Rule2022-15585
Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, Connect America Fund
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
July 25, 2022
Effective
July 25, 2022
Issuing agencies
Federal Communications Commission
Abstract
In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission or FCC) announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, an information collection associated with the rules for the Connect America Fund contained in the Commission's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Order, FCC 20-5. This document is consistent with the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of the new information collection requirements.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 141 (Monday, July 25, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 141 (Monday, July 25, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 44025-44027]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-15585]
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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 54
[WC Docket Nos. 19-126, 10-90; FCC 20-5; FR ID 96806]
Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, Connect America Fund
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.
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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission
(Commission or FCC) announces that the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, an information
collection associated with the rules for the Connect America Fund
contained in the Commission's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Order, FCC
20-5. This document is consistent with the Rural Digital Opportunity
Fund Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a document
in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of the new
information collection requirements.
DATES: The amendments to Sec. 54.313(e) introductory text, (e)(2)
introductory text, and (e)(2)(iii), published at 85 FR 13797, March 10,
2020, are effective July 25, 2022.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jesse Jachman, Wireline Competition
Bureau at (202) 418-7400 or TTY (202) 418-0484. For additional
information concerning the Paperwork Reduction Act information
collection requirements contact Nicole Ongele at (202) 418-2991 or via
email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d698bfb5b9bab3f899b8b1b3bab396b0b5b5f8b1b9a0"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="cf81a6aca0a3aae180a1a8aaa3aa8fa9acace1a8a0b9">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Commission submitted revised information
collection requirements for review and approval by OMB, as
[[Page 44026]]
required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, on June 1, 2022,
which were approved by OMB on July 5, 2022. The information collection
requirements are contained in the Commission's Rural Digital
Opportunity Fund Order, FCC 20-5 published at 85 FR 13797, March 10,
2020. The OMB Control Number is 3060-0986. If you have any comments on
the burden estimates listed in the following, or how the Commission can
improve the collections and reduce any burdens caused thereby, please
contact Nicole Ongele, Federal Communications Commission, 45 L Street
NE, Washington, DC 20554. Please include the OMB Control Number, 3060-
0986, in your correspondence. The Commission will also accept your
comments via email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a0f0f2e1e0c6c3c38ec7cfd6"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6b3b392a2b0d0808450c041d">[email protected]</span></a>. To request materials in accessible
formats for people with disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic
files, audio format), send an email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#680e0b0b5d585c280e0b0b460f071e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c2a4a1a1f7f2f682a4a1a1eca5adb4">[email protected]</span></a> or call the
Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice),
(202) 418-0432 (TTY).
Synopsis
As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
3507), the Commission is notifying the public that it received OMB
approval on July 5, 2022, for the information collection requirements
contained in 47 CFR 54.313(e) introductory text, (e)(2) introductory
text, and (e)(2)(iii), published at 85 FR 13797, March 10, 2020. Under
5 CFR part 1320, an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of
information unless it displays a current, valid OMB Control Number.
No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply
with a collection of information subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act
that does not display a current, valid OMB Control Number. The OMB
Control Number is 3060-0986.
The foregoing notification is required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13, October 1, 1995, and 44 U.S.C. 3507.
The total annual reporting burdens and costs for the respondents
are as follows:
OMB Control Number: 3060-0986.
OMB Approval Date: July 5, 2022.
OMB Expiration Date: July 31, 2025.
Title: High-Cost Universal Service Support.
Form Number: FCC Form 481 and FCC Form 525.
Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Respondents: Business or other for-profit, Not-for-profit
institutions and State, Local, or Tribal Government.
Number of Respondents and Responses: 2,229 unique respondents;
13,804 responses.
Estimated Time per Response: 0.1-15 hours.
Frequency of Response: On occasion, quarterly and annual reporting
requirements, recordkeeping requirement and third-party disclosure
requirement.
Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits.
Statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 47
U.S.C. 151-154, 155, 201-206, 214, 218-220, 251, 252, 254, 256, 303(r),
332, 403, 405, 410, and 1302.
Total Annual Burden: 50,857 hours.
Total Annual Cost: No Cost.
Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: The Federal Communications
Commission (Commission) notes that the Universal Service Administrative
Company (USAC or Administrator) must preserve the confidentiality of
all data obtained from respondents and contributors to the universal
service support program mechanism; must not use the data except for
purposes of administering the universal service program; and must not
disclose data in company-specific form unless directed to do so by the
Commission. Parties may submit confidential information in relation
pursuant to a protective order. Also, respondents may request materials
or information submitted to the Commission or to the Administrator
believed confidential to be withheld from public inspection under 47
CFR 0.459 of the FCC's rules.
Needs and Uses: On November 18, 2011, the Commission adopted an
order reforming its high-cost universal service support mechanisms.
Connect America Fund; A National Broadband Plan for Our Future;
Establish Just and Reasonable Rates for Local Exchange Carriers; High-
Cost Universal Service Support; Developing a Unified Intercarrier
Compensation Regime; Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service;
Lifeline and Link-Up; Universal Service Reform--Mobility Fund, WC
Docket Nos. 10-90, 07-135, 05-337, 03-109; GN Docket No. 09-51; CC
Docket Nos. 01-92, 96-45; WT Docket No. 10-208, Order (76 FR 73830
(Nov. 29, 2011)) and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (76 FR 78384
(Dec. 16, 2011)), 26 FCC Rcd 17663 (2011) (USF/ICC Transformation
Order). The Commission and Wireline Competition Bureau have since
adopted a number of orders that implement the USF/ICC Transformation
Order; see also Connect America Fund et al., WC Docket No. 10-90 et
al., Third Order on Reconsideration (77 FR 30904 (May 24, 2012)), 27
FCC Rcd 5622 (2012); Connect America Fund et al., WC Docket No. 10-90
et al., Order (77 FR 14297 (March 9, 2012), 27 FCC Rcd 605 (Wireline
Comp. Bur. 2012); Connect America Fund et al., WC Docket No. 10-90 et
al., Fifth Order on Reconsideration (78 FR 3837 (Jan. 17, 2013)), 27
FCC Rcd 14549 (2012); Connect America Fund et al., WC Docket No. 10-90
et al., Order (78 FR 22198 (April 15, 2013), 28 FCC Rcd 2051 (Wireline
Comp. Bur. 2013); Connect America Fund et al., WC Docket No. 10-90 et
al., Order, 28 FCC Rcd 7227 (Wireline Comp. Bur. 2013); Connect America
Fund, WC Docket No. 10-90, Report and Order (78 FR 38227 (June 26,
2013)), 28 FCC Rcd 7766 (Wireline Comp. Bur. 2013); Connect America
Fund, WC Docket No. 10-90, Report and Order (78 FR 32991 (June 3,
2013)), 28 FCC Rcd 7211 (Wireline Comp. Bur. 2013); Connect America
Fund, WC Docket No. 10-90, Report and Order (78 FR 48622 (Aug. 9,
2013)), 28 FCC Rcd 10488 (Wireline Comp. Bur. 2013); Connect America
Fund et al., WC Docket No. 10-90 et al., Report and Order, Order and
Order on Reconsideration (81 FR 24282 (April 25, 2016)) and Further
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (81 FR 21511 (April 12, 2016), 31 FCC Rcd
3087 (2016); Connect America Fund, et al., WC Docket No. 10-90, et al.,
Report and Order (81 FR 44414 (July 7, 2016)) and Further Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking (81 FR 40235 (June 21, 2016)), 31 FCC Rcd 5949
(2016); Connect America Fund et al., WC Docket Nos. 10-90, 16-271; WT
Docket No. 10-208, Report and Order (81 FR 69696 (Oct. 7, 2016)) and
Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (81 FR 69772 (Oct. 7, 2016)), 31
FCC Rcd 10139 (2016); Connect America Fund; ETC Annual Reports and
Certifications, WC Docket Nos. 10-90, 14-58, Order, 32 FCC Rcd 968
(2017); Connect America Fund et al., WC Docket No. 10-90 et al., Report
and Order and Order on Reconsideration (84 FR 4711 (Feb. 19, 2019)) and
Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (84 FR 2132 (Feb. 6, 2019)), 33
FCC Rcd 11893 (2018); Connect America Fund; ETC Annual Reports and
Certifications, WC Docket Nos. 10-90, 14-58, Report and Order (82 FR
39966 (Aug. 23, 2017)), 32 FCC Rcd 5944 (2017).
