3060-0955
February 2007
SUPPORTING STATEMENT
A. Justification:
1. The Federal Communications Commission ("Commission") is requesting that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approve a three-year extension of OMB Control No. 3060-0955 (delegated authority collection) titled, “2 GHz Mobile Satellite Service Reports.” There are no changes in reporting requirements, respondents, burden hours or costs.
On August 25, 2000, the Federal Communications Commission (“Commission”) released a Report and Order titled, “In the Matter of the Establishment of Policies and Service Rules for the Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) in the 2 GHz Band,” IB Docket No. 99-81, FCC 00-302. As a result of the rulemaking, the Commission adopted licensing and service rules for entities to provide Mobile Satellite Service in the 2 GHz Band, specifically the 1990-2025 MHz and
2165-2200 MHz frequency bands. The information collection in the Report and Order will ensure that applicants have addressed the issue of orbital debris mitigation measures, that licensees comply with the milestone schedules set out in their authorizations, and that licensees make service available to heretofore unserved areas to retain the benefits of receiving expansion spectrum.
As stated in the above reference R&O, the applicable rule sections for this information collection are: 47 C.F.R. Sections 25.114, 25.115, 25.133, 25.136, 25.137, 25.143, 25.202, 25.203 and 25.279.
The Commission has authority for this information collection under Sections 4(i), 7(a), 303(c), 303(f), 303(g), and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.
§§ 154(i), 157(a), 303(c), 303(f), 303(g), and 303(r).
As noted on the OMB Form 83-I, this information collection does not affect individuals or households; thus, there are no impacts under the Privacy Act.
2. The information will be used by the Commission staff in carrying out its duties under the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, and to insure the public interest, safety and convenience are served. Without such information, the Commission could not determine whether to permit the respondent to provide telecommunication services in the U.S. and therefore fulfill its statutory and responsibilities in accordance with the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
3. The MSS 2 GHz licensees are required to file narrative informational letters with the Commission’s Office of the Secretary that describes how they have undertaken measures to mitigate orbital debris and have met milestone requirements. The narrative information is not conducive to electronic filing at this time. Presently, the collection of information does not involve the use of automated information collection techniques. The percentage of responses collected electronically is zero. In order to reduce the burden on applicants and licensees, the Commission considered various methods of collecting the information requested. We adopted information collections that will require entities to submit the minimum amount of information necessary for evaluating the viability of the satellite system. As technology advances, we will explore automation methods to accommodate the electronic filing of detailed narrative information with the Commission.
4. The information in this collection is not duplicated elsewhere and similar information is not available.
5. In conformance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Commission is making an effort to minimize the burden on all respondents, regardless of size. The Commission has limited the information requirements to those that are that absolutely necessary for evaluating and processing the submission and deterring possible abuses of the processes. Therefore, this collection does not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
6. In general, the frequency of filing will be determined by the respondent. Respondents are required to amend their applications to provide the information concerning mitigation measures for orbital debris. The milestone reports will be required at specific intervals as set forth in final authorizations. Respondents choosing to receive expansion spectrum as part of the unserved areas initiative must include in their annual reports the actual number of subscriber minutes originating or terminating in unserved areas as a percentage of the actual U.S. system use. If this information is compiled less frequently or not filed in conjunction with our rules, applicants will not obtain the authorization necessary to provide telecommunications services. Furthermore, licensees will not retain the authorization necessary to provide telecommunications services and the Commission will not be able to carry-out its mandate as required by statute. In addition, the public will not be able to receive service in an effective and efficient manner.
7. The information will be collected in a manner consistent with the general information collection guidelines in 5 C.F.R. § 1320.
8. The Commission published a 60-day notice in the Federal Register on November 1, 2006 (71 FR 64276) to solicit comments from the public on the extension of this information collection. No comments were received from the public. A copy of the notice is included in this submission to OMB.
9. The respondents will not receive any payments.
10. There is no need for confidentiality.
11. This collection does not address any private matters of a sensitive nature.
12. Estimate of Burden Hours/Respondent Cost:
Annual burden for the collection of information is 27 hours. |
|
# of responses per year |
9 |
Hours per response * |
x 3 |
Total Burden Hours |
27 |
* The Commission assumes that all respondents will hire an outside attorney/legal assistant or engineer to prepare the required information. The time to retain services is three hours. The in-house labor cost for respondents to retain services is as follows: legal or professional staff paid at an estimated $45.00 per hour x 27 hours - $1215..
13. Estimate of the Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents:
(a) The majority of satellite applicants use professional law firms to complete and file their applications and other reports. The cost to applicants for these services is estimated at $200 per hour. This figure is based on a small survey of local firms in the D.C. area and is considered a conservative estimate. We estimate the average number of hours that the outside contractor will spend preparing the submission for the respondent to be 10 hours.
Based on the average hours the total cost burden for preparing submissions is:
$200 x 10 hours x 9 respondents = $18,000 Total Annual Costs
(b) There are no operational and maintenance costs incurred.
14. Estimates of Annualized Cost to the Federal Government:
The annual cost to the Federal Government for processing submissions submitted pursuant to these procedures is estimated as follows:
Personnel costs (i.e., salaries, benefits, etc.) $83,200.00
Overhead (i.e., rent, computer support, etc.) 5,000.00
Miscellaneous (i.e., research & reference materials, travel) 800.00
=================
$89,000.00
15. There are no program changes or adjustments.
16. The data will not be published for statistical use.
17. We are not seeking a waiver of the requirement to display the expiration date of OMB approval.
18. There are no exceptions to Item 19.
B. Collections of Information Employing Statistical Methods
No statistical methods are employed.
| File Type | application/msword |
| File Title | SUPPORTING STATEMENT |
| Author | Kathleen Campbell |
| File Modified | 2007-02-05 |
| File Created | 2007-02-05 |