Notice of Proposed Information Collection Requests

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

Notice of Proposed Information Collection Requests

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Proposed collection; comment request.

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SUMMARY: The proposed information collection requirements described

below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. The FTC is

soliciting public comments on proposed extensions of Paperwork

Reduction Act clearance for information collection requirements

contained in twelve rules issued or enforced by the Commission. These

OMB clearances expire on December 31, 1996. The FTC proposes that OMB

extend its approvals through December 31, 1999.

DATES: Comments due: October 25, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office

Building, Room 3228, Washington, D.C. 20503, ATTN: Desk Officer for the

Federal Trade Commission, and to Elaine W. Crockett, Office of the

General Counsel, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, D.C. 20580,

(202) 326-2453.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information or copies of the proposed

information requirements should be addressed to Elaine W. Crockett at

the address listed above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FTC will submit the proposed information

collections to OMB for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction

Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended). The purpose of this

Notice is to solicit comments from members of the public and affected

agencies concerning the proposed collections of information to: (1)

Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary

for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including

whether the information will have practical utility, (2) Evaluate the

accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed

collection of information, including the validity of the methodology

and assumptions used, (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of

the information to be collected, and (4) Minimize the burden of the

collection of information on those who are to respond, including

through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or

other technological collection techniques or other forms of information

technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

The FTC attempts to minimize the burden of collections of

information on the public whenever possible. In this regard it should

be noted that the great majority of the disclosure requirements

discussed below entail burdens associated with statutorily required

disclosure provisions. For example, the Truth-in-Lending, Textile Act,

and Fair Packaging Regulations all involve large burden estimates,

totaling approximately 69 million burden hours. Much of this burden

reflects statutory provisions that require the disclosure of such basic

consumer information as the annual percentage interest rate charged on

loans, the composition of clothing and other textile items, and the

size and content of packaged products. While the burden imposed on any

individual party is often quite small (sometimes measured in seconds),

the number of affected parties is often very high (sometimes measured

in millions), and the total burden is therefore large. See e.g., the

Regulations implementing the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the

Electronic Fund Transfer Act, and the Consumer Leasing Act.

The great majority of the recordkeeping and reporting provisions

discussed below entail burdens that are necessary for the enforcement

of the regulation and/or statute. In some instances, these

recordkeeping requirements are statutorily mandated. See, e.g. the

regulations implementing the Fur Products Labeling Act. In most

instances, the regulated entities keep these records in the normal

course of business, and thus these recordkeeping requirements do not

impose an additional ``burden'' on members of the public. See 5 C.F.R.

Sec. 1320.3(b)(2) (burden hours exclude effort that would be expended

regardless of any regulatory requirement).

1. Collection Title: The Games of Chance Rule, 16 C.F.R. Part 419

OMB Control Number: 3084-0067.

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

Rule establishes both recordkeeping and disclosure requirements for

food and gasoline retailers in conducting and advertising games of

chance. The Rule requires that games promoters retain records showing

compliance with certain provisions, and identify winners, prizes, and

number of game pieces. The recordkeeping requirements assist in the

enforcement of the Rule.

[[Page 43765]]

The Rule also requires that games promoters disclose the odds-of-

winning and other prize information in broadcast and print

advertisements. Promoters must also post a winners' list, containing

the names and addresses of winners, the prizes won, and the number of

game pieces. The disclosure requirements assist customers in

determining both the likelihood of winning prizes and the legitimacy of

the game.

Estimate of information collection burden: 8,250 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: Approximately 30 independent firms contract to

conduct an average of 50 promotions per year at an average burden per

respondent of 150 hours for a total recordkeeping burden of 4,500

hours.

Disclosures: Approximately 30 game promoters conduct an average of

50 games per year at an average burden per promotion of 2.5 hours for a

total disclosure burden of 3,750 hours.

2. Title: Regulations Promulgated Under the Equal Credit Opportunity

Act, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1691 et seq. (``ECOA''), (``Regulation B'')

Control Number: 3084-0087.

