II 

Calendar No. 509 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3304 

To increase the access of persons with disabilities to modern communications, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 4, 2010 

Mr. PRYOR (for himself, Mr. KERRY, Mr. CONRAD, and Mr. DORGAN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

AUGUST 3, 2010 

Reported by Mr. ROCKEFELLER, with an amendment 

[Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To increase the access of persons with disabilities to modern 

communications, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Equal Access to 21st Century Communications Act’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 3304 RS

1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—INCREASING ACCESS 

Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. Hearing aid compatibility. 

Sec. 103. Relay services. 

Sec. 104. Access to Internet-based services and equipment. 

Sec. 105. Universal service. 

Sec. 106. Emergency access and real-time text support. 

Sec. 107. Internet access service interface. 

TITLE II—VIDEO DESCRIPTIONS AND CLOSED CAPTIONING 

Sec. 201. Commission inquiry on closed captioning decoder and video description capability, user interfaces, and video programming guides 

and menus. 

Sec. 202. Commission inquiry on the definition of consumer generated media. 

Sec. 203. Closed captioning decoder and video description capability. 

Sec. 204. Video description and closed captioning. 

Sec. 205. User interface regulations. 

Sec. 206. Access to video programming guides and menus. 

3 TITLE I—INCREASING ACCESS 

4 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

5 Section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

6 U.S.C. 153) is amended by adding at the end the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(54) ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS.—The term 

9 ‘advanced communications’ means Internet-based 

10 protocol, or any successor protocol, based devices 

11 and services that transmit voice, video conferencing, 

12 and text communications, and any application or 

13 service accessed over the Internet that provides for 

14 voice, video conferencing, or text communications, as 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 3304 RS

1 determined necessary by the Federal Communica2 tions Commission. 

3 ‘‘(55) DISABILITY.—The term ‘disability’ has 

4 the meaning given such term under section 3(2)(A) 

5 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 

6 U.S.C. 12102(2)(A)). 

7 ‘‘(56) INTERCONNECTED VOIP SERVICE.—The 

8 term ‘interconnected VoIP service’ has the meaning 

9 given such term under section 9.3 of the Commis10 sion’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 9.3). 

11 ‘‘(57) INTERNET ACCESS EQUIPMENT.—The 

12 term ‘internet access equipment’ means equipment 

13 that is used to combine computer processing, infor14 mation provision, and computer interactivity with 

15 data transport, enabling users to run a variety of 

16 applications, including email. 

17 ‘‘(58) INTERNET ACCESS SERVICE.—The term 

18 ‘internet access service’ means a service that com19 bines computer processing, information provision, 

20 and computer interactivity with data transport, ena21 bling end users to access the Internet and use a va22 riety of applications, including email.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 3304 RS

1 SEC. 102. HEARING AID COMPATIBILITY. 

2 (a) COMPATIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

3 710(b) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

4 610(b)) is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘Except as’’ and all that 

7 follows through ‘‘require that’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) 

9 of subsection (b) and subsection (c), the Com10 mission shall require that the following cus11 tomer premises equipment provide internal 

12 means for effective use with hearing aids that 

13 are designed to be compatible with telephones 

14 which meet established technical standards for 

15 hearing aid compatibility’’; 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub17 paragraph (A); 

18 (C) by inserting ‘‘and’’ after the comma at 

19 the end of subparagraph (B); and 

20 (D) by inserting the following new sub21 paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(C) all customer premises equipment used 

23 with advanced communications services that is 

24 designed to provide 2-way voice communication 

25 via a built-in speaker intended to be held to the 

26 ear in a manner functionally equivalent to a 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 3304 RS

1 telephone, subject to the regulations prescribed 

2 by the Commission under subsection (e)’’; 

3 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

4 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

5 (i) in the matter preceding clause 

6 (i)— 

7 (I) by striking ‘‘initial’’; 

8 (II) by striking ‘‘after the date of 

9 enactment of the Hearing Aid Com10 patibility Act of 1988,’’; and 

11 (III) by inserting ‘‘and (1)(C)’’ 

12 after ‘‘paragraph (1)(B)’’; 

13 (ii) by inserting ‘‘and’’ after the end 

14 of clause (ii); 

15 (iii) by striking clause (iii); and 

16 (iv) by redesignating clause (iv) as 

17 clause (iii); 

18 (B) by striking subparagraph (B) and re19 designating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph 

20 (B); and 

21 (C) in subparagraph (B) (as so redesig22 nated)— 

23 (i) by striking the first sentence and 

24 inserting ‘‘The Commission shall periodi25 cally assess the appropriateness of conVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 3304 RS

1 tinuing in effect the exemptions for tele2 phones and other customer premises equip3 ment described in subparagraph (A) of this 

4 paragraph.’’; and 

5 (ii) in each of clauses (iii) and (iv), by 

6 inserting ‘‘or (1)(C)’’ after ‘‘(1)(B)’’; 

7 (3) in paragraph (4)(B)— 

8 (A) by inserting ‘‘telephones used with’’ 

9 before ‘‘public mobile services’’; 

10 (B) by inserting ‘‘telephones and other 

11 customer premises equipment used in whole or 

12 in part with’’ after ‘‘means’’; 

13 (C) by striking ‘‘and’’ after ‘‘public land 

14 mobile telephone service,’’ and inserting ‘‘or’’; 

15 (D) by striking ‘‘part 22 of’’; and 

16 (E) by inserting after ‘‘Regulations’’ the 

17 following: ‘‘, or any functionally equivalent unli18 censed wireless services’’; and 

19 (4) in paragraph (4)(C)— 

20 (A) by inserting ‘‘telephones used with’’ 

21 before ‘‘private radio services’’; and 

22 (B) by inserting ‘‘telephones and other 

23 customer premises equipment used in whole or 

24 in part with’’ after ‘‘means’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 3304 RS

1 (b) TECHNICAL STANDARDS.—Section 710(c) of the 

2 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(c)) is 

3 amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘A telephone 

4 or other customer premises equipment that is compliant 

5 with a relevant technical standard developed through a 

6 public participation process and in consultation with inter7 ested consumer stakeholders will be deemed hearing aid 

8 compatible for purposes of this section, until such time 

9 as the Commission may deem otherwise. The Commission 

10 shall consult with the public, including people with hearing 

11 loss, in establishing or approving such technical standards. 

