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###### Federal Communications Commission

# AGENCY:

Federal Communications Commission.

# ACTION:

Notice and request for comments.

# SUMMARY:

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burdens, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the following information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995. An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid 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 control number. Comments are requested concerning (a) 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; (b) the accuracy of the Commission's burden estimate; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; (d) 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 (e) ways to further reduce the information collection burden on small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees.

The FCC may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid 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 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.

# DATES:

Written comments should be submitted on or before April 13, 2012. 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 contacts below as soon as possible.

# ADDRESSES:

                        Direct all PRA comments to Nicholas A. Fraser, OMB, via fax 202-395-5167, or via email                         *Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov;*                         and to Cathy Williams, FCC, via email                         *PRA@fcc.gov*                         <mailto:PRA@fcc.gov> and to                         *Cathy.Williams@fcc.gov.*                         Include in the comments the OMB control number as shown in the “Supplementary Information” section below.                    

# FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

                        For additional information or copies of the information collection, contact Cathy Williams at (202) 418-2918. To view a copy of this information collection request (ICR) submitted to OMB: (1) Go to the Web page <                        *http://www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain*                        >, (2) look for the section of the Web page called “Currently Under Review,” (3) click on the downward-pointing arrow in the “Select Agency” box below the “Currently Under Review” heading, (4) select “Federal Communications Commission” from the list of agencies presented in the “Select Agency” box, (5) click the “Submit” button to the right of the “Select Agency” box, (6) when the list of FCC ICRs currently under review appears, look for the OMB control number of this ICR and then click on the ICR Reference Number. A copy of the FCC submission to OMB will be displayed.                    

# SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

*OMB Control Number:*                     3060-0027.                

*Title:*                     Application for Construction Permit for Commercial Broadcast Station, FCC Form 301.                

*Form Number:*                     FCC Form 301.                

*Type of Review:*                     Revision of a currently approved collection.                

*Respondents:*                     Business and other for-profit entities; Not for profit entities; State, local or Tribal governments.                

*Number of Respondents and Responses:*                     4,604 respondents and 8,040 responses.                

*Estimated Time per Response:*                     1-6.25 hours.                

*Frequency of Response:*                     On occasion reporting requirement; Third party disclosure requirement.                

*Total Annual Burden:*                     20,497 hours.                

*Total Annual Costs:*                     $90,659,382.                

*Obligation to Respond:*                     Required to obtain or retain benefits. The statutory authority for this collection of information is contained in Sections 154(i), 303 and 308 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.                 

*Nature and Extent of Confidentiality:*                     There is no need for confidentiality with this collection of information.                

*Privacy Impact Assessment(s):*                     No impact(s).                

*Needs and Uses:*                     On January 28, 2010, the Commission adopted a First Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“First R&O”) in MB Docket No. 09-52, FCC 10-24. To enhance the ability of federally recognized Native American Tribes to provide vital radio services to their citizens on Tribal lands, in the First R&O the Commission established a Tribal Priority for use in its radio licensing procedures. On March 3, 2011, the Commission adopted a Second Report and Order (“Second R&O”), First Order on Reconsideration, and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making in MB Docket No. 09-52, FCC 11-28. On December 28, 2011, the Commission adopted a Third Report and Order in MB Docket No. 09-52, FCC 11-190 (“Third R&O”). In the Third R&O the Commission further refined the use of the Tribal Priority in the commercial FM context, specifically adopting a “threshold qualifications” approach to commercial FM application processing.                