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

ECOA prohibits discrimination in the extension of credit on the basis

of sex, marital status, race, color, religion, national origin, age,

derivation of income from a public assistance program, or good faith

exercise of any right under the Consumer Credit Protection Act.

Regulation B, 12 C.F.R. Part 202, promulgated by the Board of Governors

of the Federal Reserve System, implements the ECOA. Among other things,

section 202.12 of Regulation B requires creditors to retain records

relating to consumer credit applications for 25 months, and records of

business credit applications for 12 months. Section 202.13 of

Regulation B requires creditors that receive mortgage credit

applications to record the applicant's race or national origin, sex,

marital status, and age. These requirements assist in enforcement of

the Act and implementing Regulation.

Regulation B also has two primary disclosure provisions, both of

which are statutorily required. First, creditors are required to

provide applicants with information about adverse credit actions. 15

U.S.C. Sec. 1691(d). Second, creditors are required to provide

notification to mortgage credit applicants concerning appraisal

reports. 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1691(e). These disclosure requirements assist

consumers in understanding their rights under the ECOA. They also

assist the Commission in detecting unlawful discrimination.

Estimate of information collection burden: 14,400,000 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: The FTC estimates that Regulation B's recordkeeping

requirements affect 1 million credit firms at an average burden of 1

hour per firm per year, for a total estimated burden of 1,000,000

hours. The FTC estimates that approximately 4,000 creditors are subject

to the requirement to collect information about race/national origin,

sex, age, and marital status and that approximately 4 million credit

applications are affected. Because Regulation B contains a model form

that creditors may use to collect the information, staff estimates that

the burden associated with this recordkeeping requirement is no more

than one minute for each application for a burden total of 66,700

hours.

Disclosures: The disclosures are all specifically mandated by the

ECOA. Approximately 1 million creditors are subject to the requirement

to provide notice of adverse credit action and 200 million accounts are

covered by this requirement. Because the Regulation provides model

forms for these notices, the burden of providing notice of adverse

action is estimated to be 4 minutes for each application, for a burden

total of 13.3 million hours.

The other disclosure requirement under Regulation B involves

providing appraisal reports to consumers. The FTC estimates that 4,000

creditors and 4 million mortgage credit applications are subject to

this requirement. Because creditors have the option to include the

required notice on other forms that would be provided to the consumer

during the ordinary course of business, the additional burden of making

this disclosure is estimated to be 15 seconds for each application, for

a total burden estimate of 16,666 hours.

3. Title: Regulations Promulgated Under the Electronic Fund Transfer

Act, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1693 et seq. (``EFTA''), (``Regulation E'')

Control Number: 3084-0085.

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

EFTA requires accurate disclosure of the costs, terms and rights

relating to electronic fund transfer (EFT) services to consumers.

Regulation E, promulgated by the Board of Governors of the Federal

Reserve System, implements the EFTA. Among other things, section 205.13

of Regulation E requires entities subject to the EFTA to retain

evidence of compliance with the regulation for two years. These

requirements assist in the enforcement of the Act and implementing

regulations. The FTC is the enforcing agency for the EFTA and

Regulation E as to all entities providing EFT services except those

(such as federally chartered or insured depository institutions) that

are subject to the regulatory authority of another federal agency.

Regulation E contains several disclosure requirements relating to

the terms and conditions of electronic fund transfer services. For

example, among other disclosures, Regulation E requires financial

institutions to (1) make initial disclosures to a customer about the

terms and conditions of electronic fund transfer accounts; (2) deliver

written notices concerning changes in certain terms or conditions in

the customer's account; and (3) send periodic statements to customers

concerning any account to or from which electronic fund transfers can

be made. The disclosure requirements of Regulation E assist consumers

in assessing the costs and terms of EFT services. The vast majority of

Regulation E's disclosure requirements are expressly mandated by the

EFTA. See, e.g., consumer liability for unauthorized use, 15 U.S.C.

