Pallone-Thune Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (TRACED Act)

AGENCY:

Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION:

Final rule; announcement of compliance date.

SUMMARY:

In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved an information collection associated with rules governing Implementing the Pallone-Thune Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (TRACED Act). The Commission also announces that private entities may begin submitting information in the Private Entity Robocall Portal. It removes paragraphs advising that compliance was not required until OMB approval was obtained. This document is consistent with the 2021 Report and Order, which states the Commission will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing a compliance date for the rule sections and revise the rules accordingly.

DATES:

Effective date: The amendments are effective November 10, 2022.

Compliance date: Compliance with 47 CFR 64.1204(a) and 64.1606(a), published at 86 FR 52840 on September 23, 2021, is required as of November 10, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Daniel Stepanicich, Enforcement Bureau, Telecommunications Consumers Division, at (202) 418-7451 or daniel.stepanicich@fcc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

This document announces that OMB approved the information collection requirements in §§ 64.1204(a) and 64.1606(a) on November 16, 2021.

The Commission publishes this document as an announcement of the compliance date of the 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 Nicole Ongele, Federal Communications Commission, 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 20554, regarding OMB Control Number 3060-1296. Please include the applicable OMB Control Number in your correspondence. The Commission will also accept your comments via email at PRA@fcc.gov.

To request materials in accessible formats for people with disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an email to fcc504@fcc.gov 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 final OMB approval on November 16, 2021, for the information collection requirements contained in §§ 64.1204(a) and 64.1606(a). 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 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: 3060-1296.

OMB Approval Date: November 16, 2021.

OMB Expiration Date: November 30, 2024.

Title: Private Entity Robocall and Spoofing Information Submission Portal, FCC Form 5642.

Form Number: FCC Form 5642.

Type of Review: New collection.

Respondents: Business or other for-profit entities, and not for profit institutions.

Number of Respondents and Responses: 50 respondents; 50 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: 1 hour.

Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement; third party

Obligation to Respond: Voluntary. Statutory authority is contained in the TRACED Act section 10(a).

Total Annual Burden: 50 hours.

Total Annual Cost: No Cost.

Privacy Impact Assessment: No impact(s).

Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: Assurances of confidentiality are provided to the respondents; however, respondents are made aware that their submissions may be shared with the Department of Justice, Federal Trade Commission, other Federal agencies combatting robocalls, state attorney general offices, other law enforcement entities with which the Commission has information sharing agreements, and the registered traceback consortium.

Needs and Uses: Section 10(a) of the Pallone-Thune Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (TRACED Act) directs the Commission to establish regulations to create a process that “streamlines the ways in which a private entity may voluntarily share with the Commission information relating to” a call or text message that violates prohibitions regarding robocalls or spoofing set forth section 227(b) and 227(e) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended. On June 17, 2021, the Commission adopted a Report and Order to implement section 10(a) by creating an online portal located on the Commission's website where private entities may submit information about robocall and spoofing violations. The Enforcement Bureau (Bureau) will manage this portal.

A private entity is any entity other than (1) an individual natural person or (2) a public entity. A public entity is any governmental organization at the Federal, state, or local level. Thus, the portal is not intended for individual consumers who already have a mechanism to submit robocall or spoofing complaints via the Commission's informal complaint process.

The portal requests private entities to submit certain minimum information including, but not necessarily limited to, the name of the reporting private entity, contact information, including at least one individual name and means of contacting the entity ( e.g., a phone number), the caller ID information displayed, the phone number(s) called, the date(s) and time(s) of the relevant calls or texts, the name of the reporting private entity's service provider, and a description of the problematic calls or texts. Although the portal does not reject submissions that fail to include the above information, such failure makes it more difficult for the Bureau to investigate fully and take appropriate enforcement action. Once submitted, the Bureau will review to determine whether the information presents evidence of a violation of the Commission's rules. The Bureau may share submitted information with the Department of Justice, Federal Trade Commission, other Federal agencies combatting robocalls, state attorney general offices, other law enforcement entities with which the Commission has information sharing agreements, and the registered traceback consortium.

This document also removes §§ 64.1204(c) and 64.1606(c) of the Commission's rules, which advised that compliance with §§ 64.1204(a) and 64.1606(a) was not required until OMB approval was obtained.

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 64

• Communications
• Communications common carriers
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements
• Telecommunications
• Telephone

Final Rules

For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal Communications Commission amends 47 CFR part 64 as follows.

PART 64—MISCELLANEOUS RULES RELATING TO COMMON CARRIERS

1. The authority citation for part 64 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151, 152, 154, 201, 202, 217, 218, 220, 222, 225, 226, 227, 227b, 228, 251(a), 251(e), 254(k), 255, 262, 276, 403(b)(2)(B), (c), 616, 620, 716, 1401-1473, unless otherwise noted; Pub. L. 115-141, Div. P, sec. 503, 132 Stat. 348, 1091.

2. Amend § 64.1204 by removing paragraph (c).

3. Amend § 64.1606 by removing paragraph (c).