Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 40 / Tuesday, March 1, 2022 / Proposed Rules 11379 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to review by the Office of 

Management and Budget under 

Executive Orders12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, 

January 21, 2011); 

• Does not impose an information 

collection burden under the provisions 

of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

U.S.C. 3501 et seq.); 

• Is certified as not having a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601 et seq.); 

• Does not contain any unfunded 

mandate or significantly or uniquely 

affect small governments, as described 

in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4); 

• Does not have federalism 

implications as specified in Executive 

Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 

1999); 

• Is not an economically significant 

regulatory action based on health or 

safety risks subject to Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997); 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 

28355, May 22, 2001); 

• Is not subject to requirements of 

Section 12(d) of the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) because 

application of those requirements would 

be inconsistent with the Clean Air Act; 

and 

• Does not provide EPA with the 

discretionary authority to address, as 

appropriate, disproportionate human 

health or environmental effects, using 

practicable and legally permissible 

methods, under Executive Order 12898 

(59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). 

In addition, the SIP is not approved 

to apply on any Indian reservation land 

or in any other area where EPA or an 

Indian tribe has demonstrated that a 

tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of 

Indian country, the rule does not have 

tribal implications and will not impose 

substantial direct costs on tribal 

governments or preempt tribal law as 

specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 

FR 67249, November 9, 2000). 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 

Incorporation by reference, 

Intergovernmental relations, Lead, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate 

matter, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

Dated: February 18, 2022. 

David Cash, 

Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1. 

[FR Doc. 2022–04118 Filed 2–28–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 1 and 27 

[AU Docket No. 20–429; DA 22–171; FR ID 

73250] 

Revised Inventory for Auction of 

Flexible-Use Licenses in the 2.5 GHz 

Band; Comment Sought on Upfront 

Payments, Minimum Opening Bids, 

and Other Procedures for the Revised 

Inventory of Auction 108 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; proposed auction 

procedures. 

SUMMARY: The Office of Economics and 

Analytics and the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau seek 

comment on the application of 

procedures governing the conduct of 

Auction 108 in light of additions to the 

proposed license inventory for Auction 

108. 

DATES: Comments are due on or before 

March 4, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file 

comments in AU Docket No. 20–429. 

Comments may be filed using the 

Commission’s Electronic Comment 

Filing System (ECFS) or by filing paper 

copies. Interested parties are strongly 

encouraged to file comments 

electronically. 

• Electronic Filers: Comments may be 

filed electronically using the internet by 

accessing the ECFS at https://

www.fcc.gov/ecfs/. 

• Paper Filers: Parties who choose to 

file by paper must file an original and 

one copy of each filing. 

• Filings in response to the Public 

Notice can be sent by commercial 

courier or by first-class or overnight U.S. 

Postal Service mail. All filings must be 

addressed to the Commission’s 

Secretary, Office of the Secretary, 

Federal Communications Commission. 

• Commercial deliveries (other than 

U.S. Postal Service Express Mail and 

Priority Mail) must be sent to 9050 

Junction Dr., Annapolis Junction, MD 

20701. 

• U.S. Postal Service first-class, 

Express, or Priority mail must be 

addressed to 45 L Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20554. 

• Until further notice, the 

Commission no longer accepts any hand 

or messenger delivered filings. This is a 

temporary measure taken to help protect 

the health and safety of individuals, and 

to mitigate the transmission of COVID– 

19. 

• Email: Commenters are asked to 

also submit a copy of their comments 

and reply comments electronically to 

the following address: auction108@

fcc.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Auction Legal Questions: Daniel 

Habif, Lyndsey Grunewald or Scott 

Mackoul, (202) 418–0660. 

General Auction Questions: (717) 

338–2868. 

Auction Inventory Questions: John 

Schauble, (202) 418–0797. 

2.5 GHz Band Licensing Questions: 

Madelaine Maior, (202) 418–1466, or 

Nadja Sodos-Wallace, (202) 418–0955. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Auction 108 Revised 

Inventory Public Notice, AU Docket No. 