12 The Commission may delegate this authority to an em13 ployee pursuant to section 5(c). The Commission shall des14 ignate the national consumer organizations for purposes 

15 of this section and shall remain the final arbiter as to 

16 whether the standard meets the requirements of this sec17 tion.’’. 

18 (c) RULEMAKING.—Section 710(e) of the Commu19 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(e)) is amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘‘impairments’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘loss’’; and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following sentence: 

23 ‘‘In implementing the provisions of subsection 

24 (b)(1)(C), the Commission shall use appropriate 

25 timetables or benchmarks to the extent necessary 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 3304 RS

1 due to technical feasibility or to ensure the market2 ability or availability of new technologies to users.’’. 

3 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Section 710(h) of the 

4 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(h)) is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(h) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in the 

7 Equal Access to 21st Century Communications Act shall 

8 be construed to modify the Commission’s regulations set 

9 forth in section 20.19 of title 47, Code of Federal Regula10 tions, in effect as of the date of enactment of such Act.’’. 

11 SEC. 103. RELAY SERVICES. 

12 (a) DEFINITION.—Paragraph (3) of section 225(a) of 

13 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 225(a)(3)) 

14 is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(3) TELECOMMUNICATIONS RELAY SERV16 ICES.—The term ‘telecommunications relay services’ 

17 means telephone transmission that provides the abil18 ity for an individual who is deaf, hard of hearing, 

19 deaf-blind, or who has a speech disability to engage 

20 in communication by wire or radio with 1 or more 

21 individuals, in a manner that is functionally equiva22 lent to the ability of a hearing individual who does 

23 not have a speech disability to communicate using 

24 voice communication services by wire or radio.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 3304 RS

1 (b) INTERNET PROTOCOL-BASED RELAY SERV2 ICES.—Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 is 

3 amended by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 715. INTERNET PROTOCOL-BASED RELAY SERVICES. 

5 ‘‘Within 1 year after the date of enactment of the 

6 Equal Access to 21st Century Communications Act, each 

7 interconnected VoIP service provider shall participate in 

8 and contribute to the Telecommunications Relay Services 

9 Fund established in section 64.404(c)(5)(iii) of the Com10 mission’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 64.404(c)(5)(iii)) as in 

11 effect on the date of enactment of such Act, in a manner 

12 prescribed by the Commission by regulation to provide for 

13 obligations of such providers that are consistent with and 

14 comparable to the obligations of other contributors to the 

15 Fund.’’. 

16 SEC. 104. ACCESS TO INTERNET-BASED SERVICES AND 

17 EQUIPMENT. 

18 (a) TITLE VII AMENDMENT.—Title VII of the Com19 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is 

20 amended by inserting after section 715 (as added by sec21 tion 103) the following: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 716. ACCESS TO INTERNET-BASED SERVICES AND 

23 EQUIPMENT. 

24 ‘‘(a) MANUFACTURING.—With respect to equipment 

25 manufactured after the effective date of the regulations 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 3304 RS

1 established pursuant to subsection (e), and subject to such 

2 regulations, a manufacturer of equipment used for ad3 vanced communications, including end user equipment, 

4 network equipment, and software, shall ensure that equip5 ment and software that such manufacturer designs, devel6 ops, and fabricates shall be accessible to, and usable by 

7 individuals with disabilities, where the requirement of this 

8 subsection is achievable. 

9 ‘‘(b) SERVICE PROVIDERS.—With respect to services 

10 provided after the effective date of the regulations estab11 lished pursuant to subsection (e), and subject to such reg12 ulations, a provider of advanced communications shall en13 sure that services offered by such provider are accessible 

14 to, and usable, by individuals with disabilities, where the 

15 requirement of this subsection is achievable. 

16 ‘‘(c) COMPATIBILITY.—If the requirements of sub17 sections (a) and (b) are not achievable, a manufacturer 

18 or provider shall ensure that its equipment or service is 

19 compatible with existing peripheral devices or specialized 

20 customer premises equipment commonly used by individ21 uals with disabilities to achieve access, where the require22 ment of this subsection is achievable. 

23 ‘‘(d) NETWORK FEATURES, FUNCTIONS, AND CAPA24 BILITIES.—Each provider of advanced communications 

25 shall not install network features, functions, or capabilities 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 3304 RS

1 that do not comply with the regulations established pursu2 ant to this section. 

3 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Within 18 months after the 

5 date of enactment of the Equal Access to 21st Cen6 tury Communications Act, the Commission shall pre7 scribe such regulations as are necessary to imple8 ment this section. 

9 ‘‘(2) CONTENT OF REGULATIONS.—In pre10 scribing the regulations required under paragraph 

11 (1), the Commission shall— 

12 ‘‘(A) include standards to ensure the acces13 sibility, usability, and compatibility of advanced 

14 communications and the equipment used for ad15 vanced communications by individuals with dis16 abilities; and 

17 ‘‘(B) provide that the advanced commu18 nications, equipment used for advanced commu19 nications, and advanced communications service 

20 networks used to provide such advanced com21 munications may not impair or impede the ac22 cessibility of information content when accessi23 bility has been incorporated into the content for 

24 transmission through advanced communica25 tions, equipment used for advanced communicaVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 3304 RS

1 tions, or advanced communications service net2 works. 

