Section 68.5, Waivers (Application for Waiver of Hearing Aid Compatibility Requirements)

Forms and Documents

Document Name	Status
Supporting statement OMB 3060-0422 HAC (2021).docx Supporting Statement A	2021-05-17

IC Document Collections

IC ID	Document Title	Status
30118	Section 68.5, Waivers (Application for Waiver of Hearing Aid Compatibility Requirements)	Modified

ICR Details

OMB Control No: 3060-0422	ICR Reference No: 202105-3060-009
Status: Received in OIRA	Previous ICR Reference No: 201902-3060-005
Agency/Subagency: FCC	Agency Tracking No: CGB
Title: Section 68.5, Waivers (Application for Waiver of Hearing Aid Compatibility Requirements)
Type of Information Collection: Revision of a currently approved collection	Common Form ICR:  No
Type of Review Request: Regular	Date Submitted to OIRA: 05/17/2021

	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	36 Months From Approved	04/30/2022
Responses	3,030	2
Time Burden (Hours)	7,242	6
Cost Burden (Dollars)	487,500	0

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Abstract: The Commission submits this revised information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to merge OMB Control Number 3060-0687 into OMB Control Number 3060-0422 and to extend the information collection requirements relating to the Commission’s hearing aid compatibility (HAC) requirements. Section 710 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the Act), requires that almost all telephones manufactured in, or imported into, this country must be hearing aid compatible. The HAC requirements ensure that people with hearing loss (regardless of whether they use hearing aids or not) can effectively use wireline telephone handsets with the legacy telephone network and with advanced communications services (ACS), which include Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). The HAC requirements are structured for handsets to provide sufficient magnetic fields to be used by people with hearing aids and to provide volume control. Congress recognized that there may be technological or economic reasons why some new telephones may not meet the hearing aid compatibility (HAC) requirement. Therefore, Congress provided a waiver request procedure. Section 68.5 of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR § 68.5, provides the criteria to be used to assess waiver requests.

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Authorizing Statute(s): US Code: 47 USC 610 Name of Law: Communications Act of 1934, as amended
  

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

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Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
	Not associated with rulemaking

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Federal Register Notices & Comments
60-day Notice:	Federal Register Citation:	Citation Date:
	86 FR 13544	03/09/2021
30-day Notice:	Federal Register Citation:	Citation Date:
	86 FR 26722	05/17/2021
Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? No

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Number of Information Collection (IC) in this ICR: 1

IC Title	Form No.	Form Name
Section 68.5, Waivers (Application for Waiver of Hearing Aid Compatibility Requirements)

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ICR Summary of Burden

	Total Request	Previously Approved	Change Due to New Statute	Change Due to Agency Discretion	Change Due to Adjustment in Estimate	Change Due to Potential Violation of the PRA
Annual Number of Responses	3,030	2	0	0	3,028	0
Annual Time Burden (Hours)	7,242	6	0	0	7,236	0
Annual Cost Burden (Dollars)	487,500	0	0	0	487,500	0

Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Increase Due to:

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: Due to the merger of information collection 3060-0687 into information collection 3060-0422 and the elimination of one-time start-up costs for the Labeling and Notices for ACS Telephonic CPE and ACTA Database for ACS Telephonic CPE requirements that were put in place three years ago, the Commission reports the following adjustments to this collection: the annual number of respondents has increased by +329, from 2 to 331 annual number of respondents; the annual number of responses has increased by +3,028,, from 2 to 3,030 annual number of responses; the annual burden hours have increased by +7,236, from 6 to 7,242 annual burden hours; and the total annual cost has increased by +$487,500, from $0 to $487,500 annual cost.

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Annual Cost to Federal Government: $399

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? No

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Common Form ICR:  No

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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:

(a) It is necessary for the proper performance of agency functions;

(b) It avoids unnecessary duplication;

(c) It reduces burden on small entities;

(d) It uses plain, coherent, and unambiguous language that is understandable to respondents;

(e) Its implementation will be consistent and compatible with current reporting and recordkeeping practices;

(f) It indicates the retention periods for recordkeeping requirements;

(g) It informs respondents of the information called for under 5 CFR 1320.8 (b)(3) about:

(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;

(h) It was developed by an office that has planned and allocated resources for the efficient and effective management and use of the information to be collected.

(i) It uses effective and efficient statistical survey methodology (if applicable); and

(j) It makes appropriate use of information technology.

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.

Certification Date: 05/17/2021

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