[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 134 (Friday, July 14, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45214-45215]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-14913]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') 
requests that the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') extend for 
an additional three years the current Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') 
clearance for information collection requirements in its Trade 
Regulation Rule on Disclosure Requirements and Prohibitions Concerning 
Franchising (``Franchise Rule'' or ``Rule''). That clearance expires on 
November 30, 2023.

DATES: Comments must be filed by August 14, 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. Written comments and 
recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent 
within 30 days of publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting 
``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using 
the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christine M. Todaro, Attorney, 
Division of Marketing Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 600 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW, CC-8548, Washington, DC 20580, (202) 326-3711, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title of Collection: Franchise Rule, 16 CFR part 436.
    OMB Control Number: 3084-0107.
    Type of Review: Extension without change of currently approved 
collection.
    Abstract: The Franchise Rule ensures that consumers who are 
considering a franchise investment have access to the material 
information they need to make an informed investment decision and 
compare different franchise offerings. The Rule requires franchisors to 
furnish prospective purchasers with a Franchise Disclosure Document 
(``FDD'') that provides information relating to the franchisor, its 
business, the nature of the proposed franchise, and any representations 
by the franchisor about financial performance regarding actual or 
potential sales, income, or profits. The Rule also requires that 
franchisors maintain records to facilitate enforcement of the Rule.\1\ 
The franchisor must preserve materially different copies of its FDD for 
3 years, as well as information that provides a reasonable basis for 
any financial performance representation it elects to make.
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    \1\ The Rule was amended in 2007 to conform its disclosure 
requirements with the disclosure format accepted by states that have 
franchise registration or disclosure laws. See 72 FR 15444 (Mar. 30, 
2007). The amended Rule has significantly minimized any compliance 
burden beyond what is required by state law.
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    Affected Public: Private Sector: Businesses and other for-profit 
entities.
    Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 22,480.
    Estimated Annual Labor Costs: $8,386,800.
    Estimated Annual Non-Labor Costs: $4,800,000.

Request for Comment

    On February 1, 2023, the FTC sought public comment on the 
information collection requirements associated with the Franchise Rule. 
88 FR 6727 (Feb. 2, 2023). No relevant comments were received during 
the public comment period. Pursuant to OMB regulations, 5 CFR part 
1320, that implement the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., the FTC is 
providing this second opportunity for public comment while seeking OMB 
approval to renew the pre-existing clearance for the Rule. For more 
details about the Rule requirements and the basis for the calculations 
summarized below, see 88 FR 6727.
    Your comment--including your name and your state--will be placed on 
the public record of this proceeding. Because your comment will be made 
public, you are solely responsible for making sure that your comment 
does not include any sensitive personal information, such as anyone'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 ensuring 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 ``[t]rade secret or any commercial or 
financial information which is . . . privileged or

[[Page 45215]]

confidential''--as provided in Section 6(f) of the FTC Act 15 U.S.C. 
46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16CFR 4.10(a)(2)--including, in 
particular, competitively sensitive information, such as costs, sales 
statistics, inventories, formulas, patterns devices, manufacturing 
processes, or customer names.

Josephine Liu,
Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2023-14913 Filed 7-13-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P