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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 17 (Tuesday, January 28, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8296-8298]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-01778]

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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: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) is seeking public 
comment on its proposal to extend for an additional three years the 
Office of Management and Budget clearance for information collection 
requirements contained in the Alternative Fuels Rule (Rule). This 
clearance expires on April 30, 2025.

DATES: Comments must be filed by March 31, 2025.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper, by 
following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ``Alternative Fuels 
Rule, PRA Comment, P085405,'' on your comment, and file your comment 
online at https://www.regulations.gov by following the instructions on 
the web-based form. If you prefer to file your comment on paper, mail 
your comment to the following address: Federal Trade

[[Page 8297]]

Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 
CC-5610 (Annex J), Washington, DC 20580.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hong Park, Attorney, Division of 
Enforcement, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, 
(202) 326-2158, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title of Collection: Labeling Requirements for Alternative Fuels 
and Alternative Fueled Vehicles (Alternative Fuels Rule), 16 CFR part 
309.
    OMB Control No.: 3084-0094.
    Type of Review: Extension without change of currently approved 
collection.
    Affected Public: Private Sector: Businesses and other for-profit 
entities.
    Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 2,900 hours.
    Estimated Annual Labor Costs: $103,337.
    Non-Labor Costs: $1,350.

Abstract

    The Energy Policy Act of 1992 established federal programs to 
encourage the development of alternative fuels and alternative fueled 
vehicles (AFVs). Section 406(a) of the Act directed the Commission to 
establish uniform labeling requirements for alternative fuels and AFVs. 
42 U.S.C. 13232(a). Such labels must provide ``appropriate information 
with respect to costs and benefits [of alternative fuels and AFVs], so 
as to reasonably enable the consumer to make choices and comparisons.'' 
The required labels must be ``simple and, where appropriate, 
consolidated with other labels providing information to the consumer.''
    Pursuant to the Act, the Commission published the Alternative Fuels 
Rule in 1995, and the Rule was later amended in 2013.\1\ The Rule 
requires disclosure of specific information on labels posted on fuel 
dispensers for non-liquid alternative fuels. To ensure the accuracy of 
these disclosures, the Rule also requires that sellers maintain records 
substantiating product-specific disclosures they include on these 
labels. In addition, the Rule requires that distributors of non-liquid 
alternative vehicle fuel provide certifications of the fuel rating in 
each transfer to anyone who is not a consumer.
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    \1\ 78 FR 23832 (April 23, 2013). The final amendments 
consolidated the Commission's AFV labels with the then new fuel 
economy labels required by the Environmental Protection Agency 
thereby eliminating the FTC's separate labeling requirements for 
used AFV labels.
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    As required by section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et 
seq., the FTC is providing this opportunity for public comment before 
requesting that OMB extend the existing clearance for the information 
collection requirements contained in the Alternative Fuels Rule.

