Proposed Extension of Approval of Information Collection; Comment Request-Omnidirectional Citizens Band Base Station Antennas

AGENCY:

Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC or Commission) requests comments on a proposed extension of approval of a collection of information from manufacturers and importers of citizens band base station antennas. The collection of information is in regulations setting forth the Safety Standard for Omnidirectional Citizens Band Base Station Antennas (16 CFR part 1204). These regulations establish testing and recordkeeping requirements for manufacturers and importers of antennas subject to the standard. The Commission will consider all comments received in response to this notice, before requesting an extension of approval of this collection of information from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

DATES:

The Office of the Secretary must receive comments not later than December 3, 2012.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2013-0003, by any of the following methods:

Electronic Submissions

Submit electronic comments in the following way:

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov . Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

To ensure timely processing of comments, the Commission is no longer accepting comments submitted by electronic mail (email), except through www.regulations.gov .

Written Submissions

Submit written submissions in the following way:

Mail/Hand delivery/Courier (for paper, disk, or CD-ROM submissions), preferably in five copies, to: Office of the Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission, Room 502, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; telephone (301) 504-7923.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name and docket number for this notice. All comments received may be posted without change, including any personal identifiers, contact information, or other personal information provided, to http://www.regulations.gov . Do not submit confidential business information, trade secret information, or other sensitive or protected information electronically. Such information should be submitted in writing.

Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov .

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For further information contact: Robert H. Squibb, Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; (301) 504-7815, or by email to: rsquibb@cpsc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background

In 1982, the Commission issued the Safety Standard for Omnidirectional Citizens Band Antennas (16 CFR part 1204) to reduce risks of death and serious injury that may result if an omnidirectional antenna contacts an overhead power line while being erected or removed from its site. The standard contains performance tests to demonstrate that an antenna will not transmit a harmful electric current if it contacts an electric power line with a voltage of 14,500 volts phase-to-ground. Certification regulations implementing the standard require manufacturers, importers, and private labelers of antennas subject to the standard to perform tests to demonstrate that those products meet the requirements of the standard and to maintain records of those tests. The certification regulations are codified at 16 CFR part 1204, Subpart B.

The Commission uses the information compiled and maintained by manufacturers, importers, and private labelers of antennas subject to the standard to help protect the public from risks of injury or death associated with omnidirectional citizens band base station antennas. More specifically, this information helps the Commission determine that antennas subject to the standard comply with all applicable requirements. The Commission also uses this information to obtain corrective actions if omnidirectional citizens band base station antennas fail to comply with the standard in a manner that creates a substantial risk of injury to the public.

OMB approved the collection of information in the certification regulations under control number 3041-0006. OMB's most recent extension of approval expires on December 12, 2012. The Commission now proposes to request an extension of approval without change for the collection of information in the certification regulations.

B. Estimated Burden

Commission staff estimates that about five firms manufacture or import citizens band base station antennas subject to the standard. Commission staff estimates that the certification regulations will impose an average annual burden of about 220 hours on each of those firms. That burden will result from conducting the testing required by the regulations and maintaining records of the results of that testing. The total annual burden imposed by the regulations on manufacturers and importers of citizens band base station antennas is approximately 1,100 hours.

The hourly wage for the testing and recordkeeping required to conduct the testing and maintain records required by the regulations is approximately $61.75 (Bureau of Labor Statistics: total compensation for management, professional, and related workers in goods-producing private industries: http://www.bls.gov/ncs ), for an estimated annual cost to the industry of $67,925.

Commission staff will expend approximately 40 hours reviewing records required to be maintained for omnidirectional citizens band base station antennas. The annual cost to the federal government of the collection of information in these regulations is estimated to be $3,309. This estimate uses an annual total compensation of $119,238 (the equivalent of a GS-14 step 5 employee, with an additional 30.7 percent added for benefits.)

C. Request for Comments

The Commission solicits written comments from all interested persons about the proposed collection of information. The Commission specifically solicits information relevant to the following topics:

—Whether the collection of information described above is necessary for the proper performance of the Commission's functions, including whether the information would have practical utility;

—Whether the estimated burden of the proposed collection of information is accurate;

—Whether the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected could be enhanced; and

—Whether the burden imposed by the collection of information could be minimized by use of automated, electronic, or other technological collection techniques, or other forms of information technology.