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[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 213 (Tuesday, November 4, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 65348-65350]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-26117]

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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 4

[PS Docket Nos. 13-75, 11-60; FCC 13-158]

Improving 9-1-1 Reliability; Reliability and Continuity of 
Communications Networks, Including Broadband Technologies

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, 
an information collection associated with the Commission's Report and 
Order, FCC 13-158, published at 79 FR 3123 on January 17, 2014, and at 
79 FR 7589 on February 10, 2014. This document is consistent with the 
Report and Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a 
document in the Federal Register announcing OMB approval and the 
effective date of requirements subject to OMB approval. Specifically, 
this document announces the effective date of rules requiring Covered 
911 Service Providers to notify

[[Page 65349]]

Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) and other ``911 special 
facilities'' of major disruptions in 911 service within time limits 
established by the Commission.

DATES: 47 CFR 4.9(h) is effective November 4, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information contact 
Cathy Williams, [email protected], (202) 418-2918.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that, on October 17, 
2014, OMB approved information collection requirements contained in the 
Commission's Report and Order, FCC 13-158, Improving 9-1-1 Reliability; 
Reliability and Continuity of Communications Networks, Including 
Broadband Technologies, published at 79 FR 3123 on January 17, 2014 and 
at 79 FR 7589 on February 10, 2014. As pertinent here, the Report and 
Order established more specific outage notification requirements for 
Covered 911 Service Providers, including time limits for outage 
notifications to affected PSAPs and specific information that must be 
included in such notifications. The OMB Control Number is 3060-0484. 
The Commission publishes this document as an announcement of the 
effective date of the new requirements.
    If you have any comments on the burden estimates listed below, or 
how the Commission can improve the collections and reduce any burdens 
caused thereby, please contact Cathy Williams, Federal Communications 
Commission, Room 1-C823, 445 12th Street SW., Washington, DC 20554. 
Please include the OMB Control Number, 3060-0484, in your 
correspondence. The Commission will also accept your comments via the 
Internet if you send them to [email protected].
    To request materials in accessible formats for people with 
disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), 
send an email to [email protected] or call the Consumer and Governmental 
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY).
    Synopsis: As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3507), the FCC is notifying the public that it received OMB 
approval on October 17, 2014, for information collection requirements 
contained in the Commission's rules at 47 CFR 4.9(h).
    Under 5 CFR part 1320, an agency may not conduct or sponsor a 
collection of information unless it displays a current, valid OMB 
Control Number. No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing 
to comply with a collection of information subject to the Paperwork 
Reduction Act that does not display a current, valid OMB Control 
Number. The OMB Control Number is 3060-0484. The foregoing notice is 
required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13, 
October 1, 1995, and 44 U.S.C. 3507.
    The total annual reporting burdens and costs for the respondents 
are as follows:
    OMB Control Number: 3060-0484.
    OMB Approval Date: October 17, 2014.
    OMB Expiration Date: October 31, 2017.
    Title: Section 4.9, Part 4 of the Commission's Rules Concerning 
Disruptions to Communications.
    Form Number: Not applicable. Respondents: Business or other for-
profit entities; not-for-profit institutions.
    Number of Respondents and Responses: Approximately 1,100 
respondents; 15,444 responses per year.
    Estimated Time per Response: No more than 2.5 hours per occurrence.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion and annual reporting 
requirements, recordkeeping requirement and third party disclosure 
requirement
    Obligation to Respond: Mandatory. Statutory authority for this 
collection of information is contained in 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i)-(j) & 
(o), 201(b), 214(d), 218, 251(e)(3), 301, 303(b), 303(g), 303(r), 307, 
309(a), 316, 332, 403, 615a-1, and 615c of the Communications Act of 
1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i)-(j) & (o), 201(b), 214(d), 218, 
251(e)(3), 301, 303(b), 303(g), 303(r), 307, 309(a), 316, 332, 403, 
615a-1, and 615c.
    Total Annual Burden: 29,870 hours.
    Total Annual Cost: $0.
    Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: Network Outage Reporting 
System (NORS) outage reports filed with the Commission pursuant to Part 
4 of its rules are presumed confidential. The information in those 
filings may be shared with the Department of Homeland Security only 
under appropriate confidential disclosure provisions. Other persons 
seeking disclosure must follow the procedures delineated in 47 CFR 
0.457 and 0.459 of the Commission's rules for requests for and 
disclosure of information. The revisions to this information collection 
require information to be transmitted to third parties, not to the FCC. 
Accordingly, the Commission cannot, and does not, guarantee 
confidentiality of information provided directly to PSAPs or other 911 
special facilities. The revisions do not affect the confidential 
treatment of information provided directly to the FCC through NORS.
    Privacy Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
    Needs and Uses: On December 12, 2013, the Commission released a 
Report and Order, PS Docket Nos. 13-75, 11-60; FCC 13-158 (the Report 
and Order) adopting rules, which are codified at 47 CFR 4.9(h). The 
Report and Order requires Covered 911 Service Providers, defined in 
section 12.4(a)(4), to notify PSAPs of outages that potentially affect 
911 service within 30 minutes of discovering the outage and provide 
contact information such as a name, telephone number, and email for 
follow-up. Whenever additional material information becomes available, 
but no later than two hours after the initial contact, the Covered 911 
Service Provider must communicate additional detail to the PSAP, 
including the nature of the outage, its best-known cause, the 
geographic scope of the outage, and the estimated time for repairs. 
Notifications must be transmitted by telephone and in writing via 
electronic means, unless the PSAP and service provider have agreed in 
advance to an alternative method. The new requirements apply only to 
entities defined as Covered 911 Service Providers under 47 CFR 
12.4(a)(4), and outage reporting obligations for other entities remain 
unchanged.
    Previous FCC rules required certain communications providers to 
notify PSAPs of 911 outages ``as soon as possible'' with ``all 
available information that may be useful.'' The revisions to this 
information collection respond to the derecho storm that struck the 
Midwest and Mid-Atlantic United States in June 2012, causing 
significant disruptions in 911 service. Through its inquiry into these 
911 outages, the Commission learned that many PSAPs' efforts to restore 
service were complicated by inadequate information and ineffective 
communication by 911 service providers. PSAPs depend on reliable 911 
service to answer emergency calls and dispatch help when needed. When 
911 service is compromised, PSAPs require prompt notification and 
useful information about the outage so that they may make alternate 
plans to reroute calls until service is restored.
    As a result of its adoption of section 4.9(h), the Commission 
reported a 223-hour increase in its previous annual burden estimates 
for OMB Control Number 3060-0484. These revisions do not affect the 
obligation to submit NORS outage reports to the FCC or the information 
that must be provided in NORS reports; those portions of the 
information collection have already

[[Page 65350]]

been approved by OMB and have not changed since that approval.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-26117 Filed 11-3-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P
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