Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 161 / Monday, August 20, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 42043 

1Expanding Flexible Use in Mid-Band Spectrum 

Between 3.7 and 24 GHz, GN Docket No. 17–183, 

Notice of Inquiry, 32 FCC Rcd 6373 (2017) (MidBand NOI). 

CMS intends to modify the authority 

that currently requires denial or 

revocation of providers or suppliers 

who fail to submit fingerprints, to 

instead specify that a waiver application 

will be rejected if the provider or 

supplier fails to submit the required 

fingerprints within 30 days. 

• Waiver of 1866(j)(3)(B) of the Act, 

which requires program instruction or 

regulatory interpretation in order to 

implement section 1866(j)(3) of the Act, 

Provisional Period of Enhanced 

Oversight for New Providers of Services 

and Suppliers. CMS intends to 

implement the requirements of section 

1866(j)(3) of the Act for purposes of this 

Demonstration and in the absence of 

regulation or other instruction in order 

to allow for a 1-year period of enhanced 

oversight of newly enrolling providers 

and suppliers under this Demonstration. 

• Waiver of section 1866(j)(8) of the 

Act and the regulations at 42 CFR 

424.545, 42 CFR part 498, subparts D 

and E, and 42 CFR 405.803(b), which 

allow a provider or supplier the right to 

request a hearing with an administrative 

law judge and the Department Appeals 

Board in the case of denial. Under this 

Demonstration, denials of applications 

for a waiver may be appealed at a CMS 

level only, and any applicant to the 

Demonstration will waive their right to 

further appeal. 

• Waiver of 1866(j)(7) of the Act and 

the regulations at 42 CFR 424.570 and 

455.470, which specify that the 

moratoria must be implemented at a 

provider or supplier type level, in order 

to allow a case-by-case waiver process 

to moratoria. 

Dated: August 6, 2018. 

Seema Verma, 

Administrator, Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services. 

[FR Doc. 2018–17809 Filed 8–16–18; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 4120–01–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Part 25 

[GN Docket Nos. 18–122, 17–183, RM– 

11791, RM–11778; FCC 18–91] 

Expanding Flexible Use of the 3.7 to 

4.2 GHz Band 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final action. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal 

Communications Commission 

(Commission or FCC) adopts 

certification and information collection 

requirements for 3.7–4.2 GHz band 

spectrum that will be available for new 

wireless uses while balancing desired 

speed to the market, efficiency of use, 

and effectively accommodating 

incumbent Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) 

and Fixed Service (FS) operations in the 

band. 

DATES: The certification requirements 

are adopted effective August 20, 2018; 

except for Earth Station and Space 

Station Information Collections in 

paragraphs 7–12, which contain 

information collection requirements that 

have not been approved by the Office of 

Management and Budget. The FCC will 

publish a document in the Federal 

Register announcing the effective date 

for those requirements. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christopher Bair of the International 

Bureau, Satellite Division, at 202–418– 

0945 or christopher.bair@fcc.gov. For 

information regarding the Paperwork 

Reduction Act contact Cathy Williams, 

Office of Managing Director, at (202) 

418–2918 or cathy.williams@fcc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Order, 

GN Docket No. 18–122, FCC 18–91, 

adopted on July 12, 2018, and released 

on July 13, 2018. The complete text of 

this document is available for public 

inspection and copying from 8 a.m. to 

4:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) Monday 

through Thursday or from 8 a.m. to 

11:30 a.m. ET on Fridays in the FCC 

Reference Information Center, 445 12th 

Street SW, Room CY–A257, 

Washington, DC 20554. The complete 

text is available on the Commission’s 

website at http://wireless.fcc.gov, or by 

using the search function on the ECFS 

web page at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ 

ecfs/. Alternative formats are available 

to persons with disabilities by sending 

an email to fcc504@fcc.gov or by calling 

the Consumer & Governmental Affairs 

Bureau at (202) 418–0530 (voice), (202) 

418–0432 (tty). 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Commission, as part of its 

continuing effort to reduce paperwork 

burdens, intends to invite the general 

public and the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) to comment on the 

information collection requirements 

contained in this document, as required 

by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995, Public Law 104–13. In addition, 

pursuant to the Small Business 

Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public 

Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(4), 

the Commission will also seek specific 

comment on how we might further 

reduce the information collection 

burden for small business concerns with 

fewer than 25 employees. 

