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March 2010 Technology and Disability Highlights

Volume: 10.3 March 2010 Technology and Disability Highlights

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Overview

March was a very active month in the area of technology and disability policy. Of particular note, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) finally delivered its National Broadband Plan to Congress for its consideration. The Plan was mandated as part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and it contains a number of recommendations to further the nation’s broadband deployment. The plan also considers inclusion and access to broadband for people with disabilities, and it makes a number of recommendations in this regard. To further enhance its broadband goals for Americans with disabilities, the FCC also held a panel on broadband accessibility and affordability in March.

Also of note was the U.S. Access Board’s Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM), as part of its efforts to update rules for Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and guidelines for Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Formally known as the “Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Standards and Guidelines,” the ANPRM has been issued in advance of a formal rulemaking by the Access Board. The Board invites the public to comment on the ANPRM, and it will accept comments until June 21, 2010.


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Legislative Activities

NCD Nominations Approved by Senate Committee

03.10.2010 – Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, announced that the committee has approved nominations for vacancies within the National Council on Disability (NCD). The full Senate will next consider the candidates for confirmation.

The nominees for NCD membership are:

  • Gary Blumenthal of Massachusetts
  • Chester Alonzo Finn of New York
  • Sara A. Gelser of Oregon
  • Ari Ne'eman of Maryland Dongwoo
  • Joseph Pak of California
  • Carol Jean Reynolds of Colorado
  • Fernando Torres-Gill of California
  • Jonathan M. Young of Maryland

[Source: U.S. Senate]

Additional Information:


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Regulatory Activities

Access Board Releases Draft of Updated Section 508 Rules, Section 255 Guidelines

03.17.2010 – The U.S. Access Board issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [Docket No. 2010-1] that outlines the Board’s proposed updates to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The proposed standards for Section 508 and guidelines for Section 255 have been combined into a single document entitled the “Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Standards and Guidelines.” It is currently available in draft form, and the Access Board specifically seeks public comment.

The proposed rules will impact such technologies as telephones, cell phones, computer hardware and software, websites, media players, electronic documents, and PDAs, and they are designed to address sensory, physical, communication, and other disabilities. The draft rule is based on the earlier recommendations of the Telecommunications and Electronic and Information Technology Advisory Committee ( TEITAC), which submitted its report on the refresh in April 2008. A formal notice has also been issued in the Federal Register, and comments will be received until June 21, 2010.

[Source: U.S. Access Board]

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National Broadband Plan Sent to Congress

03.16.2010 – After a yearlong effort, the FCC finally delivered its National Broadband Plan to Congress for consideration. Mandated by the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) in February 2009, the Plan outlines a set of national goals and priorities to maximize broadband deployment and close access gaps over the next decade. Among the items on the Plan’s 2020 vision statement is a goal to bring affordable broadband to vulnerable populations, particularly people with disabilities, by transitioning the current Universal Service Fund away from an emphasis on analog technologies toward the nation’s emerging digital infrastructure.

The Plan has been published as “Connecting America: The National Broadband Plan.” Of particular note in the report’s findings is the lower rate of access to broadband by people with disabilities: only 42 percent of people with disabilities use broadband at home. Congress will now consider the Plan and determine whether legislation will be needed for its implementation. About half of the Plan’s recommendations are addressed to the FCC, while the remainder are meant for Congress, the executive branch, and state and local governments. These recommendations also suggest that government work closely with the private and nonprofit sectors.

[Source: FCC]

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Panel on Broadband Accessibility and Affordability Held by FCC, Partners

03.10.2010 – The FCC, in collaboration with co-sponsors Silicon Flatirons, the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), and the Information Technology Innovation Foundation (ITIF), held a conference to address the accessibility and affordability of broadband technology and services for Americans with disabilities. The daylong event was part of the FCC’s development of a National Broadband Plan (NPB), which considered the possible benefits of the NPB for citizens with disabilities. The panel included opening remarks by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and Kareem Dale, Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy.

Working recommendations in the NPB on behalf of people with disabilities have included the development of a government-wide Accessibility Initiative and Accessibility Working Group, as well as an ongoing Accessibility and Innovation Forum at the FCC for stakeholders to share best practices and collaborate on accessibility solutions. In addition, the Plan calls for action by the FCC, Department of Justice, and Congress to update and enforce accessibility laws, and for Congress to allocate funding for broadband accessibility.

[Source: FCC]

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Strauss Named Deputy Chief of Consumer Bureau, To Focus on Disability Issues

03.12.2010 – FCC Chairman Genachowski named Karen Peltz Strauss as deputy chief of the FCC’s Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB). Strauss was a co-founder of the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT), and she has served as legal counsel for Gallaudet University’s National Center for Law and Deafness and the National Association of the Deaf. Ms. Strauss, who holds a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a LLM from the Georgetown University Law Center, also was previously the deputy chief for the FCC’s Consumer Information Bureau.

In her new position as deputy chief of the GCB, Strauss will focus on disability issues, as well as help the Commission implement those aspects of the NBP that address broadband access for people with disabilities, including development of a proposed Accessibility and Innovation Forum.

[Source: FCC]

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TRS Provider Acknowledges, Repays Debt to Fund

03.09.2010 – Purple Communications, a company providing telecommunications relay services for users with hearing or communications impairments, recently acknowledged that it owed approximately $18.4 million to the Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) and has made an agreement with the FCC to repay the sum. The amount in question involved calls that either began or ended outside the United States or that were made to or from Purple employees, neither of which are compensable through TRS.

The issue of proper compensation recently prompted the CGB to issue a Declaratory Ruling reaffirming the Commission’s TRS rules (see TDPH 10.2). Purple will repay the amount to the National Exchange Carriers Association (NECA), which administers TRS for the federal government. In return, the FCC will instruct NECA to release payment to Purple for relay services provided in the month of December 2009, and it will continue to reimburse for legitimate relay services provided by Purple month by month.

