[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 137 (Wednesday, July 17, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 58072-58074]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-15465]
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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 25
[IB Docket Nos. 06-160, 18-314, 20-330, 22-273; FCC 19-93, FCC 20-159,
FCC 22-63, DA 24-271; FR ID 231569]
Amendments to Rules for Direct Broadcast Satellite, Satellite
Services, and 17 GHz; Updates to Forms 312 and 312-R for the
International Communications Filing System; Corrections to 17 GHz
Report and Order
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date and correcting
amendments.
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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission
(Commission) announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
has approved, for a period of three years, the information collections
associated with the rules adopted in three rulemakings and with updates
to the Form 312, including Schedules A, B, and S, and Form 312-R.
Specifically, rules were adopted in: a Report and Order, FCC 19-93, in
IB Docket No. 06-160 (DBS Licensing Report and Order); a Report and
Order, FCC 20-159, in IB Docket No. 18-314 (Satellite Services Report
and Order); and a Report and Order, FCC 22-63, in IB Docket Nos. 20-330
and 22-273, (17 GHz Report and Order). Each of those orders stated that
the Commission would publish a document in the Federal Register
announcing the effective date of those rules which were delayed
indefinitely. The FCC is announcing the effective date of those rules.
In addition, this document is also correcting non-substantive
typographical errors in the 17 GHz Report and Order. Finally, this
document also announces the updates to FCC Form 312, including
Schedules A, B, and S, and FCC Form 312-R.
DATES: The following are effective August 16, 2024:
(1) The amendment to 47 CFR 25.136(h), published at 86 FR 11880 on
March 1, 2021;
(2) The amendments to 47 CFR 25.108(c)(5) and (c)(6), 25.114(a)(3),
and 25.140(b)(6), published at 86 FR 49484 on September 3, 2021;
(3) The amendments to 47 CFR 25.114(d)(7), (d)(15), and (d)(18),
25.115(e), (g) and (k), 25.117(d)(2)(v), 25.140(a)(2) and (a)(3), (b),
and (d), 25.203 and 25.264, published at 87 FR 72388 on November 25,
2022;
(4) The corrections to Sec. Sec. 24.140 and 25.264;
(5) The revisions to Form 312 (including Schedules A, B, and C) and
Form 312R, published at 88 FR 21424.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Scott Mackoul, Space Bureau, at (202)
418-7498 or [email protected]. For information regarding the PRA
information collection requirements contained in the PRA, contact Cathy
Williams, Office of Managing Director, at (202) 418-2918 or
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that, on May 29,
2024, OMB approved the information collection requirements in 47 CFR
25.108(c)(5) through(c)(6), 25.114(a)(3), and 25.140(b)(6), as modified
in the DBS Licensing Report and Order (86 FR 49484, September 3, 2021);
47 CFR 25.136(h), as modified in the Satellite Services Report and
Order (86 FR 11880, March 1, 2021); and 47 CFR 25.114(d)(7), (d)(15),
and (d)(18), 25.115(e), (g) and (k), 25.117(d)(2)(v), 25.140(a)(2) and
(3), (b), and (d), 25.203 and 25.264 as modified in the 17 GHz Report
and Order (87 FR 72388, November 25, 2022). The DBS Licensing Report
and Order, the Satellite Services Report and Order, and the 17 GHz
Report and Order, stated that the Commission would publish a document
in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of those rules.
This notice announces the effective date of those rules. The other rule
amendments adopted in the three orders which did not require OMB
approval became effective as identified in their respective Federal
Register publications.
This document also summarizes an order adopted by the Commission's
Space Bureau and Managing Director, released on March 19, 2024, that
amends the final rules in the 17 GHz Report and Order, in order to
correct non-substantive typographical errors. The full text of the 17
GHz Correction Order is available at https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-24-271A1.pdf.
Additionally, this document announces that, on May 29, 2024, OMB
approved revisions to the Form 312, including Schedules A, B, and S,
and Form 312-R, that stemmed from an update to the International
Communications Filing System (ICFS), which is the Commission's filing
system for earth station and space station applications filed pursuant
to part 25 of the Commission's rules.