                    In the commercial FM context, the Tribal Priority is applied at the allotment stage of the licensing process. A Tribe or Tribal entity initiates the process by petitioning that a new Tribal Allotment be added to the FM Table of Allotments using the Tribal Priority. A petitioner seeking to add a Tribal Allotment to the FM Table of Allotments, like all other FM allotment proponents, must file FCC Form 301 when submitting its Petition for Rule Making. Under the new “threshold qualification” procedures adopted in the Third R&O, once a Tribal Allotment has been successfully added to the FM Table of Allotments using the Tribal Priority through an FM allocations rulemaking, the Commission will announce by Public Notice a Threshold Qualifications Window (“TQ Window”). During the TQ Window, any Tribe or Tribal entity that could qualify to add that particular Tribal Allotment may file an FCC Form 301 application for that Tribal Allotment. Such an                           ( print page 15106)                        applicant must demonstrate that it meets all of the eligibility criteria for the Tribal Priority, just as the original Tribal Allotment proponent did at the allotment stage. If it wishes its previously filed Form 301 application to be considered at this stage, then during the TQ Window the original Tribal Allotment proponent must submit notice to process its pending Form 301 application immediately.                

If only one acceptable application is filed during the TQ Window, whether by the original Tribal allotment proponent submitting notification to process its previously filed Form 301, or by another qualified applicant, that application will be promptly processed and the Tribal Allotment will not be auctioned. In the event that two or more acceptable applications are filed during the TQ Window, the Commission will announce a limited period in which the parties may negotiate a settlement or bona fide merger, as a way of resolving the mutual exclusivity between their applications. If a settlement or merger is reached, the parties must notify the Commission and the staff will process the surviving application pursuant to the settlement or merger. If a settlement cannot be reached among the mutually exclusive applicants, the Tribal Allotment will be auctioned during the next scheduled FM auction. At that time, only the applicants whose applications were accepted for filing during the TQ Window, as well as the original Tribal Allotment proponent, will be permitted to bid on that particular Tribal Allotment. This closed group of mutually exclusive TQ Window applicants must comply with applicable established auction procedures.

In the event that no qualifying party applies during the TQ Window, and the original Tribal allotment proponent requests that its pending Form 301 application not be immediately processed, the Tribal Allotment will be placed in a queue to be auctioned in the normal course for vacant FM allotments. When the Tribal Allotment is offered at auction for the first time, only applicants meeting the “threshold qualifications” may specify that particular Tribal Allotment on FCC Form 175, Application to Participate in an FCC Auction (OMB Control No. 3060-0600). Should no qualifying party apply to bid or qualify to bid on a Tribal Allotment in the first auction in which it is offered, then the Tribal allotment will be offered in a subsequent auction and any applicant, whether or not a Tribal entity, may apply for the Tribal Allotment.

Consistent with actions taken by the Commission in the Third R&O, Form 301 has been revised to accommodate applicants applying in a TQ Window for a Tribal Allotment. As noted above, an applicant applying in the TQ Window, who was not the original proponent of the Tribal Allotment at the rulemaking stage, must demonstrate that it would have qualified in all respects to add the particular Tribal Allotment for which it is applying. Form 301 contains a new question in Section II-Legal titled “Tribal Priority-Threshold Qualifications.” An applicant answering “yes” to the question must provide an Exhibit demonstrating that it meets all of the Tribal Priority eligibility criteria. The Instructions for the Form 301 have been revised to assist applicants with completing the responsive Exhibit.

In addition, Form 301 contains a new option under Section I-General Information-Application Purpose, titled “New Station with Petition for Rulemaking to Amend FM Table of Allotments using Tribal Priority.” A petitioner seeking to add a Tribal Allotment to the FM Table of Allotments must file Form 301 when submitting its Petition for Rule Making. This new Application Purpose field will assist the staff in quickly identifying Form 301 applications filed in connection with a petition to add a Tribal Allotment and initiating the “threshold qualification” procedures.

This information collection is being revised to accommodate applicants applying in a Threshold Qualifications Window for a Tribal Allotment that had been added to the FM Table of Allotments using the Tribal Priority under the new “threshold qualifications” procedures adopted in the Third R&O.

*OMB Control Number:*                     3060-0249.                

*Title:*                     Sections 74.781, 74.1281 and 78.69, Station Records.                

*Form Number:*                     N/A.                

*Type of Review:*                     Extension of a currently approved collection.                

*Respondents:*                     Business and other for-profit entities; Not-for-profit institutions; State, Federal or Tribal Governments.                