20–429, DA 22–171, adopted on 

February 18, 2022 and released on 

February 18, 2022. The complete text of 

the Auction 108 Revised Inventory 

Comment Public Notice is available on 

the Commission’s website at https://

www.fcc.gov/auction/108 or by using 

the search function for AU Docket No. 

20–429, DA 22–171, on the 

Commission’s Electronic Comment 

Filing System (ECFS) web page at 

www.fcc.gov/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). 

I. Introduction 

1. By the Auction 108 Revised 

Inventory Comment Public Notice, the 

Office of Economics and Analytics 

(OEA) and the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) 

seek further comment on the procedures 

governing to be used for Auction 108. 

Specifically, OEA and WTB seek 

comment on whether any procedures 

need to be adjusted for all the licenses 

available in Auction 108 in light of 

additions to the initial license 

inventory. OEA and WTB also seek 

comment on minimum opening bids 

and upfront payment amounts for the 

additional licenses. OEA and WTB have 

updated the listing of county and 

channel block combinations potentially 

available for Auction 108 to add or 

remove certain licenses, and that 

updated Attachment A file is available 

at www.fcc.gov/auction/108. 

2. On January 13, 2021, the 

Commission released the Auction 108 


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11380 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 40 / Tuesday, March 1, 2022 / Proposed Rules 

Comment Public Notice, 86 FR 12146, 

that sought comment on competitive 

bidding procedures and various other 

procedures to be used in Auction 108, 

in accordance with 47 U.S.C. 309(j)(3). 

That public notice also described the 

licenses to be offered in Auction 108 

and made available a file listing all 

county and channel block combinations 

potentially available for bidding in 

Auction 108. The Commission noted 

that the results of the Rural Tribal 

Priority Window would determine the 

final inventory, which would be 

released in advance of the deadline for 

the submission of short-form 

applications to bid in Auction 108. On 

February 9, 2022, OEA and WTB 

released the Auction 108 Further 

Comment Public Notice, 87 FR 8764, 

seeking comment on the use of a 

particular clock auction format for 

Auction 108. 

3. The Auction 108 Revised Inventory 

Comment Public Notice seeks focused 

input on whether any bidding 

procedures for Auction 108 as described 

in those previous public notices should 

be adjusted or modified in light of the 

additions to the auction inventory. The 

Auction 108 Revised Inventory 

Comment Public Notice proposes no 

changes to the proposed upfront 

payments, minimum opening bids, or 

other procedures from those described 

in the Auction 108 Comment Public 

Notice and the Auction 108 Further 

Comment Public Notice. In light of the 

limited scope of the Auction 108 

Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice and comments urging the 

Commission to move expeditiously to 

the start of bidding, OEA and WTB 

provide for a single round of comments 

by March 4, 2022, with no filing period 

for reply comments. A subsequent 

public notice will announce final 

procedures for Auction 108, including 

the procedures, terms, conditions, dates, 

and deadlines for applying to and 

participating in Auction 108, as well as 

provide an overview of the post-auction 

application and payment processes. An 

updated inventory for Auction 108 will 

be released prior to the short-form 

application deadline in Auction 108. 

II. Background on Revised Inventory 

4. In light of the comments and ex 

parte filings made in this proceeding 

raising issues concerning the accuracy 

of the inventory, WTB staff performed 

additional geographic information 

systems (GIS) analysis of existing 

licenses and prepared a new inventory 

based on license service area data 

extracted from the Universal Licensing 

System (ULS) on February 2, 2022. For 

purposes of this analysis, a channel 

block/county combination is considered 

unavailable, and is therefore not 

included in the inventory, if more than 

99.9999% of the area within the county 

is fully encumbered by an existing 

license for that channel block. In the 2.5 

GHz Report and Order, 84 FR 57343, the 

Commission determined that any 

remaining unassigned EBS spectrum 

will be made available for commercial 

use via competitive bidding. In order to 

identify unassigned spectrum, WTB has 

treated as encumbered any areas 

calculated to be at least 99.9999% 

encumbered to avoid computational 

errors found to have been attributable to 

rounding when calculating areas as part 

of its GIS analysis. As a result of this 

further analysis, and taking into account 

the information provided by 

commenters, OEA and WTB have added 

189 licenses in 130 counties and 

removed 370 licenses in 301 counties 

from the initial Auction 108 inventory. 