Sec. 1693g; initial disclosures, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1693c(a); and

documentation of transfers and receipts.

Estimate of information collection burden: 20,500,000 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: The FTC estimates that Regulation E's recordkeeping

requirements affect 500,000 firms that offer EFT services to consumers

at an average annual burden of 1 hour per firm, for a total

recordkeeping estimate of 500,000 hours.

Disclosures: Regulation E also contains a wide variety of

disclosure requirements, which are more difficult to quantify. The

number of regulated entities and the estimated amount of time necessary

to comply with each requirement varies widely according to the specific

provisions of each requirement, and the number of entities and the

number of transactions affected by these requirements cannot readily be

ascertained. Also, in recent years a large number of additional

entities subject to Regulation E have entered the market.

As stated above, the FTC estimates that approximately 500,000 firms

offer EFT services to consumers. However, the average burden hours

relating to disclosures vary significantly according to the type of

transaction involved and related disclosures. For example, EFT initial

account disclosures are sent to approximately 1 million new accounts

per year at an average burden of 1 second per account, whereas

investigations and resolutions of account errors average 10 minutes per

[[Page 43766]]

complaint per year. Although this figure is difficult to quantify, the

FTC estimates that the total burden estimate relating to disclosures is

approximately 20,000,000 hours.

4. Title: Regulations Promulgated Under the Consumer Leasing Act, 15

U.S.C. Sec. 1667 et seq., (``CLA''), (``Regulation M'')

Control Number: 3084-0086.

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

CLA requires accurate disclosure of the costs and terms of leases to

consumers. Regulation M, promulgated by the Board of Governors of the

Federal Reserve System, implements the CLA. Section 213.6 of Regulation

M requires lessors to retain evidence of compliance with the regulation

(other than advertising requirements) for two years after the date

disclosures are required to be made. These requirements assist in

enforcement of the Act and implementing regulations. The FTC is the

enforcing agency for the Consumer Leasing Act as to all lessors except

those (such as federally chartered or insured depository institutions)

that are subject to the regulatory authority of another federal agency.

Regulation M imposes disclosure requirements on all types of

lessors, including leasing companies, finance companies, auto dealers,

and some furniture, appliance, radio and television dealers. The

written disclosures required by Regulation M are specifically required

by the CLA. See 15 U.S.C. 1667a. Similarly, the advertising disclosures

required by Regulation M are also specifically required by the CLA. See

15 U.S.C. 1667c. These disclosures assist consumers in understanding

the terms of leases prior to entering into a lease agreement.

Estimate of information collection burden: 533,400 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: The FTC estimates that 100,000 firms leasing

products to consumers are affected by Regulation M's recordkeeping

requirements at an average burden of 1 hour per year, for a total

recordkeeping burden of 100,000 hours.

Disclosures: The burden relating to disclosure requirements has

increased significantly in recent years because the number of consumer

automobile leases (the largest category of consumer leases) has grown

dramatically and the current burden estimate reflects this growth. The

FTC estimates that approximately 2,500,000 lease transactions are

subject to the written disclosure requirements and that providing the

required disclosures takes an average of 10 minutes per lease for a

total burden related to lease transactions of 416,700 hours. With

respect to lease advertising disclosures, most (although certainly not

all) lease promotions offer automobile transactions. The FTC estimates

that approximately 1 million lease advertisements per year are affected

by the Rule at 1 minute per advertisement for a total burden related to

lease advertisements of 16,666 burden hours.

5. Title: Regulations Promulgated Under the Truth-in-Lending Act, 15

U.S.C. Sec. 1601 et seq. (``TILA''), (``Regulation Z'')

Control Number: 3084-0088.

