On February 22, 2012, the President
signed the Spectrum Act, which, among other things, authorized the
Commission to conduct incentive auctions, and directed that the
Commission use this innovative tool for an incentive auction of
broadcast television spectrum to help meet the Nation’s growing
spectrum needs. The modified and new information collection
requirements reported under the revised collection are the result
of various Commission actions to implement this new and novel
approach for use in the BIA.The BIA will have three main
components: (1) a “reverse auction” in which broadcast television
licensees will submit bids to voluntarily relinquish their spectrum
usage rights in exchange for defined shares of proceeds from the
“forward auction”; (2) a “repacking” of the broadcast television
bands; and (3) a “forward auction” of initial licenses for flexible
use of the newly available spectrum. On June 2, 2014, the
Commission released a Report and Order, Expanding the Economic and
Innovation Opportunities of Spectrum Through Incentive Auctions, GN
Docket No. 12-268, FCC 14-50, 29 FCC Rcd 6567 (2014) (Incentive
Auction R&O), in which it adopted general rules to govern the
BIA, including additional application disclosure and certification
requirements that must be made by applicants seeking to participate
in the forward auction component of the BIA. On December 17, 2014,
the Commission released a Public Notice, FCC 14-191, 29 FCC Rcd
15750 (2014), in which it sought comment on the detailed procedures
to be used to conduct the BIA consistent with the rules and
policies adopted in the Incentive Auction R&O. On August 11,
2015, the Commission released a Public Notice, FCC 15-78, 30 FCC
Rcd 8975 (2015), in which it adopted procedures for bidding in the
reverse and forward auctions and additional information collection
requirements for both auctions, and announced that the auction was
scheduled to begin on March 29, 2016. On October 15, 2015, the
Commission’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau released a Public
Notice, DA 15-1183, in which it adopted the procedures for applying
to participate in the reverse and forward auctions, including some
additional information collection requirements for both auctions,
and announced the deadlines for filing applications to participate
in the reverse and forward auctions. The filing window for forward
auction applications is scheduled to open on January 26, 2016 and
close on February 9, 2016. On July 20, 2015, the Commission
released a Report and Order in which it updated many of its Part 1
competitive bidding rules. Of relevance to the information
collection at issue here, the Commission: (1) modified the
eligibility requirements for small business benefits, and updated
the standardized schedule of small business sizes, including the
gross revenues thresholds used to determine eligibility; (2)
established a new bidding credit for eligible rural service
providers; (3) adopted a rule prohibiting the same individual from
serving as an authorized bidder for more than one auction
applicant; (4) adopted targeted attribution rules to prevent the
unjust enrichment of ineligible entities; (5) revised the former
defaulter rule; (6) adopted rules prohibiting joint bidding
arrangements with limited exceptions; (7) adopted rules prohibiting
the same individual or entity as well as entities that have
controlling interests in common from becoming qualified to bid on
the basis of more than one auction application in a specific
auction, with a limited exception for certain rural wireless
partnerships and individual members of such partnerships; and (8)
adopted a rule requiring entities with non-controlling interests in
other entities to establish internal controls to ensure that
bidding information does not flow between them in situations where
both entities seek to separately bid in an auction.
The Federal
Communications Commission (Commission) requests Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) approval to submit the information
collection described herein under the “emergency processing”
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (5 CFR
1320.13). The Commission is requesting clearance for a revision to
a currently approved information collection on the FCC Form 175
(OMB Control Number 3060-0600), which is the form used to apply to
participate in non-reverse auctions for Commission licenses and
permits. We respectfully request Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) approval for this revised information collection no later
than 26 days after it is received at OMB.
US Code:
47 USC 4(i), 154(i) Name of Law: Communications Act of 1934, as
amended
US Code:
47 USC 309(j)(5) Name of Law: Communications Act of 1934, as
amended
PL: Pub.L. 112 - 96 6004 Name of Law: Middle
Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (2012 Spectrum
Act)
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Form FCC Form 175 Application to Participate in an FCC Auction
DA 15-959.pdf
DA-15-1183A1 (1).docx
Emergency Supporting Statement_FCC Form 175_OMB 3060-0600 (December 2015) 12-14-15.doc
Application to Participate in an FCC Auction