The majority of the changes to the 

inventory result from further review of 

the availability of the J guard band 

(2568–2572 MHz) in Channel Block 2 

and further analysis of how canceled, 

terminated, or expired licenses modified 

the geographic service areas of active 

licenses. 

5. In addition to reflecting further 

analysis of the incumbent licenses, the 

revised inventory also takes into 

account WTB’s actions in the Rural 

Tribal Priority Window. The 

Commission established the Rural 

Tribal Priority Window to provide 

federally-recognized tribes with an 

opportunity to submit applications to 

obtain unassigned 2.5 GHz spectrum in 

order to foster communications 

networks in rural Tribal areas. The 

Rural Tribal Priority Window opened on 

February 3, 2020, and closed on 

September 2, 2020. The revised 

inventory reflects licenses issued based 

upon Rural Tribal Priority Window 

applications acted on to date. This 

inventory does not take into account 

Rural Tribal Priority Window 

applications that are pending (i.e., 

counties that are requested in whole or 

in part by pending applications are 

included in this inventory). Potential 

bidders should be aware that there are 

counties that would become fully or 

partially encumbered if certain pending 

Rural Tribal Priority Window 

applications are granted. 

6. OEA and WTB remind each 

potential bidder that it is solely 

responsible for investigating and 

evaluating all technical and marketplace 

factors that may have a bearing on the 

potential uses of a license that it may 

seek in Auction 108, including the 

availability of unassigned white space 

in any particular market. In addition to 

the typical due diligence considerations 

encouraged of bidders in all auctions, 

OEA and WTB call particular attention 

in Auction 108 to potential 

encumbrances due to existing licenses 

and the Rural Tribal Priority Window 

issues, which may impact the licenses 

available in Auction 108. OEA and WTB 

note in particular that there will be a 

substantial number of licenses in 

inventory where the amount of 

unassigned area or frequency that is 

unassigned is very small. Each applicant 

should carefully consider these issues 

and the technical and economic 

implications for commercial use of the 

2.5 GHz band. The Commission makes 

no representations or warranties about 

the use of this spectrum for particular 

services, or about the information in 

Commission databases that is furnished 

by outside parties. Each applicant 

should be aware that a Commission 

auction represents an opportunity to 

become a Commission licensee, subject 

to certain conditions and regulations. 

This includes the established authority 

of the Commission to alter the terms of 

existing licenses by rulemaking, which 

is equally applicable to licenses 

awarded by auction. A Commission 

auction does not constitute an 

endorsement by the Commission of any 

particular service, technology, or 

product, nor does a Commission license 

constitute a guarantee of business 

success. 

III. Further Comment Sought on 

Bidding Procedures 

7. The Auction 108 Comment Public 

Notice and the Auction 108 Further 

Comment Public Notice sought on 

procedures for Auction 108, including: 

Auction format; bidding credits for 

eligible small businesses and rural 

service providers; bidding credit caps; 

upfront payments and bidding 

eligibility; minimum opening bids and 

reserve prices; activity rules; activity 

rule waivers and reducing eligibility; 

and information procedures during the 

auction. In the Auction 108 Revised 

Inventory Comment Public Notice, OEA 

and WTB seek comment on whether 

these procedures need to be adjusted for 

all licenses in Auction 108 in light of 

additions to the initial license 

inventory. OEA and WTB also seek 

comment on minimum opening bids 

and upfront payment amounts for the 

additional licenses in the Auction 108 

inventory 

8. Digital Equity and Inclusion. As 

part of the Commission’s continuing 

effort to advance digital equity for all, 

including people of color and others 

who have been historically underserved, 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 40 / Tuesday, March 1, 2022 / Proposed Rules 11381 

marginalized, and adversely affected by 

persistent poverty and inequality, OEA 

and WTB invite comment on any 

equity-related considerations and 

benefits (if any) that may be associated 

with the issues discussed in the Auction 

108 Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice. Specifically, OEA and WTB seek 

comment on how any bidding 

procedures for Auction 108 as applied 

to the new licenses included in the 

revised inventory may promote or 

inhibit advances in diversity, equity, 

inclusion, and accessibility. 