Description of collection of information and proposed use: The TILA

was enacted to foster comparison credit shopping and informed credit

decisionmaking by requiring accurate disclosure of the costs and terms

of credit to consumers. Regulation Z, promulgated by the Board of

Governors of the Federal Reserve System, implements the TILA. Among

other things, section 226.25 of Regulation Z requires creditors to

retain evidence of compliance with the regulation (other than the

advertising requirements) for two years after the date disclosures are

required to be made or other action is required to be taken. These

requirements assist in enforcement of the Act and implementing

regulations. The FTC enforces the TILA as to all creditors except those

(such as federally chartered or insured depository institutions) that

are subject to the regulatory authority of another federal agency.

Regulation Z requires creditors to calculate and disclose terms

that apply to both open-end credit (e.g., revolving credit or credit

lines) and closed-end credit (e.g., installment financing). Regulation

Z imposes disclosure requirements on all types of creditors in

connection with consumer credit, including mortgage companies, finance

companies, retailers, and credit card issuers, to ensure that consumers

are fully apprised of the terms of financing prior to consummation of

the transaction and, in some instances, during the loan term. It also

imposes advertising disclosure requirements on advertisers of consumer

credit. Among other things, Regulation Z also establishes billing error

resolution procedures and limits consumer liability for the

unauthorized use of credit cards. The vast majority of Regulation Z's

disclosure requirements are expressly mandated by the TILA. See, e.g.,

open-end initial disclosures, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1637(a); and open-end

periodic disclosures, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1637(b). In most instances, the

disclosure and other requirements of Regulation Z form the basis both

for administrative enforcement of the TILA by the FTC and other

agencies and for private rights of action by private litigants.

Estimate of Collection of information burden: 41,600,000 total

burden hours.

Recordkeeping and Disclosures: In recent years Congress has amended

the TILA to include additional requirements. In addition, the various

types of credit accounts affected by the Regulation have greatly

increased. Because Regulation Z contains a wide variety of

requirements, it is extremely difficult to quantify the number of

entities and the number of transactions affected by these requirements.

Further, the number of regulated entities and the estimated amount of

time necessary to comply with each requirement varies widely according

to the specific provisions of each requirement. For example, businesses

place approximately 200,000 open-end home equity line of credit

advertisements per year at an average burden of 5 minutes per

advertisement. On the other hand, 4 million residential loan

originations are made per year at 10 minutes per loan. These figures

are difficult to quantify; however, the FTC estimates Regulation Z's

recordkeeping requirements to be approximately 1,000,000 hours and

Regulation Z's disclosure requirements to be 40,600,000 burden hours.

6. Title: Regulations Under the Textile Fiber Products Identification

Act, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 70 et seq. (``Textile Act'')

Control Number: 3084-0047.

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

Textile Act prohibits misbranding and false advertising of textile

fiber products. The Textile Act Regulations, 16 C.F.R. Sec. 303, which

implement the Textile Act, require accurate disclosure of material

product information in a standardized format. Many of these disclosures

are required by the Textile Act. See 15 U.S.C. 70(b). The disclosure

requirements assist consumers in making informed purchasing decisions.

The Regulations also require manufacturers and marketers who

substitute labels (e.g., resellers) to maintain records, invoices, and

other documents that reflect the bases relied upon in making fiber

content and country of origin disclosures. These recordkeeping

requirements are specifically mandated by the Textile Act. See 15

U.S.C. 70d. The recordkeeping requirements assist the

[[Page 43767]]

Commission in enforcing the Regulations.

The Regulations also contain a petition procedure for requesting

the establishment of generic names for textile fibers. The information

submitted is used by the FTC to determine whether the petition should

be granted.

Estimate of information collection burden: 15,500,000 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: The FTC estimates that approximately 30,000 textile

firms retain required records at an average burden of 43 hours per

year, for a total recordkeeping burden of 1,290,000 hours. Disclosures:

The FTC also estimates that approximately 40,000 textile firms make

disclosures for 9,300,000,000 covered products at an average burden of

5.5 seconds per item, for a total disclosure burden of 14,208,000

hours. Petitions: Approximately 1 textile firm submits 1 petition per

year at an average burden of 50 hours.