In 2019, the Commission adopted an order establishing a separate,
parallel high-cost program for the U.S. territories suffering extensive
infrastructure damage due to Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The Uniendo a
Puerto Rico Fund and the Connect USVI Fund, et al., WC
[[Page 44027]]
Docket No. 18-143, et al., Report and Order and Order on
Reconsideration (84 FR 59937 (Nov. 7, 2019)), 34 FCC Rcd 9109 (2019)
(Puerto Rico and USVI Stage 2 Order). Also, in the 2019 Supply Chain
Order (85 FR 230 (Jan. 3, 2020)), the Commission adopted a rule
prohibiting the use of Universal Service Fund (USF) support, including
high-cost universal service support, to purchase or obtain any
equipment or services produced or provided by a covered company posing
a national security threat to the integrity of communications networks
or the communications supply chain. Protecting Against National
Security Threats to the Communications Supply Chain Through FCC
Programs, WC Docket No. 18-89, Report and Order and Order (85 FR 230
(Jan. 3, 2020)), Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (85 FR 277 (Jan.
3, 2020)), 34 FCC Rcd 11423, 11433, para. 26. See also 47 CFR 54.9.
Through several orders, the Commission has changed, modified, and
eliminated certain reporting obligations for high-cost support. These
changes are outlined in the following:
On January 30, 2020, the Commission adopted an order establishing
the framework for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF), building
on the successful Connect America Fund (CAF) Phase II auction. Rural
Digital Opportunity Fund; Connect America Fund, WC Docket Nos. 19-126
and 10-90, Report and Order (85 FR 13773 (March 10, 2020)), 35 FCC Rcd
686 (2020) (RDOF Order). The RDOF represents the Commission's single
biggest step to close the digital divide by providing up to $20.4
billion to connect millions more rural homes and small businesses to
high-speed broadband networks. In the RDOF Order, ``[t]o ensure that
support recipients are meeting their deployment obligations,'' the
Commission ``adopt[ed] essentially the same reporting requirements for
the RDOF that the Commission adopted for the CAF Phase II auction.''
Id. at 712, para. 56.
In the 2020 Supply Chain Order, the Commission adopted two
additional supply chain rules associated with newly required
certifications. Protecting Against National Security Threats to the
Communications Supply Chain Through FCC Programs, WC Docket No. 18-89,
Second Report and Order (86 FR 2904 (Jan. 13, 2021)), 35 FCC Rcd 14284
(2020) (2020 Supply Chain Order). First, the Commission adopted a rule,
47 CFR 54.10, prohibiting the use of a Federal subsidy made available
through a program administered by the Commission that provides funds to
be used for the capital expenditures necessary for the provision of
advanced communications services to purchase, rent, lease, or otherwise
obtain, any covered communications equipment or service, or maintain
any covered communications equipment or service previously purchased,
rented, leased, or otherwise obtained. Second, the Commission adopted a
rule, 47 CFR 54.11, which requires each eligible telecommunications
carrier receiving universal service fund support to remove and replace
all covered communications equipment and services from their networks,
and subsequently certify prior to receiving a funding commitment or
support that it does not use covered communications equipment or
services. The Commission also adopted procedures, consistent with the
Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019 (Pub. L. 116-
124), to identify such covered equipment and services and publish a
Covered List. That list was published March 12, 2021 and will be
updated as needed.
In the Rate Floor Repeal Order, the Commission decided to
``eliminate the rate floor and, following a one-year period of
monitoring residential retail rates, eliminate the accompanying
reporting obligations after July 1, 2020.'' Connect America Fund, WC
Docket No. 10-90, Order (84 FR 19874 (May 7, 2019)), 34 FCC Rcd 2621,
2621 para. 2 (2019) (Rate Floor Repeal Order); see also 47 CFR
54.313(h). As explained in the Order, the rate floor was ``[i]ntended
to guard against artificial subsidization of rural end user rates
significantly below the national urban average'' but, practically
speaking, ``increase[d] the telephone rates of rural subscribers . . .
and individuals living on Tribal lands.'' Rate Floor Repeal Order, 34
FCC Rcd at 2621 para. 1.
The Commission therefore revises this information collection, as
well as the Form 481 and its accompanying instructions, to reflect
these modified and eliminated requirements. Finally, the Commission
increases the respondents associated with existing reporting
requirements to account for additional carriers that will be subject to
those requirements.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-15585 Filed 7-22-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P
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