Transcript Document

An Overview of the
Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments (ACTA)
The Federal Communications Commission’s
Privatization of Certain 47 CFR Part 68
Responsibilities
Informational Presentation by:
ACTA Director, and
ACTA Co-sponsors (ATIS & TIA)
Part 68: Biennial Review
 The Telecommunications Act of 1996 directed the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to
review its rules every even-numbered year and repeal
or modify those found to be no longer in the public
interest
 Because of the rapid pace of change in both network
and telephone equipment technologies, the FCC
found it increasingly difficult for the regulatory
process to keep pace thus creating a public disservice
September 2002
Part 68: Privatization
 Pursuant to the Report and Order, CC Docket No.
99-216, FCC 00-400, the FCC minimized the
government’s role in Part 68 by privatizing
significant portions of its rules governing the
connection of customer premises equipment
(telephone equipment) to the public switched
telephone network and certain private-line services,
and privatized the standards development and
terminal equipment approval processes
September 2002
Part 68: Privatization
 To ensure continued uniformity and a level playing
field, the FCC mandated the establishment of the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments
(ACTA) to assume functions privatized
 ACTA was formed through the co-sponsorship and
support of the Alliance for Telecommunications
Industry Solutions (ATIS) and Telecommunications
Industry Association (TIA)
 ACTA held its Inaugural Meeting on May 2, 2001
 ACTA adopted technical criteria covering the 130 pages of
Part 68 criteria privatized by the Commission, on July 11,
2001
 ACTA adopted industry-developed product labeling
requirements, on July 11, 2001
 ACTA assumed complete control over the database of
approved Part 68 equipment, on August 1, 2001
September 2002
Administrative Council: Structure
ACTA was established as:
 A non-governmental telecommunications industry
driven entity not controlled or dominated by any
particular industry segment
 Impartial, fair, balanced, and open
 Representing all segments of the industry, including:
 Local Exchange Carriers (LEC)
 Interexchange Carriers (IXC)
 Terminal Equipment Manufacturers (TEM)
 Network Equipment Manufacturers (NEM)
 Test Laboratories (LAB), and
 Other Interested Parties (OIP)
September 2002
Administrative Council: Mission & Scope
 The ACTA mission is to: (1) adopt technical criteria
for terminal equipment to prevent network harms
(as defined in §68.3) through the act of publishing
such criteria developed by the American National
Standards Institute (ANSI) accredited Standards
Development Organizations (SDO); and (2)
establish and maintain database(s) of equipment
approved as compliant with the technical criteria
 The scope of ACTA involves the coordination and
management role for the adoption and publication
of technical requirements for terminal equipment,
and the associated database(s)
 Note, the Administrative Council does not make
substantive technical decisions regarding the development
of technical criteria
September 2002
Administrative Council: Responsibilities
 As mandated by the FCC, ACTA must perform its
responsibilities in an equitable and nondiscriminatory
manner. They include:
 Adopt technical criteria submitted from ANSI-accredited
SDO or committees
 Provide 30-day public notice to inform industry of proposed
technical criteria
 Operate and maintain an accurate database of compliant
equipment
 Establish and maintain an appropriate labeling methodology
 Respond to inquiries from the public regarding its technical
criteria
September 2002
Administrative Council: Responsibilities
ACTA Responsibilities (cont):
 Manage such other tasks as necessary and within the
Council’s scope that were formerly part of the FCC’s Part
68 functions
 Ensure that the management, activities, and decisions of the
Council are independent from all external influences
 Coordinate, if necessary, which industry SDOs will take on
a particular development project
September 2002
Administrative Council: Standards
 Any ANSI-accredited SDO observing ANSI
consensus decision-making procedures may
establish technical criteria and submit such criteria
to the ACTA for adoption. Active SDOs include:
 ATIS Sponsored T1 Committee T1E1
 TIA Committee TR41
 ACTA must publish the submitted criteria as
technical criteria for terminal equipment
 On publication, the Commission considers the
technical criteria to be presumptively valid, i.e.,
enforceable under federal law
September 2002
Administrative Council: Standards
 SDOs submitting criteria to ACTA must certify, in
writing, that:
 it is ANSI-accredited to the Standards Committee Method
or the Organization Method
 the technical criteria does not conflict with any published
technical criteria or with any technical criteria submitted
and pending for publication
 the technical criteria is limited to preventing harms to the
PSTN, identified in §68.3 of Part 68; and
 the criteria were developed in accordance with ANSI
requirements for consensus and due process.