[Source: FCC]

Additional Information:



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Other Items of Interest

Net Neutrality Ruling Overturns FCC Rulemaking against Comcast

04.06.2010 – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued its ruling Comcast v. FCC (08-1291), a case that involved the FCC’s 2008 citation against Comcast Corp. for the cable provider’s decision to throttle Internet traffic from high-bandwidth file-sharing services. The case was an important test of the Commission’s commitment to principles of “net neutrality” and may have a far-reaching impact for users of broadband Internet. In its unanimous ruling, the three-judge panel found that Congress has not given the FCC the power to regulate an Internet service provider's network-management practices.

[Sources: Wall Street Journal and D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals]

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Reports on Informal Consumer Complaints for Second, Third Quarters of 2009 Released

04.02.2010 – The FCC’s Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB) has released reports on informal complaints received by the Disability Rights Office (DRO) regarding telecommunications access for people with disabilities, covering the second and third quarters of 2009.

These informal complaints encompass five categories:

  1. Access to telecommunications services and equipment
  2. TRS
  3. Closed captioning
  4. Accessibility of video programming providing emergency information
  5. Hearing aid compatibility

For the second quarter of 2009, DRO received a total of 232 categories, over half of which related to closed captioning issues. The total number of complaints for the third quarter of 2009 was somewhat lower, standing at 161. Closed captioning complaints were also the leading category during this period, but TRS issues were also prominent.

[Source: FCC]

Additional Information:


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Wireless RERC Updates

CTIA Wireless 2010 Accessibility Forum Featured Wireless RERC’s Jim Mueller

03.23.2010 – Jim Mueller, Project Director for the Wireless RERC, hosted the CTIA Wireless 2010 conference’s Accessibility Forum on March 23, 2010, in Las Vegas. The Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies ( Wireless RERC) at Georgia Tech and the Shepherd Center moderated a discussion with representatives from the wireless industry, policy makers, and consumer advocates on opportunities and challenges for developing apps to enhance access to mobile devices and services. The panel also provided dialogue on how the new app market can address emerging needs of wireless customers with diverse ages and abilities.

In addition to Mr. Mueller, the panel included COAT co-chair Jenifer Simpson of AAPD; Hamish Caldwell, AT&T Product Development Manager; Jane Jackson, Associate Bureau Chief of the FCC’s Wireless Bureau; and Oren Levine, Senior Technology Marketing Manager at Nokia. COAT has produced a more extensive story on the panel, which is available at http://coataccess.org/node/6771.

Researchers Present at CSUN Conference in San Diego

03.24.2010 – Wireless RERC researchers Paul M.A. Baker, Frank Lucia, Salimah LaForce, and Nathan W. Moon recently participated in several panels at the 25th Annual International Technology & Persons with Disabilities Conference ( CSUN 2010), held in San Diego, California, March 24-27, 2010. Among the panels:

  • “New Tools For Public Participation: Web 2.0, New Media, and Inclusive Policymaking, ” Paul M.A. Baker, John C. Bricout, Andrew C. Ward, Randy Cooper, and Art Seavey, on March 25, 2010.
  • “Accessible Emergency Alerting for People with Disabilities,” Salimah LaForce, Richard Ray, Frank Lucia, and John C. Bricout, on March 26, 2010.
  • “Beyond Accessible: New Digital Technologies and the Inclusive Workplace, ” Paul M.A. Baker, Jim Tobias, Timothy Creagan, and Bill Curtis-Davidson, on March 26, 2010.
  • Hamish Caldwell, Executive Director, Mobility Product Management, AT&T
  • “Developing Inclusive Workplace Accommodations for People with Disabilities: Results from Policy Research, ” Nathan W. Moon and Paul M.A. Baker, on March 27, 2010.
  • PowerPoint presentations will be available soon at the Center for Advanced Communications Policy's (CACP) website, at http://www.cacp.gatech.edu.

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Upcoming Events

NARRTC 2010 Annual Conference

05.03.2010-05.04.2010 - The NARRTC (formerly National Association of Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers) will holding its annual meeting on Monday and Tuesday, May 3 - 4, 2010, at the Hilton Alexandria Old Town in Alexandria, Virginia. This year’s theme will be “Promoting Change Through Research,” and will feature papers sponsored by the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) of the U.S. Department of Education, including the Wireless RERC. This year's conference also will be held in conjunction with the 2010 DBTAC: National Network of ADA Centers Research Conference.

For more information, please visit http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/edi/narrtc.

[Source: NARRTC]

RESNA 2010 Annual Conference

its annual meeting from June 26-30, 2010, at the Red Rock Spa in Las Vegas. The meeting site will also host the associated International Symposium on Quality of Life Technology.

For more information about the conference, including details on how to register, please visit http://www.resna.org/conference/index.php.

[Source: RESNA]


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Technology and Disability Policy Highlights reports on national and local public policy events and recent wireless technological advances and political activities; and tracks emerging issues of interest to individuals with disabilities. Technology and Disability Policy Highlights is published monthly by the Wireless RERC. The Wireless RERC is a research center promotes universal access to wireless technologies and explores their innovative applications in addressing the needs of people with disabilities. For more information on the Wireless RERC, please visit the Wireless RERC website at [http://www.wirelessrerc.org].

For further information on items summarized in this report, or if you have items of interest that you would like included in future editions, please contact this edition’s editor, Nathan W. Moon [nathan.moon@cacp.gatech.edu] or Paul M.A. Baker, Ph.D., AICP, CACP Director of Research [paul.baker@cacp.gatech.edu].

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