Congressional Review Act 

The Commission will send a copy of 

this Order in a report to be sent to 

Congress and the Government 

Accountability Office pursuant to the 

Congressional Review Act (CRA), see 5 

U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A). 

I. Introduction 

1. In this proceeding, the Commission 

is pursuing the joint goals of making 

spectrum available for new wireless 

uses while balancing desired speed to 

the market, efficiency of use, and 

effectively accommodating incumbent 

Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) and Fixed 

Service (FS) operations in the band. To 

gain a clearer understanding of the 

operations of current users in the 3.7– 

4.2 GHz band, the Commission is 

requiring certifications and collecting 

information on current FSS uses. 

II. Background 

2. In the 2017 Mid-Band Notice of 

Inquiry (Mid-Band NOI), the 

Commission began an evaluation of 

whether spectrum in-between 3.7 GHz 

and 24 GHz can be made available for 

flexible use—particularly for wireless 

broadband services.1

III. Order: Collecting Information on 

Satellite Usage of the Band 

3. The record in response to the MidBand NOI reflects that the 

Commission’s information regarding 

current use of the band is inaccurate 

and/or incomplete. Therefore, the 

Commission is collecting additional 

information to make an informed 

decision about the proposals discussed 

herein—including the scope of future 

FSS, FS, and potential mobile use of the 

band and the appropriate transition 

methodology. It is important that the 

Commission obtain a clear 

understanding of the operations of 

current users in the band. This user data 

will be vital to our consideration of how 

much spectrum could be made 

available, how incumbent operators 

could be protected, accommodated, or 

relocated, and the overall structure of 

the band going forward. 

4. In furtherance of the Commission’s 

goals of fostering more efficient and 

intensive use of the 3.7–4.2 GHz band 

as expeditiously as possible while 

protecting existing operations in the 

band from harmful interference, by this 

Order the Commission adopts the 


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42044 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 161 / Monday, August 20, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

2Although the Broadband Access Coalition 

argues that all of the information required to be 

submitted by earth stations is ‘‘is no different from 

the detailed technical information provided, and 

made publicly available, for wireless providers in 

other services,’’ and thus should not be afforded 

confidential treatment, Broadband Access Coalition 

June 29, 2018 Ex Parte Letter, GN Docket No. 18– 

122, at 4, the Commission will review and assess 

requests for confidential treatment for the 

information submitted in response to this 

information collection according to the procedures 

set forth in the Commission’s rules. See 47 CFR 

0.459. 

3See Temporary Freeze on Applications for New 

or Modified Fixed Satellite Service Earth Stations 

and Fixed Microwave Stations in the 3.7–4.2 GHz 

Band; 90-Day Window to File Applications for Earth 

Stations Currently Operating in 3.7–4.2 GHz Band, 

GN Docket No. 17–183, WTB Docket No. 18–122, 

Public Notice, DA 18–398 at 1 (IB/PSHSB/WTB 

Apr. 19, 2018), 83 FR 21746 (May 10, 2018); 

International Bureau Announces 90-Day Extension 

of Filing Window, to October 17, 2018, to File 

Applications for Earth Stations Currently Operating 

in 3.7–4.2 GHz Band, Filing Options for Operators 

with Multiple Earth Station Antennas, Public 

Notice, DA 18–639 (IB Jun. 21, 2018), 83 FR 35454 

(July 26, 2018) (collectively, the Earth Station Filing 

Window Public Notices). 

4NCTA—The Internet & Television Association 

filed an ex parte suggesting that this information 

collection order was not properly noticed under the 

Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Letter from 

Danielle Pin ̃ eres, NCTA, to Marlene Dortch, FCC, 

GN Docket No. 18–122 at 1–3 (filed July 2, 2018). 