September 2002
Administrative Council: Appeals
 Individuals and entities possessing directly and
materially affected interests and believing that they
have been or will be adversely affected by the actions
or inaction of the ACTA shall have the right to appeal
such action or inaction; however,
 Appeals relating to the activities of a SDO submitting
technical criteria to the ACTA, must utilize the
appeals processes afforded by that SDO, the ANSI if
applicable, or alternatively, the FCC
 In the case of action or inaction appropriate for the
ACTA appeals process, individuals and entities are
encouraged to first approach the ACTA leadership
with an informal complaint before pursuing the
official appeals process
September 2002
Administrative Council: Approval Methods
 Terminal equipment connected to the public network
or certain private-line services requiring such
approval, must comply and shall continue to comply
with the applicable Part 68 rules and regulations and
with the applicable ACTA-adopted technical criteria,
labeling requirements, and customer information
requirements
 Two approval methods are recognized:
 Telecommunications Certification Body (TCB):
• Must follow FCC Rules governing the TCB Program
• Must submit copy of certificate to ACTA
 Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity (SDoC):
• SDoC is a procedure where the Responsible Party, as
defined in §68.3, makes measurements or takes other
necessary steps to ensure that the terminal equipment
complies with the appropriate technical standards
September 2002
Administrative Council: SDoC Method
 Entities utilizing the SDoC process must provide:
 the identification and a description of the Responsible Party
for the SDoC and the product, including the model number
of the product,
 a statement that the terminal equipment conforms with
applicable technical requirements, and a reference to the
technical requirements,
 the date and place of issue of the declaration,
 the signature, name and function of person making
declaration,
 a statement that the handset, if any, complies with §68.316
defining hearing aid compatibility, or that it does not
comply with that section,
 any other information required to be included in the SDoC
by the Administrative Council of Terminal Attachments
September 2002
Administrative Council: SDoC Method
 Responsible Parties for a SDoC shall maintain
records containing:
 A copy of the Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity
 The identity of the testing facility, including the name,
address, phone number and other contact information
 A detailed explanation of the testing procedure utilized to
determine whether terminal equipment conforms to the
appropriate technical criteria
 A copy of the test results for terminal equipment compliance
with the appropriate technical criteria
 A description of the measurement facilities employed
for testing the equipment must be compiled and shall
contain the information required to be included by
the ACTA
September 2002
Administrative Council: Database
 The continuation of a uniform, nationwide database
is essential to protecting public interests
 ACTA maintains an accurate database that is readily
available and accessible to the public including
persons with disabilities. The database:
 Permit interested parties such as the FCC, U.S. Customs,
and providers of telecommunications services to track and
identify suppliers or importers of non-compliant equipment
 Ameliorate concerns regarding the potentially adverse
impact of non-compliant terminal equipment on the public
network by ensuring that suppliers are held accountable for
any damage their equipment may cause
 Provide the public with the means to identify the party
ultimately responsible for the product
September 2002
Administrative Council: Database
 Entities submitting information to the database,
whether they obtained their approval from a TCB or
utilized the SDoC process, must submit pertinent
information regarding the identity of the Responsible
Party and approved equipment to the ACTA database
administrator and shall assure that ACTA-specified
product information is available for retrieval from the
database, via the publicly-available interface, prior to
the connection of such product to the PSTN or certain
private-line services that require such approval
 The Part 68 database currently contains over 35,000+
entries
http://www.part68.org
September 2002