[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 247 (Wednesday, December 24, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67367-67368]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-33615]


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FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION


Notice of Request for Public Comments Regarding Extensions to 
Existing OMB Clearances

AGENCY: Federal Maritime Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The FMC is preparing submissions to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for continued approval of the following information 
collections (extensions with no changes) under the provisions of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, as amended (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35): OMB 
No. 3072-0055 (Tariffs and Service Contracts); OMB No. 3072-0045 
(Agreements); and OMB No. 3072-0001 (Admission to Practice). Comments 
submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included 
in the request for OMB approval and will become a matter of public 
record.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before February 23, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to: Edward P. Walsh, Managing Director, 
Federal Maritime Commission, 800 North Capitol Street, N.W., 
Washington, D.C. 20573, (Telephone: (202) 523-5800).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Send requests for copies of the current OMB clearances to: George D. 
Bowers, Director Office of Information Resources Management, Federal 
Maritime Commission, 800 North Capitol Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 
20573, (Telephone: (202) 523-5834).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    OMB Approval Number: 3072-0055 Expires May 31, 1998.
    Abstract: Section 8 of the Shipping Act of 1984 requires common 
carriers and conferences of such common carriers to file with the 
Commission and keep open for public inspection, tariffs showing all 
rates, charges, classifications, rules and practices for transportation 
of cargo between the U.S. and foreign ports. Section 8(c) of the Act 
also provides for the filing of service contracts and statements of the 
contracts' essential terms with the Commission. 46 CFR 514 establishes 
the requirements, format and user charges for the electronic 
publication, filing and retrieval of tariffs, as well as service 
contracts and their essential terms, covering the transportation of 
property performed by common carriers in the foreign commerce of the 
United States and by combinations of such common carriers, including 
through transportation offered in conjunction with one or more carriers 
not otherwise subject to the Shipping Act of 1984.
    Needs and Uses: In order to effectively discharge its statutorily-
assigned duties, the Commission uses filed tariff and service contract 
data for surveillance and investigatory purposes, and, in its 
proceedings, adjudicates related issues raised by private parties.
    Frequency: The publishing and filing of tariffs and the filing of 
service contracts are not assigned a specific time frame by the 
Commission; they are submitted as circumstances warrant. That is, a 
common carrier or conference of such carriers can only charge its 
customers rates that are on file with the Commission. Rate increases 
must be filed on 30 days notice, while decreases can be filed to take 
effect on immediate notice.
    Type of Respondents: Common carriers by water are persons who hold 
themselves out to the general public to provide transportation by water 
of cargo between the United States and a foreign country for 
compensation, who assume the responsibility for the transportation from 
origin to destination and use a vessel operating on the high seas or 
the Great Lakes between a U.S. port and a foreign country.

[[Page 67368]]

    Number of annual respondents: The Commission estimates an annual 
respondent universe of 3,267. This number varies as persons file 
tariffs.
    Estimated time per response: The average time for preparing and 
filing tariffs and service contracts is estimated at 122 person hours. 
Estimated time per respondent for recordkeeping requirements is 
estimated at 6 person hours.
    Total Annual Burden: The Commission estimates the manhour burden to 
file foreign tariffs, service contracts and essential terms at 399,829; 
recordkeeping requirements are estimated at 12,080 person hours.
    OMB Approval Number: 3072-0045 (Expires May 31, 1998).
    Abstract: The Shipping Act of 1984, 46 U.S.C. app. Sec. 1701 et 
seq., requires certain classes of agreements between and among ocean 
common carriers and marine terminal operators to be filed with the 
Commission, specifies the mandatory content of those agreements, and 
defines the Commission's authorities and responsibilities in overseeing 
these agreements. 46 CFR 572 establishes the form and manner for filing 
agreements and for the underlying commercial data necessary to evaluate 
agreements.
    Needs and Uses: Under its pre-effective review process, the 
Commission reviews agreement filings to determine statutory and 
regulatory compliance, as well as to assess their anticompetitive 
impact. After agreements becomes effective, the Commission monitors 
agreement activities to ensure continued statutory and regulatory 
compliance. To accomplish this, the Commission continually gathers, 
reviews, and interprets commercial data regarding the impact of 
agreements on competition, prices, and service in the U.S. foreign 
commerce.
    Frequency: The Commission has no control over how frequently 
agreements are entered into; this is solely a matter between the 
negotiating parties. When parties do reach an agreement that falls 
under the jurisdiction of the 1984 Shipping Act, that agreement must be 
filed with the Commission. Ongoing surveillance of agreement activities 
is conducted through the review of minutes and quarterly monitoring 
reports filed by the more anticompetitive agreements.
    Type of Respondents: Parties that enter into agreements subject to 
the Commission's oversight are ocean common carriers and marine 
terminal operators operating in the foreign oceanborne commerce of the 
United States.
    Number of Annual Respondents: Over the last five years the 
Commission has averaged 358 agreement filings a year from an estimated 
potential universe of 764 regulated entities. Starting in mid-1996, 
certain agreements are required to file quarterly monitoring reports 
under these regulations. The number of annual respondents under this 
program will vary according to the number of agreements subject to the 
reporting obligation. Last year, 235 agreements were subject; they 
filed 940 monitoring reports.
    Estimated Time Per Response: The time for preparing and filing an 
agreements can range anywhere from as little as three staff-hours to as 
much as 150 staff-hours. The estimated average burden per respondent is 
90 staff-hours. Time required for preparing monitoring reports varies 
according to the complexity of the filing obligation. Class C 
agreements have the least burden, and it is estimated to be about 20 
staff-hours. Class A/B agreements require more specific data and hence 
a greater burden. It is estimated that Class B monitoring reports 
require about 120 staff-hours, and Class A reports about 160 staff-
hours. Estimated time per respondent under the record-keeping 
obligations of the regulation is five staff-hours.
    Total Annual Burden: The total annual burden on respondents is 
estimated at 115,000 staff-hours, 110,000 staff-hours as the filing 
burden, and 5,000 staff-hours as the record-keeping burden. These 
estimates are based on anticipated filings over the next year.
    OMB Approval Number: 3072-0001 (Expires May 31, 1998).
    Abstract: Qualified persons who desire to practice before the 
Commission must complete and file Form FMC-12 (Application for 
Admission to Practice before the Federal Maritime Commission) with the 
Commission.
    Needs and Uses: The Commission uses data contained in the 
application to determine to whether applicant have the necessary 
qualifications to enable them to represent others in matters before the 
Commission.
    Frequency: The collection of the information is on a one-time only 
basis.
    Type of Respondents: Persons desiring to practice before the 
Commission in quasi-judicial hearings.
    Number of annual respondents: The Commission estimates there are 
approximately 10 respondents annually for this one-time response.
    Estimated Time per response: Approximately one hour.
    Total Annual Burden: Ten manhours per year.
    Before the Commission submits these renewal packages to the Office 
of Management and Budget, the Commission is inviting public, written 
comments on: (a) whether the proposed collections of information are 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the 
accuracy of the Commission's burden estimates for the proposed 
collections of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collections of the information on 
respondents, including through the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
Ronald D. Murphy,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-33615 Filed 12-23-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6730-01-M