Responsibility Blog

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Another big step toward making history was taken this week when the U.S. House of Representatives voted by a 348-23 margin to approve H.R. 3101, the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010.  The action now moves to the Senate where they have a similar piece of legislation, S. 3304 that has already been voted out of the Senate Commerce Committee and is awaiting floor action.  There are some differences between the two bills so it is still uncertain whether the Senate will approve its version or incorporate the changes made in the House bill before scheduling a vote.  In either case, passage would signify a major breakthrough toward ensuring that all communications technologies, present and future, can be accessed by any and all Americans.

As I have noted before, Verizon has played a significant role in crafting and moving this legislation forward.  Beginning with a meeting with disability advocates on January 23, 2008 Verizon has lead a collaborative effort to amend the 1996 Telecommunications Act to better reflect the technology needs of persons with disabilities.  We worked in lockstep with industry colleagues, leading national disability advocates, the U.S. Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to mold legislation that ensures no matter what the platform (wireline, wireless, Internet and video), the experience will be universally accessible.

The past two and half years have included a number of twists and turns but with the support of Verizon's leadership, we have been able to clearly identify what the needs of the disability community and address them in a manner that is beneficial to the consumer while respecting the needs of the business.  While some changes are likely to be made prior to final passage, some of the highlights of this legislation include: 

• Making access to the Web easier through improved user interfaces for smart phones
• Enabling Americans who are blind to enjoy TV more fully through audible descriptions of the on-screen action
• Making cable TV program guides and selection menus accessible to people with vision loss
• Providing Americans who are deaf the ability to watch new TV programs online with the captions included
• Mandating that remote controls have a button or similar mechanism to easily access the closed captioning on broadcast and pay TV
• Requiring that telecom equipment used to make calls over the Internet is compatible with hearing aids
• For low-income Americans who are deaf-blind, providing a share of a total $10 million per year from the Telecommunications Relay Services fund to purchase accessible Internet access and telecom services so these individuals can more fully participate in society

These continue to be exciting times in the world of information communications technology (ICT) and Verizon is proud to be at the forefront of these advances and we view passage of the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act as a means to help more Americans take advantage of these benefits.