56620 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 187 / Wednesday, September 28, 2005 / Proposed Rules 

Commission’s rules, 47 CFR 1.411 and 

1.412, the Memorandum Opinion & 

Order and Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking is adopted. 

53. Pursuant to sections 4(i), 201(b), 

251(a), 253, 303(r) and 332(c)(1)(B) of 

the Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 251(a), 253, 

303(r) and 332(c)(1)(B), and sections 

1.411 and 1.412 of the Commission’s 

rules, 47 CFR 1.411 and 1.412, the 

automatic and manual roaming 

rulemaking proceeding in WT Docket 

No. 00–193 is terminated. 

54. The Petition for Commission 

Action filed by the Rural 

Telecommunications Group, Inc. on 

November 1, 2004 is granted, to the 

extent described in the Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking. 

55. Notice is given of the proposed 

regulatory changes described in this 

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, and 

comment is sought on these proposals. 

56. The Commission’s Consumer and 

Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference 

Information Center, shall send a copy of 

this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 

including the Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis, to the Chief 

Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene H. Dortch, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 05–19346 Filed 9–27–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Part 23 

[IB Docket No. 05–216; FCC 05–130] 

Elimination of Part 23 of the 

Commission’s Rules and Spectrum 

Usage by Satellite Network Earth 

Stations and Space Stations 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Communications 

Commission (FCC) proposed to 

eliminate part 23 of the Commission’s 

rules, governing International Fixed 

Public Radiocommunication Services 

(IFPRS). We instead propose to regulate 

IFPRS services pursuant to part 101, 

which includes rules applicable to other 

fixed services. This should simplify the 

Commission’s rules and eliminate 

necessary burdens on IFPRS licenses. 

DATES: Comments are due on or before 

October 28, 2005 and reply comments 

are due on or before November 14, 2005. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comment, 

identified by [docket number and/or 

rulemaking number], by any of the 

following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Federal Communications 

Commission’s Web Site: http:// 

www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• People with Disabilities: Contact 

the FCC to request reasonable 

accommodations (accessible format 

documents, sign language interpreters, 

CART, etc.) by e-mail: FCC504@fcc.gov 

or phone 202–418–0530 or TTY: 202–

418–0432. 

For detail instructions for submitting 

comments and additional information 

on the rulemaking process, see the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 

this document. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Steven Spaeth (202) 418–1539, Satellite 

Division, International Bureau, Federal 

Communications Commission, 

Washington, DC 20554. For additional 

information concerning the information 

collection(s) contained in this 

document, contact Judith B. Herman at 

202–418–0214, or via the Internet at 

Judith-B.Herman@fcc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in IB 

Docket No. 05–216, adopted June 20, 

2005 and released on June 24, 2005. The 

full text of the Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking is available for public 

inspection and copying during regular 

business hours at the FCC Reference 

Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th 

Street, SW., Room CY–A257, 

Washington, DC 20554. This document 

may also be purchased from the 

Commission’s duplicating contractor, 

Best Copy and Printing, Inc., Portals II, 

445 12th Street, SW., Room CY–B402, 

Washington, DC 20554, telephone 202–

488–5300, facsimile 202–488–5563, or 

via e-mail FCC@BCPIWEB.com. 

The Commission, as part of its 

continuing effort to reduce paperwork 

burdens, invites 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. Public and agency 

comments are due November 28, 2005. 

Comments should address; (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 estimates; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information collected; and 

(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. 

In addition, pursuant to the Small 

Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, 

Public Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 

3506(c)(4), we seek specific comment on 

how we might ‘‘further reduce the 

information collection burden for small 

business concerns with fewer than 25 

employees.’’

Summary of Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking 

A. Elimination of Part 23 

1. At this time, we initiate a new 

proceeding to propose eliminating part 

23 completely and applying the 

requirements of part 101 of the 

Commission’s rules to IFPRS services. 

Part 101 establishes procedures for 

many terrestrial fixed services other 

than IFPRS. The Commission created 

part 101 in 1996, to replace parts 21 and 

94 of the Commission’s rules. 

Eliminating part 23 of the Commission’s 

rules and including IFPRS services in 

the part 101 framework might serve the 

same purposes. In addition, eliminating 

distinctions in regulation between 

international and domestic fixed public 

radio services would be consistent with 

the Commission’s elimination of such 

distinctions in fixed satellite service 

regulations. 

2. Specifically, we proposed allowing 

future IFPRS licensees to apply for a 

license pursuant to the rules in part 1, 

subpart F, ‘‘Wireless 

Telecommunications Services 

Applications and Proceedings.’’ In 

addition, we invite comments on 

revising § 101.147 of the Commission’s 

rules to require any future IFPRS 

licenses to operate in the 3700–4200 

MHz and the 10,700–11,700 MHz bands. 

