CC-9528, 600 Pennsylvania 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580, (202) 326-2889.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Fuel Rating Rule (the Rule), 16 CFR part 306.
    OMB Control Number: 3084-0068.
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Likely Respondents

    (a) Recordkeeping: Refiners, Producers, Importers, Distributors, 
and Retailers of the Covered Fuel Types.
    (b) Disclosure: Retailers of the Covered Fuel Types.
    Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 31,976 (derived from 13,043 
recordkeeping hours added to 18,933 disclosure hours).
    Estimated Annual Labor Costs: $453,627.
    Estimated Annual Capital or Other Non-Labor Costs: $104,131.

Abstract

    The Fuel Rating Rule, 16 CFR part 306 (OMB Control Number: 3084-
0068), establishes standard procedures for determining, certifying, and 
disclosing the octane rating of automotive gasoline and the automotive 
fuel rating of alternative liquid automotive fuels, as required by the 
Petroleum Marketing Practices Act. 15 U.S.C. 2822(a)-(c). The Rule also 
requires refiners, producers, importers, distributors, and retailers to 
retain records showing how the ratings were determined, including 
delivery tickets or letters of certification.
    As required by section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A), the FTC is providing this opportunity for public comment 
before requesting that OMB extend the existing clearance for the 
information collection requirements contained in the Rule.

Burden Statement

    Estimated annual burden hours: 31,976 (derived from 13,043 
recordkeeping hours added to 18,933 disclosure hours).
    Recordkeeping: Based on industry sources, staff estimates that 
approximately 156,515 fuel industry members \1\ each incur an average 
annual burden of approximately five minutes to ensure retention of 
relevant business records \2\ for the period required by the Rule, 
resulting in a total of 13,043 hours.
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    \1\ Staff derived the number of fuel industry members by adding 
the number of refiners, producers, importers, distributors, and 
retailers of these types of fuel. Staff consulted government 
agencies and industry sources in estimating a population of 
approximately 156,515 fuel industry members, including 151,463 
retailers of automotive fuel. Some of the government websites 
reviewed to update these numbers include: http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pnp_cap1_dcu_nus_a.htm (Gasoline Producers); http://www.eia.gov/biofuels/biodiesel/production/ (Biodiesel Producers); 
http://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/ (Alternative Fuel Stations); 
http://www.nacsonline.com/YourBusiness/FuelsReports/2015/Documents/2015-NACS-Fuels-Report_full.pdf (Petroleum Stations).
    \2\ Under the Fuel Rating Rule, refiners, producers, importers, 
distributors, and retailers of automotive fuel must retain, for one 
year, records of any delivery tickets, letters of certification, or 
tests upon which they based the automotive fuel ratings that they 
certify or post. See the Fuel Rating Rule's recordkeeping 
requirements, 16 CFR 306.7; 306.9; and 306.11.
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    Disclosure: Staff estimates that affected industry members incur an 
average burden of approximately one hour to produce, distribute, and 
post octane rating labels. Because the labels are durable, only about 
one of every eight industry member retailers (18,933 of 151,463 
industry member retailers) incur this burden each year, resulting in a 
total annual burden of 18,933 hours.
    Estimated annual labor costs: $453,627.
    Labor costs are derived by applying appropriate hourly cost figures 
to the burden hours described above. Here, the average hourly wages of 
refiners, producers, distributors, and importers is $38.14.\3\ The 
average hourly wages of retailers is $13.86.\4\ The recordkeeping 
component, 13,043 hours, consists of approximately 430 hours for 
producers, distributors, and importers; and 12,613 hours for retailers. 
Thus, the total annual labor cost for recordkeeping is $191,216 ((430 
hours x $38.14/hour) + (12,613 hours x $13.86/hour)). The disclosure 
component, which concerns retailers, is approximately 18,933 hours. 
Thus, total annual labor cost for disclosure is $262,411 (18,933 hours 
x $13.86/hour).
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    \3\ See http://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag211.htm#earnings (Bureau 
of Labor Statistics, 2021 Occupational Employment Statistics, Hourly 
mean wages for petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, 
and gaugers).
    \4\ See http://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag447.htm (Bureau of Labor 
Statistics, 2021 Occupational Employment Statistics, Hourly mean 
wages for service station attendants).
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    Estimated annual non-labor costs: $75,732.
    Staff believes that the Rule does not impose any capital costs for 
producers, importers, or distributors of fuels. Retailers, however, 
incur the cost of procuring and replacing fuel dispenser labels to 
comply with the Rule. Staff conservatively estimates that the price per 
automotive fuel label is $2.77 and that the average automotive fuel 
retailer has six dispensers; thus, $16.62 labeling cost at inception 
per retailer.\5\ Staff has previously estimated a dispenser useful life 
range of 6 to 10 years and, based on that, assumed a useful life of 8 
years for labels, the mean of that range. Given that, replacement 
labeling will not be necessary for well beyond the relevant period at 
issue, i.e., the immediate 3-year PRA clearance sought. However, 
conservatively annualizing the $16.62 labeling cost at inception per 
retailer over that shorter period rather than average useful life, 
annualized labeling cost per retailer will be $5.50. Cumulative 
labeling cost would thus be $104,131 (151,463 retailers x \1/8\ \6\ x 
$5.50 each, annualized).
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    \5\ See 75 FR 12,470, 12,477 (Mar. 16, 2010) (proposed 
rulemaking) (estimating the price range per pump to be one to two 
dollars). Then you factor in inflation since 2010. See https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm.
    \6\ On average, each label needs to be replaced once every 8 
years. Annualizing this cost equates to \1/8\ or 0.125.
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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.

[[Page 27516]]

    For the FTC to consider a comment, we must receive it on or before 
July 3, 2023. 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.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. Due to the public health 
emergency in response to the COVID-19 outbreak and the agency's 
heightened security screening, postal mail addressed to the Commission 
will be subject to delay. We encourage you to submit your comments 
online through the https://www.regulations.gov website.
    If you file your comment on paper, write ``Fuel Rating Rule, PRA 
Comment, P145403,'' 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 become publicly available at https://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; 
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 (1) be filed in paper form, (2) be clearly labeled 
``Confidential,'' and (3) 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. 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, 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 July 3, 2023. 
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.

Josephine Liu,
Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2023-09277 Filed 5-1-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P