[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 110 (Tuesday, June 9, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Page 31479]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-15304]



[[Page 31479]]

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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is soliciting public 
comments on the proposed extension of Paperwork Reduction Act 
clearances for information collection requirements contained in its 
regulations under the Comprehensive Smokeless Tobacco Health Education 
Act of 1986 (``Smokeless Tobacco Act'' or the ``Act''). The Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) clearance expires on August 31, 1998. The 
FTC proposes that OMB extend its approval for the regulation an 
additional three years through August 31, 2001. The proposed 
information collection requirements described below will be submitted 
to OMB for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 10, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Gary M. Greenfield, Office of the 
General Counsel, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, D.C. 20580, 
(202) 326-2753. All comments should be identified as responding to this 
notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or copies of the proposed 
information requirements should be addressed to Nancy Warder, Attorney, 
Division of Advertising Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 
Federal Trade Commission, Washington, D.C. 20580, (202) 326-3048.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), Federal agencies must obtain approval from 
OMB for each collection of information they conduct or sponsor. 
``Collection of information'' is defined in 44 U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 
1320.3(c) and includes agency request or requirements that members of 
the public submit reports, keep records, or provide information to a 
third party. As required by section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC 
is providing this opportunity for public comment before requesting that 
OMB extend the existing paperwork clearance for the regulations under 
the Comprehensive Smokeless Tobacco Health Education Act of 1987 (OMB 
Control Number 3084-0082).
    The FTC invites comments on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who 
are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses. The FTC will submit the proposed information 
collection requirements to OMB for review, as required by the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended).
    Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The 
Smokeless Tobacco Act, 15 U.S.C. 4401-4408, requires, among other 
things, that manufacturers, packagers, and importers of smokeless 
tobacco products include health warnings on packages and in 
advertisements. The Act also requires that each manufacturer, packager, 
and importer of smokeless tobacco products submit a plan to the 
Commission specifying the method to rotate, display, and distribute the 
warning statement required to appear in advertising and labeling. The 
Commission is required to determine that these plans provide for 
rotation, display, and distribution of warnings in compliance with the 
Act and implementing regulations. All the affected companies have 
previously filed plans, but the plan submission requirement continues 
to apply to a company that amends its plan, or to a new company that 
enters the market.
    Estimate of information collection annual hourly burden: 1,000 
hours (rounded). The FTC is reducing the estimated burden for fourteen 
smokeless tobacco companies to prepare and submit amended compliance 
plans from the current estimate of 2,000 hours to 1,000 hours, rounded 
up from 560. Staff believes the reduced estimate is conservative. Prior 
burden estimates were based on companies' experience preparing and 
filing their initial plans. At this stage, however, all affected 
companies having long ago filed their plans with the Commission (there 
have been no entrants to the industry since 1986). Additional annual 
reporting burdens would occur only if these companies opt to change the 
way they display the warnings required by the Smokeless Tobacco Act.
    Although it is not possible to predict whether any of these 
companies will seek to amend an existing approved plan (and possibly 
none will), staff conservatively assumes that each company will file 
one amendment per year. This estimate is conservative because, over the 
past three years, only one company has submitted an amendment to its 
plan, excepting required amendments regarding the display of the 
warnings on point-of-sale and non-point-of-sale promotional items that 
were included as annual hours in the prior submission pursuant to the 
Paperwork Reduction Act. This amendment required only 40 hours to 
prepare, which is considerably less time than individual companies' 
preparation of their initial plans. Commission staff believes it 
reasonable to assume that each company would consume approximately that 
amount of time to prepare an amended plan. Based on these assumptions, 
the total annual hourly burden should not exceed 1,000 hours (14 
companies X 40 hrs. each, rounded to the nearest thousand).
    Estimate of information collection annual cost burden: none. The 
Commission knows of no annual recodkeeping cost burden associated with 
the plans for the display of the warnings. After the Commission 
approves the plan for the display of the warnings required by the 
Smokeless Tobacco Act, the companies are required to make additional 
submissions to the Commission only if there is a change in the way that 
they choose to display the warnings. Once the companies have prepared 
plates to print the required warnings on their labels, there are no 
additional set-up costs associated with the display of the warnings in 
labeling. Similarly, once the companies have prepared acetates of the 
required warnings for advertising and promotional materials, there are 
no additional set-up costs associated with printing the warnings in 
those materials. These set-up costs were incurred prior to October 1, 
1995.
Debra A. Valentine,
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 98-15304 Filed 6-8-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-M