3 ‘‘(f) SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT SUBJECT TO SEC4 TION 255.—The requirements of this section shall not 

5 apply to any equipment or services, including inter6 connected VoIP service, that are subject to the require7 ments of section 255 on the date of enactment of the 

8 Equal Access to 21st Century Communications Act. Any 

9 such exempted services and equipment shall remain sub10 ject to the requirements of section 255. 

11 ‘‘(g) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this section, 

12 sections 717, 718, and 719, the term ‘achievable’ means 

13 with reasonable effort or expense. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 717. ENFORCEMENT AND REPORTING OBLIGATIONS. 

15 ‘‘(a) COMPLAINT AND ENFORCEMENT PROCE16 DURES.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Within 18 months after the 

18 date of enactment of the Equal Access to 21st Cen19 tury Communications Act, the Commission shall— 

20 ‘‘(A) establish regulations that facilitate 

21 the filing of complaints that allege a violation of 

22 section 255, 716, 718, or 719; 

23 ‘‘(B) establish formal and informal proce24 dures for enforcement actions by the Commis25 sion with respect to such violations; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(C) implement the reporting obligations 

2 of paragraph (6) for manufacturers and pro3 viders subject to such sections. 

4 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED PROVISIONS.—The regulations 

5 required under paragraph (1) shall include the fol6 lowing provisions: 

7 ‘‘(A) NO FEE.—The Commission shall not 

8 charge a fee to an individual who files a com9 plaint alleging a violation of section 255, 716, 

10 718, or 719. 

11 ‘‘(B) RECEIPT OF COMPLAINTS.—The 

12 Commission shall establish separate and identi13 fiable electronic, telephonic, and physical recep14 tacles for the receipt of complaints filed under 

15 section 255, 716, 718, or 719. 

16 ‘‘(C) COMPLAINTS TO THE COMMISSION.— 

17 Any person alleging a violation of section 255, 

18 716, 718, or 719 by a manufacturer of equip19 ment or provider of service subject to such sec20 tions may file a complaint with the Commission. 

21 The Commission shall investigate the allega22 tions in such complaint and issue a final order 

23 concluding the investigation within 180 days of 

24 the date on which such complaint is filed with 

25 the Commission, unless such complaint is reVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 3304 RS

1 solved before such time. The Commission may 

2 consolidate for investigation and resolution such 

3 complaints alleging substantially the same viola4 tion by the same manufacturer or provider. 

5 Such final order shall include a determination 

6 as to whether any violation has occurred and, if 

7 the Commission determines that a violation has 

8 occurred, address the manner in which the 

9 manufacturer or service provider will achieve 

10 accessibility, compatibility, or usability required 

11 by section 255, 716, 718, or 719. If a deter12 mination is made that a violation has not oc13 curred, the Commission shall provide the basis 

14 for such determination, including the basis for 

15 determining that an accessibility feature re16 quested is not readily achievable under section 

17 255 or is achievable under section 716, 718, or 

18 719. 

19 ‘‘(D) OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND.—Before 

20 the Commission makes a determination pursu21 ant to subparagraph (C), the party that is the 

22 subject of the complaint shall have the oppor23 tunity to respond to such complaint, and may 

24 include in such response any factors that it 

25 deems relevant to such determination and any 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 3304 RS

1 available alternatives that might constitute an 

2 effective substitute for the equipment or service 

3 that is the subject of such complaint. 

4 ‘‘(E) CEASE AND DESIST ORDERS.—If the 

5 Commission’s investigation pursuant to sub6 paragraph (C) determines that a manufacturer 

7 of equipment or provider of service is engaged 

8 in an act prohibited by section 255, 716, 718, 

9 or 719, or is failing to perform any act required 

10 by section 255, 716, 718, or 719, the Commis11 sion shall have the authority to order such man12 ufacturer or provider to cease from violating 

13 such section. 

14 ‘‘(F) REPORTING.—Each manufacturer of 

15 equipment used for advanced communications 

16 and each provider of advanced communications 

17 shall— 

18 ‘‘(i) file a report with the Commission, 

19 on an annual basis, that describes the 

20 steps that have been taken by such manu21 facturer or provider during the preceding 

22 year to implement sections 255 and 716, 

23 including— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(I) information about the manu2 facturer’s or provider’s efforts to con3 sult with people with disabilities; 

4 ‘‘(II) descriptions of the accessi5 bility features of its products and 

6 services; and 

7 ‘‘(III) information about the 

8 compatibility of their products and 

9 services with peripheral devices or 

10 specialized customer premise equip11 ment commonly used by people with 

12 disabilities to achieve access; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) maintain, in the ordinary course 

14 of business, records of the efforts taken by 

15 such manufacturer or provider to imple16 ment sections 255 and 716. 

17 ‘‘(G) FAILURE TO ACT.—If the Commis18 sion fails to carry out any of its responsibilities 

19 to act upon a complaint in the manner pre20 scribed in subparagraph (C), the person that 

21 filed such complaint may bring an action in the 

22 nature of mandamus in an appropriate Federal 

23 district court to compel the Commission to 

24 carry out any such responsibility. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(H) COMMISSION JURISDICTION.—The 

2 limitations of section 255(f) shall apply to any 

3 claim that alleges a violation of section 255, 

4 716, 718, or 719. Nothing in this paragraph af5 fects or limits any action for mandamus under 

6 subparagraph (G) or any appeal pursuant to 

7 section 402(b)(10). 