While the Commission has discretion to seek 

comment before undertaking an information 

collection, it has never taken the position that such 

comment is a necessary prerequisite. Because the 

information collection adopted here is designed 

solely to obtain the information necessary to 

evaluate whether to adopt future Commission rules, 

it has no direct ‘‘future effect’’ and as such is not 

a rule requiring notice under the APA. See 5 U.S.C. 

551(4); see also 44 U.S.C. 3507(c) (providing for 

PRA approval of an information collection not 

contained in a proposed rule). After adoption of the 

present Order, the Commission will comply with 

the PRA’s requirements, including by seeking 

public comment on, and Office of Management and 

Budget approval of, the final information collection 

before it becomes effective. As is permitted by the 

PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(1)(B)(iii), this information 

collection is mandatory, but this Order does not 

specify any penalty for failure to respond. 

5A temporary fixed or transportable earth station 

is a fixed earth station that remains at a location for 

less than six months. See 47 CFR 25.277. 

Operations from these fixed stations are on a 

temporary basis and therefore variable in nature. A 

satellite news gathering truck is a common example 

of a temporary fixed or transportable earth station. 

certification and information collection 

requirements described in paragraphs 

5–12 below. The Commission and the 

public will use the information 

collected to evaluate future use of the 

3.7–4.2 GHz band. The information may 

also be used in defining incumbent 

earth stations to be protected from 

harmful interference consistent with 

parameters that may be developed in 

this proceeding. FSS operators may 

request confidential treatment of some 

or all of the information that they 

submit, consistent with the 

Commission’s rules.2

5. Earth Station Data.— In order to 

evaluate the potential for a flexible use 

allocation in the 3.7–4.2 GHz band and 

determine how much spectrum could be 

made available, the Commission must 

evaluate the existing earth station usage 

of C-band satellites—including location 

and technical data that may be 

necessary to mitigate harmful 

interference. This information will 

assist the Commission in determining 

whether earth stations will need to be 

protected as well as how they may need 

to be protected depending on how the 

Commission moves forward with 

increasing the intensity of terrestrial use 

of the band. It will also allow the 

Commission to evaluate the feasibility 

of the various transition proposals. 

6. The Commission directs operators 

of FSS earth stations, including 

temporary fixed or transportable earth 

stations, in the 3.7–4.2 GHz band that 

are licensed or registered (authorized) in 

International Bureau Filing System 

(IBFS) to certify the accuracy of all 

information reflected on their license or 

registration in IBFS. Given that they 

recently will have filed for new or 

modified licenses or registrations in 

IBFS, the Commission exempts from 

this Order those operators that file 

between April 19, 2018, and October 17, 

2018, using the processes outlined in 

the Earth Station Filing Window Public 

Notices, including those that filed 

without coordination.3 This certification 

is necessary to inform the Commission’s 

decisions in this proceeding. Although 

the Commission does not require FSS 

earth station operators to provide 

additional information on their existing 

operations at this time, the Commission 

intends to seek comment on protecting 

only those earth stations licensed or 

registered in IBFS for which the 

licensee/registrant timely files the 

certification required in this Order (to 

the extent they registered before April 

19, 2018). The Commission also intends 

to seek comment on whether further 

earth station information should be 

collected in the future to facilitate more 

efficient use of the 3.7–4.2 GHz band.4

7. Further, to account for the variable 

nature of temporary fixed or 

transportable earth stations,5 the 

Commission orders all such operations 

to submit additional information about 

their operations regardless of when they 

were licensed or registered. This 

information shall include: 

• Earth station call sign (or IBFS file 

number if a registration filed between 

April 19, 2018 and October 17, 2018, is 

pending); 

• geographic location where the 

equipment is typically stored; 

• the area within which the 

equipment is typically used; 

• how often the equipment is used 

and the duration of such use (i.e., please 

provide examples of typical 

deployments, e.g., operation x days a 

week at sports arenas within a radius of 

y miles of its home base); 

• number of transponders typically 

used in the 3.7–4.2 GHz band and extent 

of use on both the uplink and downlink; 

and 

• licensee/registrant and point of 

contact information. 