*Number of Respondents and Responses:*                     13,811 respondents; 20,724 responses.                

*Estimated Time per Response:*.375 hour-1 hour.                

*Frequency of Response:*                     Recordkeeping requirement.                

*Total Annual Burden:*                     11,726 hours.                

*Total Annual Costs:*                     $8,295,600.                

*Obligation To Respond:*                     Required to obtain or retain benefits. The statutory authority for this collection of information is contained in Section 154(i) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.                

*Nature and Extent of Confidentiality:*                     There is no need for confidentiality with this collection of information.                

*Privacy Impact Assessment(s):*                     No impact(s).                

*Needs and Uses:*47 CFR 74.781 requires the following:                

(a) The licensee of a low power TV, TV translator, or TV booster station shall maintain adequate station records, including the current instrument of authorization, official correspondence with the FCC, contracts, permission for rebroadcasts, and other pertinent documents.

(b) Entries required by § 17.49 of this Chapter concerning any observed or otherwise known extinguishment or improper functioning of a tower light:

(1) The nature of such extinguishment or improper functioning.

(2) The date and time the extinguishment or improper operation was observed or otherwise noted.

(3) The date, time and nature of adjustments, repairs or replacements made.

(c) The station records shall be maintained for inspection at a residence, office, or public building, place of business, or other suitable place, in one of the communities of license of the translator or booster, except that the station records of a booster or translator licensed to the licensee of the primary station may be kept at the same place where the primary station records are kept. The name of the person keeping station records, together with the address of the place where the records are kept, shall be posted in accordance with § 74.765(c) of the rules. The station records shall be made available upon request to any authorized representative of the Commission.

(d) Station logs and records shall be retained for a period of two years.

47 CFR 74.1281 requires the following:

(a) The licensee of a station authorized under this Subpart shall maintain adequate station records, including the current instrument of authorization, official correspondence with the FCC, maintenance records, contracts, permission for rebroadcasts, and other pertinent documents.

(b) Entries required by § 17.49 of this chapter concerning any observed or otherwise known extinguishment or improper functioning of a tower light:

(1) The nature of such extinguishment or improper functioning.

                    (2) The date and time the extinguishment of improper operation was observed or otherwise noted.                          ( print page 15107)    

(3) The date, time and nature of adjustments, repairs or replacements made.

(c) The station records shall be maintained for inspection at a residence, office, or public building, place of business, or other suitable place, in one of the communities of license of the translator or booster, except that the station records of a booster or translator licensed to the licensee of the primary station may be kept at the same place where the primary station records are kept. The name of the person keeping station records, together with the address of the place where the records are kept, shall be posted in accordance with § 74.1265(b) of the rules. The station records shall be made available upon request to any authorized representative of the Commission.

(d) Station logs and records shall be retained for a period of two years.

47 CFR 78.69 requires each licensee of a CARS station shall maintain records showing the following:

(a) For all attended or remotely controlled stations, the date and time of the beginning and end of each period of transmission of each channel;

(b) For all stations, the date and time of any unscheduled interruptions to the transmissions of the station, the duration of such interruptions, and the causes thereof;

(c) For all stations, the results and dates of the frequency measurements made pursuant to § 78.113 and the name of the person or persons making the measurements;

(d) For all stations, when service or maintenance duties are performed, which may affect a station's proper operation, the responsible operator shall sign and date an entry in the station's records, giving:

(1) Pertinent details of all transmitter adjustments performed by the operator or under the operator's supervision.

(e) When a station in this service has an antenna structure which is required to be illuminated, appropriate entries shall be made as follows:

(1) The time the tower lights are turned on and off each day, if manually controlled.

(2) The time the daily check of proper operation of the tower lights was made, if an automatic alarm system is not employed.

(3) In the event of any observed or otherwise known failure of a tower light:

(i) Nature of such failure.

(ii) Date and time the failure was observed or otherwise noted.

(iii) Date, time, and nature of the adjustments, repairs, or replacements made.