IV. Procedural Matters 

A. Third Supplemental Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

9. As required by the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended, 

OEA and WTB prepared a Third 

Supplemental Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis (Third 

Supplemental IRFA) of the possible 

significant economic impact on small 

entities of the policies and rules 

addressed in the Auction 108 Revised 

Inventory Comment Public Notice to 

supplement the Regulatory Flexibility 

Analyses completed in the 2.5 GHz 

Report and Order, Auction 108 

Comment Public Notice, Auction 108 

Further Comment Public Notice, and 

other Commission orders pursuant to 

which Auction 108 will be conducted. 

Written public comments are requested 

on the Third Supplemental IRFA. 

Comments must be identified as 

responses to the Third Supplemental 

IRFA and must be filed by the same 

deadline for comments specified on the 

first page of the Auction 108 Revised 

Inventory Comment Public Notice. OEA 

and WTB will send a copy of the 

Auction 108 Revised Inventory 

Comment Public Notice, including the 

Third Supplemental IRFA, to the Chief 

Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration (SBA). In 

addition, the Auction 108 Revised 

Inventory Comment Public Notice and 

Third Supplemental IRFA (or 

summaries thereof) will be published in 

the Federal Register. 

10. Need for, and Objectives of, the 

Proposed Rules. The Auction 108 

Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice seeks comment on certain 

procedural rules that may be affected by 

the new licenses included in the revised 

inventory for Auction 108, which will 

auction geographic overlay licenses of 

unlicensed spectrum in the 2.5 GHz 

band (2496–2690 MHz). This process is 

intended to provide notice of and 

adequate time for potential applicants to 

comment on these auction procedures. 

To promote the efficient and fair 

administration of the competitive 

bidding process for all Auction 108 

participants, the Auction 108 Revised 

Inventory Comment Public Notice seeks 

comment on the application of auction 

procedures detailed in the Auction 108 

Comment Public Notice and the Auction 

108 Further Comment Public Notice to 

the new licenses included in the revised 

inventory. 

11. The procedures for the conduct of 

Auction 108 on which the Auction 108 

Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice seeks comment constitute the 

more specific implementation of the 

competitive bidding rules contemplated 

by 47 CFR parts 1 and 27, the 2.5 GHz 

Report and Order, and relevant 

competitive bidding orders, and are 

fully consistent therewith. 

12. Legal Basis. The Commission’s 

statutory obligations to small businesses 

under the Communications Act of 1934, 

as amended, are found in 47 U.S.C. 

309(j)(3)(B) and 309(j)(4)(D). The 

statutory basis for the Commission’s 

competitive bidding rules is found in 

various provisions of the 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, including 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 

301, 302, 303(e), 303(f), 303(r), 304, 307, 

and 309(j). The Commission has 

established a framework of competitive 

bidding rules, updated most recently in 

2015, pursuant to which it has 

conducted auctions since the inception 

of the auctions program in 1994 and 

would conduct Auction 108. 

13. Description and Estimate of the 

Number of Small Entities to Which the 

Proposed Rules Will Apply. The RFA 

directs agencies to provide a description 

of, and, where feasible, an estimate of 

the number of small entities that may be 

affected by the proposed rules and 

policies, if adopted. The RFA generally 

defines the term small entity as having 

the same meaning as the terms small 

business, small organization, and small 

governmental jurisdiction. In addition, 

the term small business has the same 

meaning as the term small business 

concern under the Small Business Act. 

A small business concern is one which: 

(1) Is independently owned and 

operated; (2) is not dominant in its field 

of operation; and (3) satisfies any 

additional criteria established by the 

SBA. 