7. Title: Regulations Under the Wool Products Labeling Act, 5 U.S.C.

Sec. 68 et seq. (``Wool Act'')

Control Number: 3084-0047.

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

Wool Act prohibits misbranding of wool products. The Wool Act

Regulations, 16 CFR Sec. 300, require accurate disclosure of material

information about wool products, including fiber content and country of

origin disclosures. Many of these disclosures are mandated by the Wool

Act. See 15 U.S.C. Sec. 68b. The disclosure requirements assist

consumers in making informed purchasing decisions.

The Regulations also require manufacturers and other marketers of

covered products to maintain records that support both claims made on

labels and invoices and savings representations. These recordkeeping

requirements are specifically mandated by the Wool Act, see 15 U.S.C.

Sec. 68d, and assist the Commission in enforcing the Regulations.

The Regulations also contain a procedure for filing a petition

concerning whether or not representations of the fiber content of a

class of articles are commonly made, or whether or not the textile

content of certain products is insignificant or inconsequential. The

information submitted is used by the FTC to determine whether the

petition should be granted.

Estimate of information collection burden: 2,291,000 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: The FTC estimates that approximately 15,000 wool

firms retain records at an average burden of 12.73 hours per firm, for

a total recordkeeping burden of 191,000 hours. Disclosures:

Approximately 20,000 wool firms make disclosures on 1,375,000,000

covered products at an average burden of 5.5 seconds per item, for a

total disclosure burden of approximately 2,100,000 hours. Petitions:

Approximately 1 wool firm submits 1 petition per year at an average

burden of 50 hours.

8. Title: Regulations Under the Fur Products Labeling Act, 15 U.S.C.

Sec. 69 et. seq. (``Fur Act'')

Control Number: 3084-0047.

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

Fur Act prohibits misbranding and false advertising of fur products.

The Fur Products Regulations, 16 CFR Sec. 301, which implement the Fur

Products Labeling Act, require accurate disclosure of material

information about fur products, including the fur content and the

country of origin. Many of these disclosures are mandated by the Fur

Act. See 15 U.S.C. Sec. 69b. The disclosure requirements assist

consumers in making informed purchasing decisions.

The Regulations also require manufacturers and dealers in fur

products to retain records to support claims made on labels and to

support representations made in advertisements. The recordkeeping

requirements are specifically mandated by the Fur Act, see 15 U.S.C.

Sec. 69e, and assist the Commission in enforcing the Regulations.

The Regulations also provide a procedure for exemption from certain

disclosure provisions under the Act.

Estimate of Information Collection Burden: 137,600 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: The burden associated with the rule's general

recordkeeping requirements is estimated to be 15 to 30 minutes per week

for retailers and 1 hour per week for manufacturers. With an allowance

for the specific recordkeeping requirements associated with exempted

products and price savings claims, the total recordkeeping burden

associated with the rules is estimated to be approximately 59,000

hours.

Disclosures: The FTC estimates that approximately 600 fur products

manufacturers make an average of 2,000 garments per year. In addition,

approximately 1,000 retailers will substitute labels for 500 fur

garments apiece. Preparation of a label for each garment will take an

average of 2 minutes per garment for a total labeling burden of 57,000

hours annually. Because invoices will be generated in the normal course

of business, the additional time needed to comply with the rule's

invoice disclosure requirement should be minimal and is estimated to be

30 seconds per garment, or an industry total of approximately 14,000

hours. The FTC also estimates that the advertising disclosure

requirement in the rule imposes an average burden of 1 hour per year

for each of the approximately 7,500 fur retailers in the nation, for an

estimated burden of 7,500 hours.

Petitions: Over the past decade, the FTC has received no petitions

for an exemption under the Fur Act provisions. Nonetheless, the FTC is

estimating this yearly burden to be approximately 50 hours.