8 ‘‘(I) PRIVATE RESOLUTIONS OF COM9 PLAINTS.—Nothing in the Commission’s rules 

10 or this Act shall be construed to preclude a per11 son who files a complaint and a manufacturer 

12 or provider from resolving a formal or informal 

13 complaint prior to the Commission’s final deter14 mination in a complaint proceeding. In the 

15 event of such a resolution, the parties shall 

16 jointly request dismissal of the complaint and 

17 the Commission shall grant such request. 

18 ‘‘(b) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years 

20 after the date of enactment of the Equal Access to 

21 21st Century Communications Act, and every 2 

22 years thereafter, the Commission shall submit a re23 port to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

24 Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 

25 Energy and Commerce of the House of RepresentaVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 3304 RS

1 tives that assesses the level of compliance with sec2 tion 255 or 716 and evaluates the extent to which 

3 any accessibility barriers still exist with respect to 

4 new technologies. 

5 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC COMMENT.—The Commission shall 

6 seek public comment on the tentative findings of the 

7 report required under paragraph (1) prior to the 

8 submission of such report to the Committees de9 scribed in paragraph (1). 

10 ‘‘(3) REQUIRED CONTENT.—The report re11 quired under paragraph (1) shall include the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(A) The number and nature of complaints 

14 received pursuant to subsection (a) during the 

15 2 years that are the subject of the report. 

16 ‘‘(B) Actions taken to resolve such com17 plaints under this section, including cease and 

18 desist orders issued and forfeiture penalties as19 sessed. 

20 ‘‘(C) The length of time that was taken by 

21 the Commission to resolve each such complaint. 

22 ‘‘(D) The number, status, nature, and out23 come of any actions of mandamus filed pursu24 ant to subsection (a)(2)(G) and the number, 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 3304 RS

1 status, and outcome of any appeals filed pursu2 ant to section 402(b)(10). 

3 ‘‘(c) COMPTROLLER GENERAL ENFORCEMENT

4 STUDY.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General 

6 shall conduct a study to consider and evaluate— 

7 ‘‘(A) the Commission’s compliance with the 

8 requirements of the Equal Access to 21st Cen9 tury Communications Act, including the Com10 mission’s level of compliance with deadlines (in11 cluding deadlines for acting on complaints) es12 tablished in such Act; 

13 ‘‘(B) whether the enforcement actions 

14 taken by the Commission pursuant to such Act 

15 have been appropriate and effective in ensuring 

16 compliance with such requirements; and 

17 ‘‘(C) whether the enforcement provisions 

18 established in such Act are adequate to ensure 

19 compliance with such requirements. 

20 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the 

21 date of enactment of the Equal Access to 21st Cen22 tury Communications Act, the Comptroller General 

23 shall submit a report to the Committee on Com24 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

25 and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 3304 RS

1 House of Representatives on the results of the study 

2 required by paragraph (1), with the recommenda3 tions for how the enforcement process and measures 

4 with respect to such Act may be modified or im5 proved. 

6 ‘‘(d) CLEARINGHOUSE.—Within 18 months after the 

7 date of enactment of the Equal Access to 21st Century 

8 Communications Act, the Commission shall, in consulta9 tion with the Architectural and Transportation Barriers 

10 Compliance Board, the National Telecommunications and 

11 Information Administration, trade associations, and orga12 nizations representing people with disabilities, establish a 

13 clearinghouse of information on the availability of acces14 sible products and services and accessibility solutions re15 quired under sections 255 and 716. Such information shall 

16 be made publicly available on the Commission’s website 

17 and by other means, and shall include an annually updated 

18 list of products and services with access features or solu19 tions. 

20 ‘‘(e) OUTREACH AND EDUCATION.—Upon establish21 ment of the clearinghouse of the information required 

22 under section 717(d), the Commission, in coordination 

23 with the National Telecommunications and Information 

24 Administration, shall conduct an informational and edu25 cational program designed to inform the public about the 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 3304 RS

1 availability of the clearinghouse, and the protections and 

2 remedies available under sections 255 and 716.’’. 

3 (b) TITLE V AMENDMENTS.—Section 503(b)(2) of 

4 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 503(b)(2)) 

5 (47 U.S.C. 503(b)(2)) is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (C), (D), 

7 and (E) as subparagraphs (D), (E), and (F), respec8 tively; 

9 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(C) If the violator is a manufacturer of 

12 telecommunications equipment, a manufacturer 

13 of equipment used for advanced communica14 tions, or a provider of advanced communica15 tions, who is subject to the requirements of sec16 tion 255, 716, 718, or 719, and who is deter17 mined by the Commission to have violated any 

18 such requirement, the manufacturer of tele19 communications equipment, the manufacturer 

20 of equipment used for advanced communica21 tions, or the provider of advanced communica22 tions shall be liable to the United States for a 

23 forfeiture penalty. The amount of any penalty 

24 determined under this subparagraph shall not 

25 exceed $100,000 for each violation of each day 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 3304 RS

1 of a continuing violation, except that the 

2 amount assessed for any continuing violation 

3 shall not exceed a total of $1,000,000 for any 

4 single act or failure to act.’’; and 

5 (3) in subparagraph (D) (as so redesignated) 

6 by striking subparagraph ‘‘(A) or (B)’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘subparagraph (A), (B), or (C).’’ 

8 (c) REVIEW OF COMMISSION DETERMINATIONS.— 

9 Section 402(b) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

10 U.S.C. 402(b)) is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(10) By any person who is aggrieved or whose 

13 interests are adversely affected by a determination 

14 made by the Commission under section 717(a)(3).’’. 

