Notice2021-21753
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
October 6, 2021
Issuing agencies
Federal Trade Commission
Abstract
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 an additional three years the Office of Management and Budget clearance for information collection requirements in the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act Rule ("COPPA Rule" or "Rule"). The current clearance expires on March 31, 2022.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 191 (Wednesday, October 6, 2021)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 191 (Wednesday, October 6, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55609-55611]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-21753]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection;
Comment Request
AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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 an additional
three years the Office of Management and Budget clearance for
information collection requirements in the Children's Online Privacy
Protection Act Rule (``COPPA Rule'' or ``Rule''). The current clearance
expires on March 31, 2022.
DATES: Comments must be filed by December 6, 2021.
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 ``COPPA Rule: Paperwork
Comment, FTC File No. P155408'' on your comment and file your comment
online at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, 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: Peder Magee, Attorney, (202) 326-3538,
Division of Privacy and Identity Protection, Bureau of Consumer
Protection, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20580.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title of Collection: Children's Online
Privacy Protection Act Rule, 16 CFR part 312.
OMB Control Number: 3084-0117.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Affected Public: Private Sector: Businesses and other for-profit
entities.
Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 17,700.
Estimated Annual Labor Costs: $5,783,700.
Estimated Annual Non-Labor Costs: $0.
Abstract: The COPPA Rule requires commercial websites and online
services to provide notice and obtain parental consent before
collecting, using, or disclosing personal information from children
under age thirteen, with limited exceptions. The COPPA Rule contains
certain statutorily required notice, consent, and other requirements
that apply to operators of any commercial website or online service
directed to children that collect personal information, and operators
of any commercial website or online service with actual knowledge that
it is collecting personal information from children. The Rule also
applies to operators that collect personal information from users of
another website or online service that is directed to children. Covered
operators must, among other things: Provide online notice and direct
notice to parents of how they collect, use, and disclose children's
personal information; obtain the prior consent of the child's parent in
order to engage in such collection, use, and disclosure; provide
reasonable means for the parent to obtain access to the information and
to direct its deletion; and, establish procedures that protect the
confidentiality, security, and integrity of personal information
collected from children.
Burden Statement
1. Annual hours burden: 17,600 hours.
(a) New Entrant Operators' Disclosure Burden
Based on public comments received by the Commission during its 2013
COPPA Rule amendments rulemaking,\1\ FTC staff estimates that the Rule
affects approximately 280 new operators per year.\2\ Staff maintains
its longstanding estimate that new operators of websites and online
services will require, on average, approximately 60 hours to draft a
privacy policy, design mechanisms to provide the required online
privacy notice and, where applicable, the direct notice to parents.\3\
This yields an estimated annual hours burden of 16,800 hours (280
respondents x 60 hours).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 78 FR 3971, 4005 (Jan. 17, 2013).
\2\ This consists of certain traditional website operators,
mobile app developers, plug-in developers, and advertising networks.
\3\ See, e.g., 80 FR 76491 (Dec. 9, 2015); 84 FR 1466 (Feb. 4,
2019).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(b) Safe Harbor Applicant Reporting Requirements
Operators can comply with the COPPA Rule by meeting the terms of
Commission-approved self-regulatory
[[Page 55610]]
program guidelines.\4\ While the submission of industry self-regulatory
guidelines to the agency is voluntary, the COPPA Rule sets out the
criteria for approval of guidelines and the materials that must be
submitted as part of an application for approval of such self-
regulatory guidelines. Based on industry input, staff estimates that it
would require, on average, 265 hours per new safe harbor program
applicant to prepare and submit its safe harbor proposal in accordance
with Section 312.11(c) of the Rule.\5\ Given that several safe harbor
programs are already available to operators of websites and online
services, FTC staff anticipates that no more than one additional safe
harbor applicant is likely to submit a request within the next three
years of PRA clearance. Thus, FTC staff estimates that annualized
burden attributable to this requirement would be approximately 88 hours
per year (265 hours / 3 years), which is rounded to 100 hours.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ See 16 CFR 312.11(c). Approved self-regulatory guidelines
can be found on the FTC's website at <a href="http://www.ftc.gov/privacy/privacyinitiatives/childrens_shp.html">http://www.ftc.gov/privacy/privacyinitiatives/childrens_shp.html</a>.