8. These data are needed to better 

understand the use of the band by 

temporary fixed or transportable 

operations. IBFS does not reflect the 

variations in the locations or 

intermittent use of such operations. This 

presents unique challenges for 

establishing a means of protecting 

temporary fixed or transportable 

operations against harmful interference. 

9. The Commission directs the 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, 

International Bureau, and Office of 

Engineering and Technology (the 

Bureaus) to issue a Public Notice that 

will: (1) Provide detailed instructions 

for earth station licensees or registrants 

to file certifications regarding existing 

information in IBFS; (2) establish a 

window for initial filings of 

certifications; and (3) outline the details 

for temporary fixed or transportable 

earth stations to submit the information 

requested above. Because the 

Commission may use these data to 

inform its deliberations regarding the 

future use of the 3.7–4.2 GHz band, 

including possible interference 

avoidance coordination or relocation of 

facilities, the Commission encourages 

FSS earth station operators to update 

their information in the event of a 

change in any of the operational 

parameters. 

10. Space Station Data.—In order to 

evaluate the potential for a flexible use 

allocation in the 3.7–4.2 GHz band and 

to determine how much spectrum could 

be made available, it is also necessary to 

evaluate the existing FSS downlink 

capacity of C-band satellites. This 

information will assist the Commission 

in determining whether there is 

sufficient capacity in the upper portion 

of the C-band to accommodate 

customers vacating transponders from 

the lower portion of the C-band. It will 

also allow the Commission to evaluate 

the feasibility of various transition 

proposals. 

11. Accordingly, operators with 

existing FSS space station licenses or 

grants of United States market access in 

the 3.7–4.2 GHz band shall provide the 

following information: 

• Satellite call sign, name, and orbital 

location; 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 161 / Monday, August 20, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 42045 

6The ‘‘most recent month’’ will be defined in the 

Bureaus’ forthcoming public notice and will be a 

month following release of this Order. 

7For purposes of this information collection, 

‘‘transponder number’’ refers to a standard 36 

megahertz wide transponder and that transponder 

numbering (1–24) is based on the former centerfrequency requirement for C-band space stations. 

See 47 CFR 25.211(a) (2014). While this rule is no 

longer in effect, most satellites providing service to 

the United States in the 3.7–4.2 GHz band are 

configured in accordance with the transponder plan 

described in the rule. 

8The information collected will provide 

comparative data of transponder usage over time 

and allow the Commission and the public to 

evaluate options for the future use of the 3.7–4.2 

GHz band. 

• expected end-of-life for satellite; 

• the approximate dates that any 

additional C-band satellites with a 

currently pending application in IBFS 

are planned for launch to serve the 

United States market (note whether this 

satellite is a replacement); 

• whether any additional C-band 

satellites that do not have a currently 

pending application in IBFS are 

planned for launch to serve the United 

States market and the approximate date 

of such launch (note whether this 

satellite is a replacement); 

• for each transponder operating in 

the 3.7–4.2 GHz range that is 

operational and legally authorized to 

serve customers in the United States, for 

the most recent month,6 provide the 

following: 

• the frequency range of transponder 

and transponder number; 7

• the capacity in terms of the number 

of megahertz on each transponder that 

are currently under contract (also 

provide this data for one month in 

2016); 8

• For each day in the most recent 

month, please provide the percentage of 

each transponder’s capacity (megahertz) 

utilized and the maximum capacity 

utilized on that day. (Parties should use 

the most recent month of data and 

provide the date range at which the data 

was collected; they may also 

supplement the data with historical 

trend data over recent months up to 

three years if they feel it displays 

utilization variances); 

• the center frequency and bandwidth 

of the Telemetry Tracking and 

Command beam(s); and 

• the call sign and geographic 

location (using NAD83 coordinates) of 

each TT&C receive site. 

