To allow Americans with disabilities to experience the benefits of broadband, hardware, software, services and digital content must be accessible and assistive technologies must be affordable.
Accessibility for the Disabled
FCC Adopts Telecommunications Relay Services Rates for the 2019-2020 TRS Fund Year
The Federal Communications Commission adopted an Order setting compensation rates for telecommunications relay services that are supported by the Interstate Telecommunications Relay Services Fund for the Fund Year 2019-2020. In a statement, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said:
The Disability Advisory Committee (DAC) provides advice and recommendations to the Commission on a wide array of disability matters within the jurisdiction of the Commission and facilitate the participation of people with disabilities in proceedings before the Commission. The DAC is being organized under, and operated in accordance with, the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act.
Sen Tammy Duckworth Joins 5 Other Senators To Introduce Bill to Address Predatory Phone Rates in Criminal Justice System
Sens Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Rob Portman (R-OH), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Ed Markey (D-MA), and Angus King (I-ME) introduced the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act to strengthen the nation’s criminal justice system. This bipartisan bill would help families keep in touch with their incarcerated family members, and would address long-standing concerns about the prohibitively expensive and predatory price of phone calls that incarcerated individuals at correctional facilities across the US are forced to pay.
FCC Acts to Improve Video Relay Service & Expand Options for Users
The Federal Communications Commission adopted new rules to improve Video Relay Service (VRS), which enables people with hearing and speech disabilities who use sign language to make telephone calls over broadband with a videophone. The FCC also takes steps to safeguard the program from waste, fraud, and abuse. Today’s action will expand VRS users’ access to direct video communications with people who know sign language by enabling direct video calling between VRS users and customer support call centers in appropriate circumstances.
Senator Markey and Rep Doyle Urge Chairman Pai to Reject Line Item Charges for Telecommunications Relay Services on Customer Bills
Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) and House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai urging the FCC to deny a petition by the ITTA-Voice of America’s Broadband Providers that would permit carriers to display Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) Fund contributions on customer bills. TRS ensures persons with hearing or speech disabilities are able to use necessary telephone services at no additional cost to an individual consumer.
FCC's May Agenda: Fast, Reliable, and Secure
At the Federal Communications Commission’s May meeting, we will take action to advance the goal of security.
Commissioner O'Rielly Remarks Before the Disability Advisory Committee
The costs to American consumers for the collection of disability-related programs is growing at a fairly aggressive and unsustainable rate. Accordingly, the Disability Advisory Committee can play an important role, and I believe has an obligation, to help the Commission contain costs. I strongly believe that we need to move away from specialized services with proprietary equipment and towards increased use and adoption of modern communications technology to serve the most vulnerable populations. This means more use of email, text, video chat, real time text, and the like.
At this meeting, the Federal Communications Commission's Disability Advisory Committee (DAC) is expected to discuss the roles and responsibilities of the Committee and its members; issues that the Committee will address; meeting schedules; and any other topics relevant to the DAC’s work.
FCC Renews Disability Advisory Committee
The Federal Communications Commission has renewed the charter for the Disability Advisory Committee. The charter became effective December 21, 2018 and provides the Committee with authorization to operate for two years from the effective date. Issues to be considered by the Committee may include, but are not limited to,
Lawsuits Surge Over Websites’ Access for the Blind
Businesses with websites that can’t be navigated by the blind are getting pummeled with lawsuits. The new frontier in federal disability litigation has accelerated dramatically in recent years, with some companies now getting hit by lawsuits for the second or third time even after they’ve reached settlements to upgrade their sites. The complaints typically detail roadblocks that visually impaired individuals face when using “screen reader” tools that read the contents of a website aloud. The lawsuits often seek improvements to websites to ensure the technology functions.