\5\ See 83 FR 49557 (Oct. 2, 2018). Staff believes that most of
the records submitted with a safe harbor request would be those that
these entities have kept in the ordinary course of business. Under 5
CFR 1320.3(b)(2), OMB excludes from the definition of PRA burden the
time and financial resources needed to comply with agency-imposed
recordkeeping, disclosure, or reporting requirements that
customarily would be undertaken independently in the normal course
of business.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(c) Annual Audit and Report for Safe Harbor Programs
The COPPA Rule requires safe harbor programs to audit their members
and submit annual reports to the Commission on the aggregate results of
these member audits. The burden for conducting member audits and
preparing these reports likely varies by safe harbor program depending
on the number of members. Commission staff estimates that conducting
audits and preparing reports will require approximately 100 hours per
program per year. Aggregated for one new safe harbor (100 hours) and
six existing (600 hours) safe harbor programs, this amounts to an
estimated cumulative reporting burden of 700 hours per year (7
respondents x 100 hours).
(d) Safe harbor program recordkeeping requirements
FTC staff understands that most of the records listed in the COPPA
Rule's safe harbor recordkeeping provisions consist of documentation
that covered entities retain in the ordinary course of business
irrespective of the COPPA Rule. As noted above, OMB excludes from the
definition of PRA burden, among other things, recordkeeping
requirements that customarily would be undertaken independently in the
normal course of business. In staff's view, any incremental burden,
such as that for maintaining the results of independent assessments
under section 312.11(d), would be marginal.
2. Estimated annual labor costs: $5,783,700.
(a) New Entrant Operators' Disclosure Burden
Consistent with its past estimates and based on its 2013 rulemaking
record, FTC staff assumes that the time spent on compliance for new
operators covered by the COPPA Rule would be apportioned five to one
between legal (outside counsel lawyers or similar professionals) and
technical (e.g., computer programmers, software developers, and
information security analysts) personnel. Staff therefore estimates
that outside counsel costs will account for 14,000 of the estimated
16,800 hours required as estimated in Section 1(a) above. Staff
anticipates that the workload among law firm partners and associates
for assisting with COPPA compliance would be distributed among
attorneys at varying levels of seniority. Assuming two-thirds of such
work is done by junior associates at a rate of approximately $300 per
hour, and one-third by senior partners at approximately $600 per hour,
the weighted average of outside counsel costs would be approximately
$400 per hour.\6\ FTC staff anticipates that computer programmers
responsible for posting privacy policies and implementing direct
notices and parental consent mechanisms would account for the remaining
2,800 hours. FTC staff estimates an hourly wage of $49 (rounded to the
nearest dollar) for technical assistance, based on Bureau of Labor
Statistics (``BLS'') data.\7\ Accordingly, associated annual labor
costs would be $5,737,200 [(14,000 hours x $400/hour) + (2,800 hours x
$49/hour)] for the estimated 280 new operators.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ These estimates are drawn from the ``Laffey Matrix.'' The
Laffey Matrix is a fee schedule used by many United States courts
for determining the reasonable hourly rates in the District of
Columbia for attorneys' fee awards under federal fee-shifting
statutes. It is used here as a proxy for market rates for litigation
counsel in the Washington, DC area. For 2020-2021, rates in table
range from $333 per hour for most junior associates to $665 per hour
for the most senior partners. See Laffey Matrix, Civil Division of
the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia,
United States Attorney's Office, District of Columbia, Laffey Matrix
B 2015-2021, available at <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/page/file/1305941/download">https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/page/file/1305941/download</a>.