15 SEC. 105. UNIVERSAL SERVICE. 

16 (a) CONSUMERS WITH DISABILITIES.—Section 

17 254(c) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

18 254(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(4) INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.—Not20 withstanding subsection (j), the Commission shall 

21 authorize Lifeline and Link-Up assistance programs 

22 and other Federal universal service support mecha23 nisms to be used for those telecommunications serv24 ices, Internet access services, and advanced commu25 nications that are needed by individuals with disabilVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 3304 RS

1 ities, who are otherwise qualified for such programs 

2 or mechanisms, to engage in communication with 1 

3 or more other individuals in a manner that is func4 tionally equivalent to the ability of individuals with5 out disabilities to engage in such communication.’’. 

6 (b) ALLOCATION OF USF FOR SERVICES FOR INDI7 VIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.—Section 254 of the Com8 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254) is further 

9 amended— 

10 (1) by redesignating subsections (i) through (l) 

11 as subsections (j) through (m), respectively; and 

12 (2) by inserting after subsection (h) the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(i) INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE DEAF-BLIND.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Within 6 months after the 

16 date of enactment of the Equal Access to 21st Cen17 tury Communications Act, the Commission shall es18 tablish rules that define as eligible for universal 

19 service support those programs that are certified by 

20 a State commission or approved by the Commission 

21 for the distribution of specialized customer premises 

22 equipment designed to make telecommunications 

23 service, Internet access service, and advanced com24 munications, including interexchange services and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 3304 RS

1 advanced telecommunications and information serv2 ices, accessible by individuals who are deaf-blind. 

3 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub4 section, the term ‘individuals who are deaf-blind’ has 

5 the same meaning given such term in the Helen Kel6 ler National Center Act, as amended by the Reha7 bilitation Act Amendments of 1992 (29 U.S.C. 

8 1905(2)). 

9 ‘‘(3) ANNUAL AMOUNT.—The total amount of 

10 universal service support that may be obligated or 

11 expanded under this subsection for any fiscal year 

12 may not exceed $10,000,000.’’. 

13 SEC. 106. EMERGENCY ACCESS AND REAL-TIME TEXT SUP14 PORT. 

15 Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

16 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is further amended by adding after 

17 section 717 (as added by section 104) the following: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 718. EMERGENCY ACCESS AND REAL-TIME TEXT AD19 VISORY COMMITTEE. 

20 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—For the purpose of achieving 

21 equal access to emergency services by individuals with dis22 abilities, as part of the migration to a national Internet 

23 protocol-enabled emergency network, not later than 120 

24 days after the date of enactment of the Equal Access to 

25 21st Century Communications Act, the Chairman shall esVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 3304 RS

1 tablish an advisory committee, to be known as the Emer2 gency Access and Real-Time Text Advisory Committee 

3 (referred to in this section as the ‘Advisory Committee’). 

4 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—As soon as practicable after the 

5 date of enactment of the Equal Access to 21st Century 

6 Communications Act, the Chairman of the Commission 

7 shall appoint the members of the Advisory Committee, en8 suring an equal balance between potential real-time text 

9 consumers and other stakeholders, and designate 2 such 

10 members as the co-chairs of the Committee. Members of 

11 the Advisory Committee shall be selected from the fol12 lowing groups: 

13 ‘‘(1) STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND

14 EMERGENCY RESPONDER REPRESENTATIVES.—Rep15 resentatives of State and local governments and rep16 resentatives of emergency response providers, se17 lected from among individuals nominated by national 

18 organizations representing such governments and 

19 personnel. 

20 ‘‘(2) SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS.—Individuals 

21 who have the requisite technical knowledge and ex22 pertise to serve on the Advisory Committee in the 

23 fulfillment of its duties, including representatives 

24 of— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
26 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(A) providers of interconnected VoIP 

2 services; 

3 ‘‘(B) vendors, developers, and manufactur4 ers of systems, facilities, equipment, and capa5 bilities for the provision of interconnected VoIP 

6 services; 

7 ‘‘(C) national organizations representing 

8 people with disabilities and senior citizens; 

9 ‘‘(D) Federal agencies or departments re10 sponsible for the implementation of the Next 

11 Generation E 9–1–1 system; 

12 ‘‘(E) the National Institute of Standards 

13 and Technology; and 

14 ‘‘(F) other individuals with relevant tech15 nical expertise. 

16 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED REPRESENTATIVES OF OTHER

17 STAKEHOLDERS AND INTERESTED PARTIES.—Quali18 fied representatives of such other stakeholders and 

19 interested and affected parties as the Chairman of 

20 the Commission determines appropriate. 

21 ‘‘(c) DEVELOPMENT OF RECOMMENDATIONS.—With22 in 12 months after the completion of the member appoint23 ment process by the Chairman of the Commission pursu24 ant to subsection (b), the Advisory Committee shall de25 velop and submit to the Commission recommendations— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
27 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(1) with respect to the definition of real-time 

2 text; 

3 ‘‘(2) with respect to what actions are necessary 

4 as a part of the migration to a national Internet 

5 protocol-enabled network to achieve reliable, inter6 operable real-time text communication transmitted 

7 over such network that will ensure access to emer8 gency services by people with disabilities; 

9 ‘‘(3) for protocols, technical capabilities, and 

10 technical requirements to ensure reliable, interoper11 able real-time text communications necessary to en12 sure access to emergency services by people with dis13 abilities; 

14 ‘‘(4) for the establishment of technical stand15 ards for use by public safety answering points, des16 ignated default answering points and local emer17 gency authorities; 

18 ‘‘(5) for relevant technical standards and re19 quirements for communication devices and equip20 ment and technologies to enable to the use of reli21 able, interoperable real-time text communications; 

22 ‘‘(6) for procedures to be followed by IP-en23 abled network providers to ensure that such pro24 viders do not install features, functions, or capabili25 ties that would conflict with technical standards; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
28 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(7) for deadlines by which providers of inter2 connected VoIP services and manufacturers of 

3 equipment used for such services shall achieve the 

4 actions required in paragraphs (1) through (6), and 

5 for the possible phase out of the use of current-gen6 eration TTY technology to the extent that this tech7 nology is replaced with real-time text. 

