[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 202 (Friday, October 20, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72479-72480]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-23252]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[OMB 3060-xxxx; FR ID 179269]


Information Collection Being Reviewed by the Federal 
Communications Commission

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burdens, 
and as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the 
Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) invites the 
general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to 
comment on the following information collections. Comments are 
requested concerning: whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the 
Commission, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; the accuracy of the Commission's burden estimate; ways to 
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; 
ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on the 
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology; and ways to further reduce the 
information collection burden on small business concerns with fewer 
than 25 employees.

DATES: Written PRA comments should be submitted on or before December 
19, 2023. If you anticipate that you will be submitting comments but 
find it difficult to do so within the period of time allowed by this 
notice, you should advise the contact listed below as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES: Direct all PRA comments to Cathy Williams, FCC, via email to 
[email protected] and to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information about the 
information collection, contact Cathy Williams at (202) 418-2918.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FCC may not conduct or sponsor a 
collection of information unless it displays a currently valid Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. No person shall be 
subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of 
information subject to the PRA that does not display a valid OMB 
control number.
    OMB Control Number: 3060-XXXX.
    Title: Targeting and Eliminating Unlawful Text Messages.

[[Page 72480]]

    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Review: New information collection.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities, and state, 
local, or tribal government.
    Number of Respondents: 2,893 respondents; 34,716 responses.
    Estimated Time per Response: 1 hour.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement.
    Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. 
Statutory authority for this of information is contained in sections 
4(i), 4(j), 227, 301, 303, 307, and 316 of the Communications Act of 
1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 154(j), 227, 301, 303, 307, and 
316.
    Total Annual Burden: 34,716 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: No cost.
    Needs and Uses: This notice and request for comments seeks to 
establish a new information collection as it pertains to the Targeting 
and Eliminating Unlawful Text Messages, Rules and Regulations 
Implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991, CG Docket 
No. 21-402, CG Docket No. 02-278, Report and Order and Further Notice 
of Proposed Rulemaking, FCC 23-21, (rel. Mar. 17, 2023) (Text Blocking 
Report and Order). Text message-based scams can include links to well-
designed phishing websites that appear identical to the website of a 
legitimate company and can fool a victim into providing personal or 
financial information. Texted links can also load unwanted software 
onto a device, including malware that steals passwords, credentials, or 
other personal information. The Federal Communications Commission 
(Commission) is therefore, for the first time, requiring all mobile 
wireless providers to block certain text messages that are highly 
likely to be illegal, so that all subscribers have a basic level of 
protection. In the Text Blocking Report and Order, adopted on March 16, 
2023 and released on March 17, 2023, the Commission is requiring mobile 
wireless providers to block certain text messages that are highly 
likely to be illegal. The Commission is requiring mobile wireless 
providers to block--at the network level--texts purporting to be from 
North American Numbering Plan (NANP) numbers on a reasonable Do-Not-
Originate (DNO) list, which include numbers that purport to be from 
invalid, unallocated, or unused numbers, and NANP numbers for which the 
subscriber to the number has requested that texts purporting to 
originate from that number be blocked.
    Text Blocking Report and Order, FCC 23-21, para. 16.
    We adopt our proposal to require mobile wireless providers to block 
text messages at the network level (i.e., without requiring consumer 
opt in or opt out). The rule we adopt requires that they block texts 
purporting to be from numbers on a reasonable DNO list. As the 
Commission determined with calls, we find that no reasonable consumer 
would wish to receive text messages that spoof a number that is not in 
operation or, worse, purports to be from a well-known, trusted 
organization that does not send text messages and thus is highly likely 
to be a scam. Our requirement to block texts that purport to be from 
numbers on a reasonable DNO list does not include text messages from 
short codes.
    The new information collection for which OMB approval is sought 
comes from the affirmative obligation adopted in the Text Blocking 
Report and Order that all mobile wireless providers must block calls 
using a reasonable DNO list. Currently, the Commission requires gateway 
providers to block voice calls purporting to originate on a reasonable 
DNO list, under section 47 CFR 64.1200(o) of the Commission's rules, 
but this is the first time that the Commission has required mobile 
wireless providers to block texts. The Commission is also ensuring that 
any erroneous blocking can be quickly remedied by requiring mobile 
wireless providers and other entities to maintain a point of contact 
for texters to report erroneously blocked texts.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-23252 Filed 10-19-23; 8:45 am]
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