\7\ The estimated mean hourly wages for technical labor support
($44) is based on an average of the mean hourly wage for computer
programmers, software developers, information security analysts, and
web developers as reported by the Bureau of Labor statistics. See
Occupational Employment and Wages--May 2019, Table 1 (National
employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment Statistics
survey by occupation, May 2019), available at <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.t01.htm">https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.t01.htm</a> (hereinafter, ``BLS Table 1'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(b) Safe Harbor Applicant Reporting Requirements
Previously, industry sources have advised that all of the labor to
comply with new safe harbor applicant requirements would be
attributable to the efforts of in-house lawyers. See 83 FR at 49558. To
determine in-house legal costs, FTC staff applied an approximate
average between the BLS reported mean hourly wage for lawyers
($69.86),\8\ and estimated in-house hourly attorney rates ($300) that
are likely to reflect the costs associated with some safe harbor
applicant costs. This yields an approximate hourly rate of $185.
Applying this hourly labor cost estimate to the hours burden associated
with approval for a new safe harbor application yields an estimated
annual labor cost burden of $18,500 (100 hours x $185).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ See BLS Table 1 (attorneys).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(c) Annual Audit and Report for Safe Harbor Programs
Commission staff assumes that compliance officers, at a mean hourly
wage of $35, will prepare annual reports.\9\ Applying this hourly labor
cost estimate to the hours burden associated with preparing annual
audit reports yields an estimated annual labor cost burden of $24,500
(700 hours x $35).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ See BLS Table 1 (compliance officers, $35.03).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(d) Safe Harbor Program Recordkeeping Requirements
For the reasons stated in Section 1(d) above, FTC staff anticipates
that the labor costs associated with safe harbor program recordkeeping
are de minimis.
3. Estimated annual non-labor costs: $0.
FTC staff understands that covered operators already have in place
the computer equipment and software necessary to comply with the Rule's
notice requirements. Accordingly, the predominant costs incurred by
operators are the aforementioned labor costs. Similarly, FTC staff
anticipates that covered entities already have in place the means to
retain and store the records that must be kept under the Rule's safe
harbor recordkeeping provisions, because they are likely to retain such
records independent of the Rule. Accordingly, FTC staff estimates that
[[Page 55611]]
the capital and non-labor costs associated with Rule compliance are de
minimis.
Request for Comments
Under the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501-3521, federal agencies must obtain
approval from OMB for each collection of information they conduct or
sponsor. ``Collection of information'' means agency requests or
requirements that members of the public submit reports, keep records,
or provide information to a third party. 44 U.S.C. 3502(3), 5 CFR
1320.3(c). As required by section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC is
providing this opportunity for public comment before requesting that
OMB extend the existing PRA clearance for the COPPA Rule.
Pursuant to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC invites
comments on: (1) Whether the disclosure 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 providing the required information to consumers.
All comments should be filed as prescribed in the ADDRESSES section
above, and must be received on or before December 6, 2021.
You can file a comment online or on paper. For the Commission to
consider your comment, we must receive it on or before December 6,
2021. Write ``Paperwork Reduction Act: FTC File No. P072108'' on your
comment. Your comment, including your name and your state--will be
placed on the public record of this proceeding, including the <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> website.
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 <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>
website.
If you prefer to file your comment on paper, write ``Paperwork
Reduction Act: FTC File No. P072108'' on your comment and on the
envelope, and 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,
Washington, DC 20024. If possible, please submit your paper comment to
the Commission by courier or overnight service.
Because your comment will become publicly available at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, 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 be filed in paper form, must be clearly labeled
``Confidential,'' and must 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 on the public website--as legally required by FTC Rule
4.9(b)--we cannot redact or remove your comment from the website,
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 December 6,
2021. For information on the Commission's privacy policy, including
routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy">https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy</a>.
Josephine Liu,
Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2021-21753 Filed 10-5-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P
</pre></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on October 6, 2021.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.