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, [email protected], regarding OMB Control Number 3060-
0678. Please include the applicable OMB Control Number(s) in your
correspondence. The Commission will also accept your comments via email
at [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 Commission is notifying the public that it received final
OMB approval on May 29, 2024, for the information collection
requirements contained in 47 CFR 25.108(c)(5) through (c)(6),
25.114(a)(3), and 25.140(b)(6); 47 CFR 25.136(h); and 47 CFR
25.114(d)(7), (d)(15), (d)(18), 25.115(e), (g) and (k),
25.117(d)(2)(v), 25.140(a)(2) through (a)(3), (b), and (d), 25.203 and
25.264. Also, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the
Commission is notifying the public that it received final OMB approval
on May 29, 2024, for the information collection requirements contained
in the revised Form 312, including Schedules A, B, and S, and the
revised Form 312-R.
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 for the information collection
requirements in these rules is 3060-0678.
[[Page 58073]]
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: 3060-0678.
OMB Approval Date: May 29, 2024.
OMB Expiration Date: May 31, 2027.
Title: Part 25 of the Federal Communications Commission's Rules
Governing the Licensing of, and Spectrum Usage By, Commercial Earth
Stations and Space Stations.
Form Number: FCC Form 312 (including Schedules A, B, and S) and FCC
Form 312-R
Type of Review: Revision of an existing collection.
Respondents: Business or other for-profit, not-for-profit
institutions.
Number of Respondents and Responses: 3,515 respondents and 3,567
responses.
Estimated Time per Response: 0.5-80 hours.
Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement, one time
and annual reporting requirements; third-party disclosure requirement;
recordkeeping requirement.
Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The
statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 47
U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 157, 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, and 310.
Total Annual Burden: 27,176.
Annual Cost Burden: $3,923,887.
Needs and Uses: The Commission will use the information collected
under this revised information collection effect the policies adopted
in three rulemakings and the updates to the Form 312, including
Schedules A, B, and S, and Form 312-R that stemmed from an update to
the Commission's filing system for earth station and space station
applications filed pursuant to part 25 of the Commission's rules.
On September 27, 2019, the Commission released DBS Licensing Report
and Order, which adopted a new licensing process for space stations in
the Direct Broadcast Satellite Service (DBS). This new process allows
applicants for DBS space station licenses to take advantage of a
licensing process that parallels the Commission's streamlined part 25
satellite licensing rules for geostationary orbit (GSO) space stations
in the fixed-satellite service (FSS). The Commission limited the
regulatory burdens borne by applicants, while promoting new
opportunities for efficient use of orbital spacing and spectrum by DBS
licensees. The Commission's action supports and encourages the
increasing innovation in the DBS sector and helps to preserve U.S.
leadership in space-based services and operations. This information
collection will provide the Commission and the public with necessary
information about this area of satellite operations, and serves the
public interest by streamlining the collection of information and
allowing the Commission to authorize DBS space stations under the new
process established in the DBS Licensing Report and Order.
Specifically, the DBS Licensing Report and Order contains the following
new or modified information collection requirements: space station
applications for GSO space stations operating in the frequencies of the
International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Appendices 30 and 30A
(incorporated by reference, see 47 CFR 25.108) must include a statement
that the proposed operation will take into account the applicable
requirements of these Appendices of the ITU Radio Regulations and a
demonstration that it is compatible with other U.S. ITU filings under
Appendices 30 and 30A or, for any affected filings, a letter signed by
the affected operator indicating that it consents to the new
application.
On November 19, 2020, the Commission released Satellite Services
Report and Order, which streamlined the Commission's rules governing
satellite services by creating an optional framework for authorizing
both the blanket-licensed earth stations and space stations of a
satellite system through a unified license. The Satellite Services
Report and Order also permitted earth station applicants to certify
compliance with relevant satellite licenses in lieu of providing
duplicative or unnecessary technical demonstrations, aligned the build-
out requirements for earth stations and space stations, and eliminated
unnecessary reporting rules. These changes reduce regulatory burdens,
simplify the Commission's licensing of satellite systems, and provide
additional operational flexibility. The Satellite Services Report and
Order affected two information collections: OMB Control Numbers 3060-
1215 and 3060-0678. The Commission received OMB approval for changes
under OMB Control No. 3060-1215 on August 26, 2021, as reported in 86
FR 52102.