8 ‘‘(d) MEETINGS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) INITIAL MEETING.—The initial meeting of 

10 the Advisory Committee shall take place not later 

11 than 90 days after the completion of the member ap12 pointment process by the Chairman of the Commis13 sion pursuant to subsection (b). 

14 ‘‘(2) OTHER MEETINGS.—After the initial meet15 ing, the Advisory Committee shall meet at the call 

16 of the chairs, but no less than monthly until the rec17 ommendations required pursuant to subsection (c) 

18 are completed and submitted. 

19 ‘‘(3) NOTICE; OPEN MEETINGS.—Any meetings 

20 held by the Advisory Committee shall be duly no21 ticed at least 14 days in advance and shall be open 

22 to the public. 

23 ‘‘(e) RULES.— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
29 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(1) QUORUM.—One-third of the members of 

2 the Advisory Committee shall constitute a quorum 

3 for conducting business of the Advisory Committee. 

4 ‘‘(2) SUBCOMMITTEES.—To assist the Advisory 

5 Committee in carrying out its functions, the Chair 

6 may establish appropriate subcommittees composed 

7 of members of the Advisory Committee and other 

8 subject matter experts as deemed necessary. 

9 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL RULES.—The advisory com10 mittee may adopt other rules as needed. 

11 ‘‘(f) FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT.—Neither 

12 the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) nor 

13 any rule, order, or regulation promulgated under that Act 

14 shall apply to the Advisory Committee. 

15 ‘‘(g) IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS.—The 

16 Commission shall have the authority to promulgate regula17 tions to implement the recommendations proposed by the 

18 Advisory Committee, as well as any other regulations, 

19 technical standards, protocols, and procedures as are nec20 essary to achieve reliable, interoperable real-time text com21 munication that ensures access by people with disabilities 

22 to an Internet protocol-enabled emergency network.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
30 

•S 3304 RS

1 SEC. 107. INTERNET ACCESS SERVICE INTERFACE. 

2 Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

3 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is further amended by adding after 

4 section 718 (as added by section 106) the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 719. INTERNET ACCESS SERVICE USER INTERFACE. 

6 ‘‘Every provider of Internet access service and every 

7 manufacturer of Internet access equipment shall, where 

8 achievable, make user interfaces for such service and 

9 equipment accessible to individuals with disabilities, in10 cluding those interfaces used to initiate, monitor, and con11 trol such service.’’. 

12 TITLE II—VIDEO DESCRIPTIONS 

13 AND CLOSED CAPTIONING 

14 SEC. 201. COMMISSION INQUIRY ON CLOSED CAPTIONING 

15 DECODER AND VIDEO DESCRIPTION CAPA16 BILITY, USER INTERFACES, AND VIDEO PRO17 GRAMMING GUIDES AND MENUS. 

18 (a) INQUIRY REQUIRED.—The Federal Communica19 tions Commission shall conduct an inquiry on the fol20 lowing subjects: 

21 (1) CLOSED-CAPTIONING DECODER AND VIDEO

22 DESCRIPTION CAPABILITY.—With respect to closed 

23 captioning decoder and video description capability, 

24 the Federal Communications Commission shall— 

25 (A) describe— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
31 

•S 3304 RS

1 (i) the formats and software com2 monly used by video programming pro3 viders or owners for exhibition on new 

4 technologies, including those using the 

5 Internet protocol (or successor protocol) 

6 and digital wireless services; and 

7 (ii) the related technical issues associ8 ated with the implementation of closed 

9 captioning and video description by means 

10 of new technologies; 

11 (B) describe the technical standards, pro12 tocols, and procedures needed for the trans13 mission of closed captioning and video descrip14 tion by means of services using the Internet 

15 protocol (or a successor protocol) and digital 

16 wireless services and equipment; and 

17 (C) describe— 

18 (i) technical standards, protocols, and 

19 procedures needed to enable video pro20 gramming providers and owners to trans21 mit emergency information in a manner 

22 that is accessible to individuals who are 

23 blind or visually impaired; and 

24 (ii) the persons or parties obligated to 

25 create, receive, and transmit such emerVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
32 

•S 3304 RS

1 gency information in accordance with such 

2 standards, protocols, and procedures. 

3 (2) USER INTERFACES.—With respect to user 

4 interfaces, the Federal Communications Commission 

5 shall— 

6 (A) describe the technical standards, proto7 cols, and procedures needed to enable apparatus 

8 designed to receive or display video program9 ming transmitted simultaneously with sound 

10 (including apparatus designed to receive or dis11 play video programming transmitted by means 

12 of services using the Internet protocol (or a suc13 cessor protocol) to be capable of making the ap14 paratus functions, necessary for the receipt, dis15 play, navigation, or selection of video program16 ming (and any other functions shared by, re17 lated to, or necessary to access such apparatus 

18 functions), accessible to and useable by individ19 uals with disabilities; and 

20 (B) describe the technical standards, pro21 tocols, and procedures needed to enable 

22 onscreen text menus and other visual indicators 

23 used to access the functions described in sub24 paragraph (A) to be accompanied by audio out25 put so that such menus or indicators are accesVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
33 

•S 3304 RS

1 sible to and usable by individuals who are blind 

2 or visually impaired. 