9. Title: The ``900'' Number Rule, 16 CFR Part 308

Control Number: 3084-0102

Description of the collection of information and proposed use: The

900 Number Rule establishes requirements for advertising and operating

pay-per-call services. The Rule also establishes procedures for billing

and collecting charges for these services. The primary purpose of the

Rule is to assist in preventing unfair and deceptive acts or practices

by ensuring that consumers are informed of cost and other material

information prior to calling 900 numbers; to provide consumers with

adequate billing information subsequent to calling 900 numbers; and to

establish a mechanism for disputing charges for 900 number calls. The

advertising, preamble, and billing statement disclosures are

specifically mandated by the Telephone Disclosure and Dispute

Resolution Act. 15 U.S.C. Sec. 5701 et seq (``TDDRA''). The TDDRA also

requires the rules under the billing dispute resolution portion of the

Rule to be substantially similar to the requirements imposed under the

Truth-in-Lending Act and Fair Credit Billing Acts. 15 U.S.C.

Sec. 5721(a)(2).

In addition, any common carrier who provides telecommunication

services to a provider of pay-per-call services is required to provide

the Commission with financial information and other records relating to

the arrangement. This requirement assists in the enforcement of the

Rule by permitting the Commission to obtain information from telephone

companies that provide transmission services to 900 number providers.

Estimate of information collection burden: 3,241,200 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping/Reporting: The FTC estimates that approximately 25

common carriers make records available to the Commission at an average

burden

[[Page 43768]]

of 5 hours per submission, for a total reporting burden of 125 hours.

Disclosures: As directed by statute, the 900 Number Rule requires

certain disclosures to be made in advertisements for 900 numbers.

Specifically, every advertisement for a 900 number must contain a

disclosure of the cost of the telephone call. Other types of 900 number

advertisements (those directed primarily to individuals under 18,

sweepstakes ads, and federal programs ads) must contain additional

disclosures. The FTC estimates that each disclosure mandated by the

Rule requires 1 hour of compliance time. Of 60,000 advertisements

(20,000 information providers x 3 services/ads for each),

approximately 30% are advertisements for sweepstakes or federal

programs, and approximately 50% are directed to individuals under the

age of 18. Thus, it would take 110,000 burden hours (60,000 (cost) +

20,000 (sweepstakes/federal programs) + 30,000 (parental permission) to

comply with all of the advertising disclosures contained in the Rule.

The FTC estimates that approximately 60,000 pay-per-call services

are required to make disclosures in the preamble at an average burden

of 10 hours for each preamble, for a total burden estimate of 600,000

hours.

In addition, the 900 Number Rule requires information providers to

ensure that disclosures appear on each billing statement. The FTC

estimates that approximately 2,000 of 20,000 information providers will

conduct monitoring of billing statements at an average burden estimate

of 12 hours per provider, for a total burden estimate of 24,000 hours.

Pursuant to the statute, the Rule also requires that information

providers ensure that certain disclosures appear on each billing

statement that contains a charge for a call to a 900 number. The FTC

estimates that approximately 50,000,000 calls are made to pay-per-call

services each year; of those calls, approximately 5% result in charges

about which consumers call to complain and which constitute ``billing

errors'' as defined by the Rule. While the time it takes to respond to

each alleged billing error will vary according to the type of complaint

and the ease with which it can be resolved, staff estimates that, on

average, a billing entity will spend 1 hour resolving each alleged

billing error. Accordingly, the compliance burden would be 2,500,000

hours (5% of 50,000,000 x 1 hour for each billing error) to comply

with the dispute resolution requirements contained in the rule.

Billing entities are also required to notify pay-per-call customers

in writing, at least annually, of their rights and obligations with

respect to pay-per-call service charges. The FTC estimates that it will

take 7,000 hours for billing entities to notify pay-per-call customers

in writing, at least annually, of their rights and obligations with

respect to pay-per-call service charges (1400 billing entities x 5

hours to review and revise disclosure each year), for a total burden

estimate of 7,000 hours.

Based on these figures, the total yearly burden of the 900 Number

Rule is approximately 3,241,125 hours (125 reporting hours + 3,241,000

disclosure hours).