On August 3, 2022, the Commission released the 17 GHz Report and
Order which amended the Commission's rules to permit geostationary
satellite orbit (GSO) space stations to use the 17.3-17.7 GHz band in
the fixed-satellite service (FSS) in the space-to-Earth direction on a
co-primary basis with incumbent services and permit limited GSO FSS
(space-to-Earth) use of the 17.7-17.8 GHz band on an unprotected basis
with respect to fixed service operations. Specifically, the 17 GHz
Report and Order contains the following new or modified information
collection requirements:
Certification of frequency coordination with the operator
of the co-frequency space station or submission of an interference
analysis demonstrating the compatibility of the proposed system with
the co-frequency space station;
Information as to earth station antenna characteristics to
ensure that antennas are properly aimed and configured and that their
signals are not likely to interfere with other systems; and
Information pertaining to implementation of interference
detection and mitigation plans to prevent and resolve interference
issues.
This information collection will provide the Commission and the
public with necessary information about this area of satellite
operations and work to prevent interference, and serves the public
interest by streamlining the collection of information and allowing the
Commission to authorize operations contemplated in the 17 GHz Report
and Order.
On March 19, 2024, the Commission's Space Bureau and Managing
Director released an Order, DA 24-271 (17 GHz Correction Order), which
amended the final rules in Appendix A of the 17 GHz Report and Order,
in order to correct typographical errors in the final rules and to
conform them with the publishing conventions of the Federal Register.
The amendments are non-substantive and do not change any regulatory
obligations. This determination is guided by the fact that the text of
the 17 GHz Report and Order makes clear that the errors that remained
in the text of the final rules were unintentional and typographical in
nature. For example, one error was stating ``17.3-18.8 GHz'' instead of
``17.3-17.8 GHz'' when the rest of the text made clear that the correct
text was ``17.3-17.8 GHz.'' Furthermore, the text of the final rules as
published in the Federal Register was corrected to conform with the
publishing conventions of the Federal Register. The Space Bureau and
Managing Director found that notice and comment procedures are
unnecessary under the ``good cause'' exception of the Administrative
Procedure Act (APA) because the changes in the final rules in Appendix
A of the 17 GHz Report and Order as released by the Commission adopted
in the 17 GHz Correction Order
[[Page 58074]]
merely correct typographical errors, align the final rules in Appendix
A of the 17 GHz Report and Order as released by the Commission with the
text of the final rules as published in the Federal Register, or
conform the 17 GHz Report and Order as released by the Commission with
the publishing conventions of the Federal Register. Consequently, the
Space Bureau and Managing Director found notice and comment procedures
are unnecessary for this action as the actions in the 17 GHz Correction
Order constitute routine ``clean-up'' matters that entail no
substantive decisions of any consequence or significance to industry or
the general public.
Finally, the Commission recently updated ICFS--which was formerly
named the International Bureau Filing System, see 88 FR 21424--which
resulted in modifications to the Form 312, including Schedules A, B,
and S, and Form 312-R. Applicants will be required to submit Form 312
(including Schedules A, B, and S) and Form 312-R through the updated,
integrated web-based program. The updated version of Form 312
(including Schedules A, B, and S) and Form 312-R will include several
minor changes to the information collection designed to provide clarity
to applicants and Commission staff, reduce errors, and make overall
improvements to the applicants' experience in completing the forms,
including adding several questions designed to better convey the
overall information being requested in the form.
List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 25
Administrative practice and procedure, Earth stations, Satellites.
Federal Communications Commission.
Katura Jackson,
Federal Register Liaison Officer.
Final Rules
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal
Communications Commission amends 47 CFR part 25 as follows:
PART 25--SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS
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1. The authority citation for part 25 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 301, 302, 303, 307, 309, 310, 319,
332, 605, and 721, unless otherwise noted.
Sec. Sec. 25.140 and 25.264 [Amended]
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2. Amend Sec. Sec. 25.140(a)(3)(iii)(B) and 25.264(a)(6) by removing
``17.3-18.8 GHz'' and adding, in its place, ``17.3-17.8 GHz.''
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3. In Sec. 25.264 amend paragraphs (b)(2)(ii), (b)(3), and (e)
introductory text by removing ``-117 dBW/m2/100 kHz'' and adding, in
their place, ``-117 dBW/m\2\/100 kHz'' in each instance where it
appears.
[FR Doc. 2024-15465 Filed 7-16-24; 8:45 am]
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