(iv) Identification of Flight Service Station (Federal Aviation Administration) notified of the failure of any code or rotating beacon light not corrected within 30 minutes, and the date and time such notice was given.

(v) Date and time notice was given to the Flight Service Station (Federal Aviation Administration) that the required illumination was resumed.

(4) Upon completion of the 3-month periodic inspection required by § 78.63(c):

(i) The date of the inspection and the condition of all tower lights and associated tower lighting control devices, indicators, and alarm systems.

(ii) Any adjustments, replacements, or repairs made to insure compliance with the lighting requirements and the date such adjustments, replacements, or repairs were made.

(f) For all stations, station record entries shall be made in an orderly and legible manner by the person or persons competent to do so, having actual knowledge of the facts required, who shall sign the station record when starting duty and again when going off duty.

(g) For all stations, no station record or portion thereof shall be erased, obliterated, or willfully destroyed within the period of retention required by rule. Any necessary correction may be made only by the person who made the original entry who shall strike out the erroneous portion, initial the correction made, and show the date the correction was made.

(h) For all stations, station records shall be retained for a period of not less than 2 years. The Commission reserves the right to order retention of station records for a longer period of time. In cases where the licensee or permittee has notice of any claim or complaint, the station record shall be retained until such claim or complaint has been fully satisfied or until the same has been barred by statute limiting the time for filing of suits upon such claims.

*OMB Control Number:*                     3060-0716.                

*Title:*                     Sections 73.88, 73.318, 73.685 and 73.1630, Blanketing Interference.                

*Form Number:*                     N/A.                

*Type of Review:*                     Extension of a currently approved collection.                

*Respondents:*                     Business or other for-profit entities; and Not-for-profit institutions.                

*Number of Respondents and Responses:*                     21,000 respondents; 21,000 responses.                

*Estimated Time per Response:*                     1 to 2 hours.                

*Frequency of Response:*                     Third party disclosure requirement.                

*Total Annual Burden:*                     41,000 hours.                

*Total Annual Costs:*                     None.                

*Obligation To Respond:*                     Required to obtain or retain benefits. The statutory authority for this collection of information is contained in Section 154(i) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.                

*Nature and Extend of Confidentiality:*                     There is no need for confidentiality with this collection of information.                

*Privacy Impact Assessment(s):*                     No impact(s).                

*Needs and Uses:*47 CFR 73.88 states that the licensee of each broadcast station is required to satisfy all reasonable complaints of blanketing interference within the 1 V/m contour.                

47 CFR 73.318(b) states that after January 1, 1985, permittees or licensees who either (1) commence program tests, (2) replace the antennas, or (3) request facilities modifications and are issued a new construction permit must satisfy all complaints of blanketing interference which are received by the station during a one year period.

47 CFR 73.318(c) states that a permittee collocating with one or more existing stations and beginning program tests on or after January 1, 1985, must assume full financial responsibility for remedying new complaints of blanketing interference for a period of one year.

Under 47 CFR 73.88, and 73.685(d), the license is financially responsible for resolving complaints of interference within one year of program test authority when certain conditions are met. After the first year, a license is only required to provide technical assistance to determine the cause of interference. The FCC has an outstanding Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in MM Docket No. 96-62, In the Matter of Amendment of Part 73 of the Commission's Rules to More Effectively Resolve Broadcast Blanketing Interference, Including Interference to Consumer Electronics and Other Communications Devices. The NPRM has proposed to provide detailed clarification of the AM, FM, and TV licensee's responsibilities in resolving/eliminating blanketing interference caused by their individual stations. The NPRM has also proposed to consolidate all blanketing interference rules under a new section 47 CFR 73.1630, “Blanketing Interference.” This new rule has been designed to facilitate the resolution of broadcast interference problems and set forth all responsibilities of the licensee/permittee of a broadcast station. To date, final rules have not been adopted.

      ( print page 15108)    
Federal Communications Commission.

Marlene H. Dortch,

Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Office of Managing Director.

[FR Doc. 2012-6063 Filed 3-13-12; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6712-01-P