10. Title: The Care Labeling Rule, 16 CFR Part 423

Control Number: 3084-0103.

Description of collection of information and proposed use: The Care

Labeling Rule requires manufacturers and importers to attach a

permanent care label to all covered textile clothing. Also,

manufacturers and importers of piece goods used to make textile

clothing must provide the same care information on the end of each bolt

or roll of fabric. These labels disclose information about washing or

dry cleaning the apparel or fabric. These requirements assist consumers

in making purchasing decisions and in deciding what method to use to

clean their apparel. Professional cleaners also use this information to

clean apparel in a manner that avoids damage to the garment. The Rule

also provides a procedure whereby a member of the industry may petition

the Commission for an exemption for products that are claimed to be

harmed in appearance by the requirement for a permanent label.

Estimate of information collection burden: 3,985,000 total burden

hours.

Disclosures: The FTC estimates that approximately 25,000 apparel

manufacturers and importers make disclosures at an average burden of

approximately 159 hours per company per year, for a total burden

estimate of approximately 3,985,000 hours. Petitions: Only 1 petition,

subsequently withdrawn, has been filed in recent years. Thus, an

estimated 50 hours for preparing a petition has been incorporated into

the total burden calculated for the disclosure requirements.

11. Title: Regulation Under the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act, 15

U.S.C. Sec. 1450 (``FPLA'')

Control Number: 3084-0110.

Description of collection of information and proposed use: The FPLA

was enacted to eliminate consumer deception concerning product size

representations and package content information. The Regulations that

implement the FPLA, 16 CFR Sec. 500, establish requirements for the

manner and form of labeling consumer commodities. Section 4 of the FPLA

specifically requires packages or labels to be marked with: (1) a

statement of identity, (2) a net quantity of contents disclosure, and

(3) the name and place of business of a company that is responsible for

the product.

Estimate of Information Collection Burden: 12,000,000 total burden

hours.

Recordkeeping: Most of the records that manufacturers, packagers,

distributors, and retailers of consumer commodities are required to

retain would otherwise be kept in the normal course of business, and

any hours that would constitute a ``burden'' under the Paperwork

Reduction Act have been included in the figure established for

disclosures.

Disclosures: The FTC estimates that approximately 1,200,000

manufacturers, packagers, distributors, and retailers of consumer

commodities make disclosures, most of which are statutorily required,

at an average burden of 10 hours per company, for a total disclosure

burden of 12,000,000 hours.

12. Title: The Fuel Rating Rule, 16 CFR Part 306

Control Number: 3084-0068.

Description of collection of information and proposed use: The Fuel

Rating Rule establishes standard procedures for determining, certifying

and disclosing the octane rating of automotive gasoline and the

automotive fuel rating of alternative liquid automotive fuel. These

requirements are specifically mandated by the Petroleum Marketing

Practices Act. See 15 U.S.C. Sec. 2822(a)-(c). The fuel rating

determination, certification, and labeling requirements establish a

framework that provides consumers with reliable, comparable, and

readily available information about the fuel ratings of similar types

of fuel.

The Rule also requires refiners, producers, importers, distributors

and retailers to retain records of delivery tickets, letters of

certification or tests upon which automotive fuel ratings are based.

The primary purpose of the Rule's recordkeeping requirements is to

preserve evidence of automotive fuel rating certification for

enforcement purposes.

Estimate of Information Collection Burden: 43,000 total burden

hours.

[[Page 43769]]

Recordkeeping: The FTC estimates that approximately 190,000

automotive fuel industry members retain records at an average annual

burden of 6 minutes per industry member, for a total recordkeeping

burden of 19,000 hours. Disclosures: The FTC also estimates that

approximately 24,000 distributors make required disclosures at an

average annual burden of 1 hour per industry member, for a total

disclosure burden of 24,000 hours.

Benjamin I. Berman,

Acting Secretary.

[FR Doc. 96-21799 Filed 8-23-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6750-01-M