14. As noted above, Regulatory 

Flexibility Analyses were incorporated 

into the 2.5 GHz Report and Order, the 

Auction 108 Comment Public Notice, 

and the Auction 108 Further Comment 

Public Notice. Those analyses described 

in detail the small entities that might be 

significantly affected. In the Auction 

108 Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice, OEA and WTB hereby 

incorporate by reference the 

descriptions and estimates of the 

number of small entities from the 

previous Regulatory Flexibility 

Analyses in the 2.5 GHz Report and 

Order, the Auction 108 Comment Public 

Notice, and the Auction 108 Further 

Comment Public Notice. 

15. Description of Projected 

Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other 

Compliance Requirements for Small 

Entities. OEA and WTB do not expect 

the processes and procedures described 

in the Auction 108 Revised Inventory 

Comment Public Notice will require 

small entities to hire attorneys, 

engineers, consultants, or other 

professionals to participate in Auction 

108 and comply with the procedures 

ultimately established because of the 

information, resources, and guidance 

the Commission makes available to 

potential and actual participants. For 

example, OEA intends to make 

information on the bidding system 

available and offer demonstrations and 

other educational opportunities for 

applicants in Auction 108 to familiarize 

themselves with the FCC auction 

application system and the auction 

bidding system, consistent with the 

previously detailed bidding procedures 

that may be affected by new licenses 

added to the inventory as described in 

the Auction 108 Revised Inventory 

Comment Public Notice. By providing 

these resources as well as the resources 

discussed below, OEA and WTB expect 

small entities that use the available 

resources to experience lower 

participation and compliance costs. 

Nevertheless, while WTB and OEA 

cannot quantify the cost of compliance 

with the procedures on which they seek 

comment, they do not believe that the 

costs of compliance will unduly burden 

small entities that choose to participate 

in the auction because the procedures 

for Auction 108 on which the Auction 

108 Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice seeks comment are similar in 

many respects to the procedures in 

recent spectrum auctions conducted by 

the Commission. 

16. Steps Taken to Minimize the 

Significant Economic Impact on Small 

Entities, and Significant Alternatives 

Considered. The RFA requires an 

agency to describe any significant, 

specifically small business, alternatives 

that it has considered in reaching its 

proposed approach, which may include 

the following four alternatives (among 

others): (1) The establishment of 

differing compliance or reporting 

requirements or timetables that take into 

account the resources available to small 

entities; (2) the clarification, 

consolidation, or simplification of 


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11382 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 40 / Tuesday, March 1, 2022 / Proposed Rules 

compliance and reporting requirements 

under the rule for such small entities; 

(3) the use of performance rather than 

design standards; and (4) an exemption 

from coverage of the rule, or any part 

thereof, for such small entities. 

17. OEA and WTB have taken steps to 

minimize any economic impact of the 

auction procedures on small entities 

through, among other things, the 

Commission’s potential use of 

previously detailed auction procedures 

under the revised inventory. The 

Commission received comments noting 

discrepancies in the initial Auction 108 

inventory that the Commission released 

with the Auction 108 Comment Pubic 

Notice. The revised inventory will allow 

all interested parties, including small 

entities, to further evaluate the potential 

procedures for Auction 108 in light of 

the new licenses included in the revised 

inventory and provide small entities 

with information about the available 

licenses essential to conducting their 

own due diligence. 

18. OEA and WTB have also taken 

steps to minimize any economic impact 

of the auction procedures on small 

entities through, among other things, the 

many resources the Commission 

provides potential auction participants. 

These resources, which are described in 

detail in the Supplemental IRFA 

incorporated into the Auction 108 

Comment Public Notice are provided at 

no cost and include, for example, access 

to an FCC Auctions Hotline for 

information about the auction process 

and procedures; an FCC Auctions 

Technical Support Hotline for technical 

assistance on issues such as access to or 

navigation within the electronic FCC 

Form 175 and use of the FCC’s auction 

bidding system; a web-based, interactive 

online tutorial produced by Commission 

staff to familiarize applicants with 

auction procedures, filing requirements, 

bidding procedures, and other matters 

related to an auction; the opportunity to 

participate in a mock auction; and the 

opportunity to participate in Auction 

108 electronically via the internet. 