3 (3) VIDEO PROGRAMMING GUIDES AND

4 MENUS.—With respect to video programming guides 

5 and menus, the Federal Communications Commis6 sion shall describe the technical standards, protocols, 

7 and procedures needed to enable video programming 

8 information and selection provided by means of a 

9 navigational device, guide, or menu to be accessible 

10 in real-time by individuals with disabilities who are 

11 unable to read the visual display. 

12 (b) REPORT ON INQUIRY.—Within 18 months after 

13 the date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Commu14 nications Commission shall submit to the Congress a re15 port on the results of such inquiry. 

16 (c) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section, 

17 the terms ‘‘video description’’ and ‘‘video programming’’ 

18 have the meanings provided by section 713(g) of the Com19 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613(g)). 

20 SEC. 202. COMMISSION INQUIRY ON THE DEFINITION OF 

21 CONSUMER GENERATED MEDIA. 

22 Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment 

23 of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall 

24 develop through an inquiry an appropriate definition of 

25 consumer generated media. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
34 

•S 3304 RS

1 SEC. 203. CLOSED CAPTIONING DECODER AND VIDEO DE2 SCRIPTION CAPABILITY. 

3 (a) AUTHORITY TO REGULATE.—Section 303(u) of 

4 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303(u)) is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(u) Require that apparatus designed to receive or 

7 play back video programming (as such term is defined in 

8 section 713(g)) transmitted simultaneously with sound, 

9 when such apparatus is manufactured in the United 

10 States or imported for use in the United States and uses 

11 a picture screen that is 13 inches or greater in size— 

12 ‘‘(1) be equipped with built-in closed-caption de13 coder circuitry or capability designed to display 

14 closed-captioned video programming; 

15 ‘‘(2) have the capability to make available the 

16 transmission and delivery of video description serv17 ices as required by section 713(f); and 

18 ‘‘(3) have the capability to convey emergency 

19 information (as that term is defined in section 79.2 

20 of the Commission’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 73.2)) in 

21 a manner that is accessible to individuals who are 

22 blind or visually impaired.’’. 

23 (b) OTHER DEVICES.—Section 303 of the Commu24 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amend25 ed— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
35 

•S 3304 RS

1 (1) by redesignating subsections (v) through (y) 

2 as subsections (y) through (bb), respectively; and 

3 (2) by inserting after subsection (u) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(v) Require, after inquiry, that apparatus designed 

6 to receive or play back video programming (as such term 

7 is defined in section 713(g)) transmitted simultaneously 

8 with sound, when such apparatus is manufactured in the 

9 United States or imported for use in the United States 

10 and uses a picture screen that is less than 13 inches in 

11 size— 

12 ‘‘(1) be equipped with built-in closed-caption de13 coder circuitry or capability designed to display 

14 closed-captioned video programming; 

15 ‘‘(2) have the capability to make available the 

16 transmission and delivery of video description serv17 ices as required by section 713(f); and 

18 ‘‘(3) have the capability to convey emergency 

19 information (as that term is defined in section 79.2 

20 of the Commission’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 79.2)), 

21 in a manner that is accessible to individuals who are 

22 blind or visually impaired. 

23 ‘‘(w) Require, after inquiry, that apparatus manufac24 tured in the United States or imported for use in the 

25 United States that is designed to record video programVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
36 

•S 3304 RS

1 ming (as such term is defined in section 713(g)) trans2 mitted simultaneously with sound, retain and permit the 

3 pass through of closed captions and video description sig4 nals such that viewers will be able to activate and deacti5 vate the closed captions and video description when the 

6 video programming is played back on a picture screen of 

7 any size. Interconnection mechanisms and standards for 

8 digital video source devices must be able to carry program 

9 related accessibility data for people with disabilities from 

10 the source device to the consumer equipment so that the 

11 consumer is able to display closed captions and make en12 coded video description audible. 

13 ‘‘(x) Exempt from requirements of subsections (u) 

14 and (v) any apparatus or class of apparatus that are dis15 play-only video monitors, with no playback capability and 

16 shall have the authority to waive the requirements of such 

17 subsections for any apparatus or class of apparatus.’’. 

18 (c) SHIPMENT IN COMMERCE.—Section 330(b) of the 

19 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 330(b)) is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘section 303(u)’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘subsections (u), (v), and (w) of section 303’’; 

23 (2) by striking the second sentence and insert24 ing the following: ‘‘Such rules shall provide perform25 ance and display standards for such built-in decoder 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
37 

•S 3304 RS

1 circuitry or capability designed to display closed-cap2 tioned video programming, the transmission and de3 livery of video description services and the convey4 ance of emergency information as required by sec5 tion 303 of this Act.’’; and 

6 (3) in the fourth sentence, by inserting ‘‘and 

7 video description service’’ after ‘‘closed-captioning 

8 service.’’ 

