Notices. Notice

786 words·~4 min read·/register/2023/05/02/2023-09293

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BILLING CODE 6750-01-P FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Extension AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC” or “Commission”) requests that the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) extend for an additional three years the current Paperwork Reduction Act (“PRA”) clearance for information collection requirements in its Informal Dispute Settlement Procedures Rule (“the Dispute Settlement Rule” or “the Rule”).

The current clearance expires on July 31, 2023. DATES: Comments must be filed by June 1, 2023. ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper, by following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to *www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.* Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Basford, General Attorney, Division of Marketing Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580,

(202)326-2343, *lbasford@ftc.gov.* SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: *Title:* Informal Dispute Settlement Procedures Rule (the Dispute Settlement Rule or the Rule), 16 CFR part 703. *OMB Control Number:* 3084-0113. *Type of Review:* Extension of a currently approved collection. *Abstract:* The Dispute Settlement Rule is one of three rules 1 that the FTC implemented pursuant to requirements of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. 2301 *et seq.* (“Warranty Act” or “Act”). 2 The Dispute Settlement Rule, 16 CFR part 703, specifies the minimum standards which must be met by any informal dispute settlement mechanism (“IDSM”) that is incorporated into a written consumer product warranty and which the consumer is required to use before pursuing legal remedies under the Act in court (known as the “prior resort requirement”). 3 1 The other two rules relate to the information that must appear in any written warranty offered on a consumer product costing more than $15 and the pre-sale availability of warranty terms. 2 40 FR 60168 (Dec. 31, 1975). 3 The Dispute Settlement Rule applies only to those firms that choose to require consumers to use an IDSM. Neither the Rule nor the Act requires warrantors to set up IDSMs. A warrantor is free to set up an IDSM that does not comply with the Rule as long as the warranty does not contain a prior resort requirement. The Dispute Settlement Rule standards for IDSMs include requirements concerning the mechanism's structure ( *e.g.,* funding, staffing, and neutrality), the qualifications of staff or decision makers, the mechanism's procedures for resolving disputes ( *e.g.,* notification, investigation, time limits for decisions, and follow-up), recordkeeping, and annual audits. The Rule requires that IDSMs establish written operating procedures and provide copies of those procedures upon request. *Likely Respondents:* Warrantors that Use an IDSM (Automobile Manufacturers) and Informal Dispute Settlement Mechanisms. *Estimated Annual Burden Hours:* 9,267 (derived from 6,210 recordkeeping hours in addition to 2,070 reporting hours and 987 disclosure hours). *Estimated Annual Labor Costs:* $239,093. *Estimated Annual Capital or Other Non-labor Costs:* $344,560. *Request for Comment:* On January 9, 2023, the FTC sought public comment on the information collection requirements in the Dispute Settlement Rule. 88 FR 1231 (Jan. 9, 2023). No relevant comments were received during the public comment period. Pursuant to OMB regulations, 5 CFR part 1320, that implement the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 *et seq.,* the FTC is providing this second opportunity for public comment while seeking OMB approval to renew the pre-existing clearance for the Rule. For more details about the Rule requirements and the basis for the calculations summarized below, see 88 FR 1231. Your comment—including your name and your state—will be placed on the public record of this proceeding. Because your comment will be made public, you are solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any sensitive personal information, such as anyone's Social Security number; date of birth; driver's license number or other state identification number or foreign country equivalent; passport number; financial account number; or credit or debit card number. You are also solely responsible for ensuring that your comment does not include any sensitive health information, such as medical records or other individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment should not include any “[t]rade secret or any commercial or financial information which is . . . privileged or confidential”—as provided in Section 6(f) of the FTC Act 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)—including, in particular, competitively sensitive information, such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, patterns devices, manufacturing processes, or customer names. Josephine Liu, Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel. [FR Doc. 2023-09293 Filed 5-1-23; 8:45 am]

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