Additionally, eligible small businesses 

and rural service providers will be able 

to participate in the bidding credit 

program for Auction 108, which may 

lower their relative costs of 

participation. In the Auction 108 

Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice, OEA and WTB incorporate by 

reference the description of the 

additional steps taken to minimize the 

significant economic impact on small 

entities, and significant alternatives 

considered, from the Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis in the Auction 108 

Comment Public Notice and Auction 

108 Further Comment Public Notice. 

19. These procedures for the conduct 

of Auction 108 on which the Auction 

108 Revised Inventory Comment Public 

Notice seeks comment constitute the 

more specific implementation of the 

competitive bidding rules contemplated 

by 47 CFR parts 1 and 27, the 2.5 GHz 

Report and Order, and relevant 

competitive bidding orders, and are 

fully consistent therewith. 

20. Federal Rules that May Duplicate, 

Overlap, or Conflict with the Proposed 

Rules. None. 

B. Deadlines and Filing Procedures 

21. Pursuant to 47 CFR 1.415(d) and 

1.419, interested parties may file 

comments on or before the date 

indicated on the first page of the 

Auction 108 Revised Inventory 

Comment Public Notice, in AU Docket 

No. 20–429. Comments may be filed 

using the Commission’s Electronic 

Comment Filing System (ECFS) or by 

filing paper copies. 

22. Ex Parte Requirements. This 

proceeding has been designated as a 

permit-but-disclose proceeding in 

accordance with the Commission’s ex 

parte rules. Persons making oral ex parte 

presentations must file a copy of any 

written presentations or memoranda 

summarizing any oral presentation 

within two business days after the 

presentation (unless a different deadline 

applicable to the Sunshine Period 

applies). Persons making oral ex parte 

presentations are reminded that 

memoranda summarizing the 

presentations must (1) list all persons 

attending or otherwise participating in 

the meeting at which the ex parte 

presentation was made, and (2) 

summarize all data presented and 

arguments made during the 

presentation. If the presentation 

consisted in whole or in part of the 

presentation of data or arguments 

already reflected in the presenter’s 

written comments, memoranda, or other 

filings in the proceeding, the presenter 

may provide citations to such data or 

arguments in his or her prior comments, 

memoranda, or other filings (specifying 

the relevant page and/or paragraph 

numbers where such data or arguments 

can be found) in lieu of summarizing 

them in the memorandum. Documents 

shown or given to the Commission staff 

during ex parte meetings are deemed to 

be written ex parte presentations and 

must be filed consistent with 47 CFR 

1.1206(b). In proceedings governed by 

47 CFR 1.49(f) or for which the 

Commission has made available a 

method of electronic filing, written ex 

parte presentations and memoranda 

summarizing oral ex parte 

presentations, and all attachments 

thereto, must be filed through the 

electronic comment filing system 

available for that proceeding, and must 

be filed in their native format (e.g., .doc, 

.xml, .ppt, searchable .pdf). Participants 

in this proceeding should familiarize 

themselves with the Commission’s ex 

parte rules. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

William Huber, 

Associate Chief, Auctions Division, Office of 

Economics and Analytics. 

[FR Doc. 2022–04006 Filed 2–28–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 660 

[Docket No. 220204–0040] 

RIN 0648–BH70 

Fisheries off West Coast States; 

Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; 

Electronic Monitoring Program 

Regulations for Bottom Trawl and NonWhiting Midwater Trawl Vessels 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: This proposed rule would 

implement electronic monitoring (EM) 

program regulations for vessels using 

groundfish bottom trawl and nonwhiting midwater trawl gear in the 

Pacific Coast Groundfish Trawl Catch 

Share Program. The proposed action 

would allow vessels using bottom trawl 

and non-whiting midwater trawl gear to 

use EM in place of human observers to 

meet requirements for 100 percent at-sea 

catch monitoring. The proposed action 

is intended to increase operational 

flexibility and reduce monitoring costs 

for vessels in the groundfish trawl 

fishery. The proposed rule would also 

revise some existing regulations for EM 

vessels and EM service providers to 

clarify and streamline EM program 

requirements. 

DATES: Comments on this proposed rule 

must be received no later than March 

31, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on this document, identified by NOAA– 

NMFS–2021–0127 by any of the 

following methods: 

• Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 


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