[Federal Register: February 8, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 26)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 6380-6381]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08fe06-15]
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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 1
[FCC 06-6]
Amendment of the Commission's Rules Regarding Petitions for
Review
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Commission amends its regulations relating to the
procedures to be followed when parties appealing Commission actions
file in different courts of appeals. If within ten days after issuance
of an order, the Commission receives two or more petitions for review
filed with different courts of appeals, it is required to notify the
judicial panel on multidistrict litigation, which then randomly selects
one of those courts of appeals to consider the petitions for review.
The Commission's regulations implement this provision by specifying
that a party wishing to avail itself of these procedures must, within
ten days after issuance of an order, file with the Commission's Office
of General Counsel a copy of its petition for review as filed and date-
stamped by the court of appeals. This amendment conforms the
Commission's regulations to the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure by
providing that weekends and holidays will not be included when counting
this ten-day period.
DATES: Effective March 10, 2006.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David S. Senzel, Office of General
Counsel (202) 418-1720.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Order,
FCC 06-6, adopted on January 24, 2006, and released January 26, 2006.
The full text of the Order is available for inspection and copying
during normal business hours in the FCC Reference Information Center,
Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-A257, Washington, DC 20554.
Copies of filings may be purchased from the Commission's copy
contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc., Portals II. 445 12th Street,
SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554, telephone (202) 488-5300,
facsimile (202) 488-5563, TTY (202) 488-5562, e-mail fcc@bcpiweb.com,
Web site http://www.bcpiweb.com This document may also be viewed on the Commission's Internet Web at http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_.
public/attachmatch/FCC-06-6A1.pdf.
Accessible formats (computer diskettes, large print, audio
recording and Braille) are available to persons with disabilities by
contacting the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, at (202) 418-
0531, TTY (202) 418-7365, or at fcc504@fcc.gov.
Summary of Order
1. By this order, the Commission amends 47 CFR 1.13(a)(2) to
eliminate an inconsistency with the Federal Rules of Appellate
Procedure (Federal Rules) that arose as a result of the 2002 amendments
to the Federal Rules. Section 1.13 of the Commission's rules implements
the provisions of 28 U.S.C. 2112. That statutory provision, in relevant
part, is applicable to situations where different parties seeking
review of the same agency order file petitions for review in different
courts of appeals. Under 28 U.S.C. 2112(a), if, ``within ten days after
issuance of the order,'' an agency receives two or more petitions for
review filed with different courts of appeals, that agency is required
to notify the judicial panel on multidistrict litigation, which then
randomly selects one of those courts of appeals to consider the
petitions for review. Section 1.13(a)(1) of the Commission's rules
implements this provision by specifying that a party wishing to avail
itself of these procedures must, within ten days after issuance of an
order, file with the Commission's Office of General Counsel (OGC) a
copy of its petition for review as filed and date-stamped by the court
of appeals with which it was filed.
2. The inconsistency which the Commission corrects by this order
concerns the manner in which the ten-day period for filing petitions
with OGC is computed. Section 1.13(a)(2) of the Commission's Rules
provides that ``[c]omputation of time of the ten-day period for filing
copies of petitions for review shall be governed by Sec. 1.4 of the
Commission's Rules.'' Section 1.4(g), in turn, sets forth the general
Commission rule that, unless otherwise provided, intermediate holidays
shall not be counted only in determining filing periods of less than
seven days. The term holidays is defined to include Saturdays, Sundays,
other recognized Federal legal holidays, and other days on which the
Commission's offices are closed. 47 CFR. 1.4(e).
3. Because the period for filing petitions for review with OGC
pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2112(a) for invoking the random selection process
is not less than seven days, weekends and holidays would appear to be
counted in determining the ten-day period under existing Sec. 1.13 of
the Commission's rules. Such a determination, however, conflicts with
current Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 26(a)(2). That rule applies
``in computing any period of time specified in these rules or in any
local court rule, court order, or applicable statute,'' and now states
that computations must ``[e]xclude intermediate Saturdays, Sundays, and
legal holidays when the period is less than 11 days, unless stated in
calendar days.'' \1\ Thus, Rule 26(a)(2), in contrast to existing 47
CFR 1.13, excludes weekends and holidays in making the relevant ten-day
computation under 28 U.S.C. 2112. Because the Commission's Rules should
be consistent with, rather than conflict with, the Federal Rules of
Appellate Procedure, the Commission amends Sec. 1.13(a)(2) to replace
the
[[Page 6381]]
reference to Sec. 1.4 of the Commission's Rules with a reference to
Rule 26 of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, thus making clear
that the ten-day period under Sec. 1.13 excludes weekends and
holidays.\2\
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\1\ Prior to amendments made in 2002, Rule 26(a)(2), consistent
with existing Sec. 1.13, provided that weekends and holidays would
be excluded when ``the period is less than 7 days, unless stated in
calendar days.''
\2\ Rule 26(a)(4) defines legal holidays to mean New Year's Day,
Martin Luther King's Birthday, President's Day, Memorial Day,
Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans' Day,
Thanksgiving Day, or other various government-declared holidays. It
does not, however, define other days that the court is closed as
``holidays.'' Rather, if the act to be done is filing a paper in
court, Rule 26(a)(3) excludes from being counted as a day the last
day of the filing period when the weather or other conditions makes
the clerk's office inaccessible. The Commission will apply the same
rule when it is closed on the last day of the filing period. In
those cases, the petition must be filed the next business day on
which the Commission is open.
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4. The Commission will not send a copy of this Order pursuant to
the Congressional Review Act, see 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A), because the
adopted rules are rules of agency organization, procedure, or practice
that do not ``substantially affect the rights or obligations of non-
agency parties.''
5. Accordingly, it is ordered, that 47 CFR 1.13 is amended as set
forth in the rules changes.\3\
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\3\ Notice and comment is not required to amend a procedural
rule. See 5 U.S.C. 553(b).
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List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 1
Administrative practice and procedure.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
0
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal Communications
Commission amends 47 CFR part 1 as follows:
PART 1--PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE
0
1. The authority citation for part 1 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151, 154, 303, and 309(j) unless otherwise
noted.
0
2. Section 1.13 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(2) to read as
follows:
Sec. 1.13 Filing of petitions for review and notices of appeals of
Commission orders.
(a) * * *
(2) Computation of time of the ten-day period for filing copies of
petitions for review of a Commission order shall be governed by Rule 26
of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure. The date of issuance of a
Commission order for purposes of filing copies of petitions for review
shall be the date of public notice as defined in Sec. 1.4(b) of the
Commission's Rules, 47 CFR 1.4(b).
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 06-1099 Filed 2-7-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P