Burden Estimates

    I. Annual Hours Burden: 2,900 hours.
    FTC staff estimates that approximately 9,092 industry participants 
\2\ are subject to the Rule's information collection requirements. The 
burden estimates for covered entities are detailed below.\3\
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    \2\ These industry participants include producers, importers, 
refiners, distributors, and retailers of non-liquid vehicle fuel 
such as compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), 
and hydrogen; and manufacturers, distributors, and retail operators 
of electric vehicle fuel dispensing systems.
    \3\ It is common practice for alternative fuel industry members 
to determine and monitor fuel ratings in the normal course of their 
business activities. This is because industry members must know and 
determine the fuel ratings of their products in order to monitor 
quality and decide how to market them. ``Burden'' for PRA purposes 
is defined to exclude effort that would be expended regardless of 
any regulatory requirement. 5 CFR 1320.2(b)(2). Other factors also 
limit the burden associated with the Rule. Certification may be a 
one-time event or require only infrequent revision. Disclosures on 
electric vehicle fuel dispensing systems may be useable for several 
years. Nonetheless, there is still some burden associated with 
posting labels. There also will be some minimal burden associated 
with new or revised certification of fuel ratings and recordkeeping.
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    Labeling: Staff estimates that approximately 1,776 covered 
retailers must revise covered labels annually.\4\ Staff estimates that 
affected retailers require approximately one hour each per year for 
labeling their fuel dispensers for a total of 1,776 hours (1,776 
respondents x 1 hour per year).
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    \4\ Staff estimates that approximately 8,878 retailers are 
subject to the Rule's labeling requirements. Staff estimates that 
approximately 20% of covered retailers (1,776) will need to replace 
their labels annually because many labels remain effective for 
several years.
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    Recordkeeping: FTC staff estimates that approximately 9,092 
industry participants are subject to the Rule's recordkeeping 
requirements. Staff estimates that covered entities require 
approximately one-tenth of an hour each per year to comply with these 
requirements. This yields a burden of approximately 910 hours per year 
(9,092 respondents x 0.1 hours).
    Certification: Staff estimates that the Rule's fuel rating 
certification requirements will affect approximately 214 industry 
members (producers, importers, and refiners of CNG, LNG, and hydrogen, 
and distributors and manufacturers of electric vehicle fuel dispensing 
systems). Staff anticipates that covered industry participants will 
spend approximately one hour per year to comply with this requirement 
for a total of 214 hours (214 respondents x 1 hour per year).
    Accordingly, the estimated annual burden under the Rule is 2,900 
hours (1,776 + 910 + 214).
    Labor Costs: $103,337.
    FTC staff derive labor costs by applying appropriate hourly wage 
figures to the burden hours described above. According to Bureau of 
Labor Statistics data,\5\ the average compensation for fuel system 
operators is $42.36 per hour; and $16.60 per hour for automotive 
service attendants. These are factored into the FTC's estimates and 
assumptions below.
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    \5\ The wage estimates in this Notice are based on mean hourly 
wages found in Table 1. National employment and wage data from the 
Occupational Employment Statistics survey by occupation, May 2023, 
at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.t01.htm. The wage rate 
for fuel system operators is based on data for ``Petroleum pump 
system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers.'' The wage rate 
for automotive attendants is based on data for ``Automotive and 
watercraft service attendants.''
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    Labeling: Staff assumes that labeling is performed by fuel system 
operators. Applying relevant labor cost figures to the estimated burden 
hours for labeling yields an estimated annual labor cost of $75,232 
(1,776 hours x $42.36).
    Recordkeeping: Staff estimates that approximately \1/6\ of the 
total recordkeeping hours are performed by fuel system operators (\1/6\ 
of 910 hours = approximately 152 hours; 152 hours x $42.36 = $6,439) 
and that automotive service attendants account for the remaining \5/6\ 
of recordkeeping hours (\5/6\ of 910 hours = approximately 759 hours; 
759 hours x $16.60 = $12,600). Accordingly, staff estimates that the 
total labor cost for recordkeeping for affected industry is 
approximately $19,039 ($6,439 + $12,600).
    Certification: Staff assumes that certification is performed by 
fuel system operators. Estimated associated labor costs would be $9,066 
(214 hours x $42.36).
    Accordingly, the estimated annual labor cost under the Rule is 
$103,337 ($75,232 + $19,039 + $9,066).
    II. Non-Labor Costs: $1,350.
    Staff believes there are no current start-up costs associated with 
the Rule, which has been in effect since 1995. Industry members have in 
place the capital equipment and means necessary to determine automotive 
fuel ratings and comply with the Rule. Industry members, however, incur 
the cost of procuring fuel dispenser labels to comply with the Rule.
    The estimated annual fuel labeling cost, based on estimates of 
approximately 8,000 fuel dispensers (assumptions: an estimated 20% of

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8,878 total fuel retailers need to replace labels in any given year 
with an approximate five-year life for labels--i.e., 1,776 retailers--
multiplied by an average of two dispensers per retailer) at thirty-
eight cents for each label (per industry sources), is $1,350 ($0.38 x 
1,776 x 2).

Request for Comment

    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the FTC invites 
comments on: (1) whether the disclosure and recordkeeping requirements 
are necessary, including whether the information will be practically 
useful; (2) the accuracy of our burden estimates, including whether the 
methodology and assumptions used are valid; (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.
    For the FTC to consider a comment, we must receive it on or before 
March 31, 2025. Your comment, including your name and your state, will 
be placed on the public record of this proceeding, including the 
https://www.regulations.gov website.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. Due to heightened 
security screening, postal mail addressed to the Commission will be 
subject to delay. We encourage you to submit your comments online 
through the https://www.regulations.gov website.
    If you file your comment on paper, write ``Alternative Fuels Rule, 
PRA Comment, P085405,'' on your comment and on the envelope, and mail 
it to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the 
Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite CC-5610 (Annex J), 
Washington, DC 20580.
    Because your comment will become publicly available at https://www.regulations.gov, you are solely responsible for making sure that 
your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential 
information. In particular, your comment should not include any 
sensitive personal information, such as your or anyone else's Social 
Security number; date of birth; driver's license number or other state 
identification number, or foreign country equivalent; passport number; 
financial account number; or credit or debit card number. You are also 
solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include 
any sensitive health information, such as medical records or other 
individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment 
should not include any ``trade secret or any commercial or financial 
information which . . . is privileged or confidential''--as provided by 
section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 
16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)--including, in particular, competitively sensitive 
information, such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, 
patterns, devices, manufacturing processes, or customer names.
    Comments containing material for which confidential treatment is 
requested must (1) be filed in paper form, (2) be clearly labeled 
``Confidential,'' and (3) comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c). In particular, 
the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the 
comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and 
must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from 
the public record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c). Your comment will be kept 
confidential only if the General Counsel grants your request in 
accordance with the law and the public interest. Once your comment has 
been posted publicly at www.regulations.gov, we cannot redact or remove 
your comment unless you submit a confidentiality request that meets the 
requirements for such treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and the General 
Counsel grants that request.
    The FTC Act and other laws that the Commission administers permit 
the collection of public comments to consider and use in this 
proceeding as appropriate. The Commission will consider all timely and 
responsive public comments that it receives on or before March 31, 
2025. For information on the Commission's privacy policy, including 
routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy.

Josephine Liu,
Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2025-01778 Filed 1-27-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P
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