These bands are available for fixed 

microwave services, and are currently 

shared with IFPRS. The 2110–2130 MHz 

and 2160–2180 MHz bands are also 

currently assigned to fixed microwave 

services and shared with IFPRS, but we 

proposed eliminating the assignment of 

these bands to IFPRS in part 101 of the 

Commissions’ rules because these bands 

are in the process of a transition to a 

reassignment to emerging technology 

(ET). Together with these revisions to 

part 101 of the Commission’s rules, we 

also propose revising the Table of 

Frequency of Allocation to eliminate 

reference to part 23 in Column 6 and to 

Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 187 / Wednesday, September 28, 2005 / Proposed Rules 56621 

revise footnote NG41 to reflect the 

decision we make this proceeding. 

3. Moreover, we seek comment on 

applying the requirements of part 101, 

subpart C, ‘‘Technical Standards,’’ to 

IFPRS licensees to the extent that those 

requirements apply to the frequency 

bands in which they are authorized to 

operate. We also prose applying part 

101, subpart I, ‘‘Common Carrier Fixed 

Point-to-Point Microwave Service,’’ and 

subpart E, ‘‘Miscellaneous Common 

Carrier Provisions,’’ to IFPRS licensees. 

Finally, we request comments to 

propose any revision to part 101 they 

believe may be necessary to include 

IFPRS among the service subject to part 

101, in the event that we decide to 

eliminate part 23. 

B. Transition 

4. One of the three IFPRS licensees 

operating in 2000, Interisland, has since 

stopped providing IFPRS service. Only 

AT&T of the Virgin Island (AT&T) and 

Broadcast Media Satellite, Inc. (BMS) 

remain in operation. AT&T is licensed 

to transmit at 6256.54 and 6375.14 MHz, 

and to receive at 5974.85 and 6093.45 

MHz. BMS is licensed to transmit at 

6695 and 6226.89 MHz, and receive at 

6855 and 6004.5 MHz. The AT&T and 

BMS licenses are scheduled to expire on 

December 1, 2008 and December 1, 

2009, respectively. 

5. Abruptly requiring AT&T and BMS 

to comply with part 101 of the 

Commission’s rules requirement might 

be disruptive to them and their 

customers. Therefore, we seek comment 

on whether to adopt transition 

provisions for these licensees. 

Specifically, we propose allowing these 

licensees to continue operating pursuant 

to part 23 of the Commission’s rules 

until the date that their licensees are 

schedule to expire. At that time, we 

propose permitting AT&T and BMD to 

apply for a fixed point-to-point 

microwave license pursuant to the 

relevant provisions of parts 1 and 101 of 

the Commission’s rules. If either 

licensee chooses to apply for such a 

fixed point-to-point microwave license, 

we proposed grandfathering their use of 

the frequency band on which they are 

currently operating. We seek comment 

on considering any such application 

under the rules applicable to microwave 

renewal applications, but only if the 

licensee applies to continue its use of 

the frequency bands it is licensed to use 

now. Finally, we propose limiting this 

transition to AT7T and BMS, or their 

successors in interest. In the event that 

may other IFPRM operator is licensed 

under part 23 of the Commission’s rules 

before this rulemaking is completed, 

that operate is on notice that we are 

considering applying part 101 

requirements to IFPRS, and should be 

prepared to comply with those 

requirements immediately, should we 

decide to eliminate part 23. 

Procedural Matters 

6. Initial Regulatory Flexibility 

Certification. The Regulatory Flexibility 

Act of 1980, as amended (RFA) requires 

that a regulatory flexibility analysis be 

prepared for rulemaking proceedings, 

unless the agency certifies that ‘‘the rule 

will not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities.’’ The RFA generally defines 

‘‘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 

Small Business Administration (SBA). 

7. In this Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking, the Commission proposes 

to eliminate part 23 of the Commission’s 

rules, and apply the rules in part 101 to 

the IFPRS licensees currently subject to 

part 23. We expect that the change from 

the licensing procedure in part 101 of 

the Commission’s rules to the licensing 

procedure in part 23 of the 

Commission’s rules would have little 

effect from IFPRS licensees’ perspective. 

Furthermore, the Commission proposes 

grandfathering measures to lessen any 

impact that current part 23 licensees 

might otherwise experience as a result 

of the application of part 101 of the 

Commission’s rules. Therefore, we 

certify that the requirements of this 

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, if 

adopted, will not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. The 

Commission will send a copy of the 

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 

including a copy of this certification, in 

a report to Congress pursuant to the 

Congressional Review Act, see 5 U.S.C. 

801(a)(1)(A). In addition, the Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking and this 

certification will be sent to the Chief 

Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration, and will be 

published in the Federal Register. See 

5 U.S.C. 605(b). 

Ordering Clauses 

8. Accordingly, it is pursuant to 

section 1, 4(i), 4(j), 7(a), 301, 303(c), 

303(f), 303(g), 303(r), 303(y), and 308 of 

the Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j), 

157(a), 301, 303(c), 303(f), 303(g), 303(r), 

303(y), and 308, that is Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking in IB Docket No. 

05–216 is hereby adopted. 

9. It is furthered ordered that the 

Consumer Information Bureau, 

Reference Information Center, shall 

send a copy of this Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking, including the Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Certification, to 

the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene H. Dortch, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 05–19160 Filed 9–27–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P