12. The Commission will seek 

approval from the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) before the 

information collection becomes 

effective, and following OMB approval, 

the Commission will publish notice of 

the effective date of the information 

collection and filing deadline in the 

Federal Register. The Commission also 

directs the Bureaus to consider whether 

additional information should be 

collected from either FSS earth station 

operators or satellite licensees and to 

seek notice and comment regarding the 

need to initiate a second information 

collection if such additional information 

is necessary to supplement the 

information submitted in this 

proceeding. 

IV. Ordering Clauses 

13. It is further ordered that pursuant 

to section 4(i) of the Communications 

Act of 1934, as amended, that this Order 

is adopted effective upon publication in 

the Federal Register. This Order 

contains information collection 

requirements subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 that are not 

effective until approved by the Office of 

Management and Budget. 

14. It is further ordered that the notice 

of inquiry, GN Docket No. 17–183, 

Expanding Flexible Use in the Mid-Band 

Spectrum Between 3.7–24 GHz, adopted 

on August 3, 2017, is terminated as to 

the 3.7–4.2 GHz band. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene Dortch, 

Secretary, Office of the Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2018–17296 Filed 8–17–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 51 and 52 

[WC Docket Nos. 17–244, 13–97; FCC 18– 

95] 

Nationwide Number Portability; 

Numbering Policies for Modern 

Communications 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal 

Communications Commission 

(Commission) adopts final rules based 

on public comments to promote 

nationwide number portability. These 

rules eliminate unnecessary toll 

interexchange dialing parity 

requirements and database query 

requirements that may result in 

obstacles and inefficiencies in an 

eventual nationwide number portability 

regime. 

DATES: Effective September 19, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information about this 

proceeding, please contact Sherwin Siy, 

FCC Wireline Competition Bureau, 

Competition Policy Division, Room 5– 

C225, 445 12th St. SW, Washington, DC 

20554, (202) 418–2783, sherwin.siy@

fcc.gov. For additional information 

concerning the Paperwork Reduction 

Act information collection requirements 

contained in this document, send an 

email to PRA@fcc.gov or contact Nicole 

Ongele at (202) 418–2991. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Report 

and Order in WC Docket Nos. 17–244 

and 13–97; FCC 18–95, adopted July 12, 

2018 and released July 13, 2018. The 

full text of this document is available for 

public inspection during regular 

business hours in the FCC Reference 

Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th 

Street SW, Room CY–A257, Washington 

DC 20554. It is available on the 

Commission’s website at https://

docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC18-95A1.pdf. 

Synopsis 

I. Introduction 

1. The systems we use to make and 

route telephone calls are changing. With 

this Report and Order (Order), we set 

the stage for more efficient use of the 

telecommunications network and pave 

the way for nationwide number 

portability (NNP). We eliminate rules 

that were intended for a market that was 

divided along more static, segmented 

categories of telecommunications 

providers. Those rules are far less 

applicable to today’s more integrated 

providers and pricing plans, and the 

North American Numbering Council has 

identified them as barriers to the 

achievement of NNP. 

2. We forbear from the interexchange 

dialing parity requirements for 

competitive local exchange carriers 

(LECs), creating a more level playing 

field with the incumbent LECs who 

received forbearance from the 

interexchange dialing parity obligations 

in 2015, and ensuring that both 

categories of LECs will be able to route 

calls more efficiently in a future NNP 

environment. We also ease the 

requirement that the second-to-last 

carrier handling a call request query the 

local number portability database, 

allowing any carriers earlier in the chain 

to make the query if they so choose. 

This greater flexibility allows carriers in 

the call path to determine who is best 

placed to bear the costs of performing 

the query, and also ensures that any 

carrier—including originating carriers— 

can perform the query, a necessary step 

in certain NNP solutions. 

3. These changes will help set the 

stage for further progress towards 

implementation of number portability 


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