From the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) Weekly Advocacy Monitor, March 09. 2011
Last fall, the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA), which guarantees that people with disabilities will be able to fully participate in and receive the benefits from broadband and other communication technologies, was signed into law. Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved three CVAA-related Notices of Proposed Rulemakings (NPRM).
The first NPRM will ensure that people with disabilities in the U.S. will be able to fully use advanced communications services, equipment, and networks. In Section 255, telecommunications and interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) must provide access for people with disabilities. To compliment Section 255 and implement Section 104 of the CVAA, the Advanced Communications Services requests comment on the FCC’s newly added Section 716 and 717, which makes manufacturers of advanced communications services create accessible devices that are compatible with assistive technologies, and Section 718, which encompasses the accessibility of internet browsers.
In 2000, the FCC adopted video description rules that insert audio-narrated descriptions of a television program’s key visual elements into natural pauses in the program’s dialogue that were overturned by the U.S. Court of Appeals. By enacting the CVAA, the FCC seeks comment on reinstating these video description rules. This characteristic will provide a greater level of programming accessibility for individuals who are blind or visually impaired by requiring large-market broadcast affiliates and multi-channel video programming distributors to provide video description; providing 50 hours per quarter of video-described primetime or children’s programming; and retaining any video description network or broadcast programming.
Finally, the FCC approved the third NPRM, which directs the FCC to contribute to the Telecommunications Relay Service Fund (TRPS) to interconnected and non-interconnected VoIP service providers. These calculations are based on the annual interstate end-user revenues but there is a “safe harbor” provision that allows interconnected VoIP providers contributions to be calculated on the basis of actual revenues, a traffic study, or that 64.9% of their revenues are interstate telecommunications. Now, the TRPS NPRM requests public comment on extending the “safe harbor” provision to non-interconnected VoIP providers, deciding which revenues should be included in the TRSF contributions, and requiring VoIPs that provide free services or have zero-end user revenues to contribute to the TRSF.
Advocates, now is the time to offer feedback on the NPRMs on the Advanced Communications Services, Federal Communications Commission, and Telecommunications Relay Service Fund that will affect the implementation of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 that we worked so hard on passing!
For more information or to view the NPRMs, please visit the FCC’s website at www.FCC.gov.