9 (d) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—The Federal 

10 Communications Commission shall prescribe such regula11 tions as are necessary to implement the requirements of 

12 this section, including any technical standards, protocols, 

13 and procedures needed for the transmission of closed cap14 tioning, video description, and emergency information, 

15 within 18 months after the submission of the report to 

16 Congress required by section 201(b) of this Act. 

17 SEC. 204. VIDEO DESCRIPTION AND CLOSED CAPTIONING. 

18 (a) VIDEO DESCRIPTION.—Section 713 of the Com19 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613) is amended by 

20 striking subsections (f) and (g) and inserting the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(f) VIDEO DESCRIPTION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) REINSTATEMENT OF THE RULES.—The 

24 video description regulations of the Commission con25 tained in the report and order identified as ImpleVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
38 

•S 3304 RS

1 mentation of Video Description of Video Program2 ming, Report and Order (15 F.C.C.R. 15230) (July 

3 21, 2000), when such rules are republished and re4 freshed pursuant to paragraph (2), shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) be considered to be in full force and 

6 effect and ratified by law; and 

7 ‘‘(B) apply to video programming that is 

8 first published or exhibited after the date of en9 actment of the Equal Access to 21st Century 

10 Communications Act. 

11 ‘‘(2) CONTINUING AUTHORITY OF THE COMMIS12 SION.—The Commission shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) within 90 days after the date of en14 actment of the Equal Access to 21st Century 

15 Communications Act— 

16 ‘‘(i) publish and refresh its video de17 scription regulations contained in the re18 port and order identified as Implementa19 tion of Video Description of Video Pro20 gramming, Report and Order (15 F.C.C.R. 

21 15230) (July 21, 2000) in a manner that 

22 provides the same or an improved level of 

23 video description service; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
39 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(ii) apply the requirements of such 

2 report and order to owners of and pro3 viders of video programming; 

4 ‘‘(B) initiate a proceeding, to be completed 

5 within 18 months after the submission of the 

6 report to Congress required by section 201(b) 

7 of the Equal Access to 21st Century Commu8 nications Act— 

9 ‘‘(i) identify methods to convey emer10 gency information (as that term is defined 

11 in section 79.2 of the Commission’s regula12 tions (47 C.F.R. 79.2)) in a manner acces13 sible to individuals who are blind or vis14 ually impaired; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) promulgate regulations that re16 quire video programming providers and 

17 video programming distributors (as those 

18 terms are defined in section 79.1 of the 

19 Commission’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 

20 79.1)) and owners of video programming 

21 to convey such emergency information in a 

22 manner accessible to individuals who are 

23 blind or visually impaired, consistent with 

24 the requirements of such section of such 

25 regulations; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
40 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(C) promulgate any other regulation that 

2 the Commission may find necessary to imple3 ment, enforce, or otherwise carry out the provi4 sions of this section, including regulations to in5 crease the amount of video description required 

6 to achieve full access to video programming for 

7 individuals who are blind or visually impaired. 

8 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS FOR RULES.— 

9 ‘‘(A) The regulations described in para10 graph (1) and republished and refreshed, or 

11 otherwise increased or enhanced, pursuant to 

12 subparagraph (A) or (C) of paragraph (2) shall 

13 include an appropriate schedule of deadlines for 

14 the provision of video description of video pro15 gramming. 

16 ‘‘(B) Such regulations may permit a pro17 vider of video programming or program owner 

18 to petition the Commission for an exemption 

19 from the requirements of this section upon a 

20 showing that the requirements contained in this 

21 section are not achievable. A provider shall be 

22 exempt from such requirements only after the 

23 Commission decides to grant any such petition. 

24 ‘‘(C) The Commission may exempt from 

25 the regulations established pursuant to paraVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
41 

•S 3304 RS

1 graph (2)(C) services, classes of services, pro2 grams, classes of programs, equipment, or 

3 classes of equipment for which the Commission 

4 has determined that the application of such reg5 ulations would be economically burdensome to 

6 the providers of such services. 

7 ‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 

8 ‘‘(1) VIDEO DESCRIPTION.—The term ‘video de9 scription’ means the insertion of audio narrated de10 scriptions of the video programming’s key visual ele11 ments in natural pauses between the program’s dia12 logue. 

13 ‘‘(2) VIDEO PROGRAMMING.—The term ‘video 

14 programming’ means programming provided by, or 

15 generally considered comparable to programming 

16 provided by, a television broadcast station, even if 

17 such programming is distributed over the Internet or 

18 by some other means.’’. 

19 (b) CLOSED CAPTIONING ON VIDEO PROGRAMMING

20 DISTRIBUTED OVER THE INTERNET.—Section 713 of the 

21 Communication Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613) is further 

22 amended by striking subsection (c) and inserting the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(c) DEADLINES FOR CAPTIONING.— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
42 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The regulations prescribed 

2 pursuant to subsection (b) shall include an appro3 priate schedule of deadlines for the provision of 

4 closed captioning of video programming. 

5 ‘‘(2) DEADLINES FOR INTERNET-DISTRIBUTED

6 PROGRAMMING.— 

7 ‘‘(A) Within 18 months after the submis8 sion of the report to Congress required by sec9 tion 201(b) of the Equal Access to 21st Cen10 tury Communications Act, the Commission shall 

11 prescribe regulations that include an appro12 priate schedule of deadlines for the provision of 

13 closed captioning of video programming distrib14 uted to the public over the Internet. 

15 ‘‘(B) Consistent with the regulations pro16 mulgated under subsection (b), the regulations 

17 prescribed under this paragraph shall ensure 

18 the accessibility of video programming, except 

19 for consumer generated media (as such term is 

20 to be defined by the Commission), through the 

21 provision of captions on— 

22 ‘‘(i) preproduced video programming 

23 that was previously captioned for television 

24 viewing; 

25 ‘‘(ii) live video programming; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
43 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(iii) video programming first pub2 lished or exhibited after the effective date 

3 of such regulations provided by or gen4 erally considered to be comparable to pro5 gramming provided by multichannel pro6 gramming distributors.’’. 

7 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 713(d) of 

8 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613(d)) is 

9 amended by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(3) a provider of video programming or pro12 gram owner may petition the Commission for an ex13 emption from the requirements of this section and— 

14 ‘‘(A) the Commission may grant such peti15 tion upon showing that the requirements con16 tained in this section would result in an undue 

17 burden; and 

18 ‘‘(B) such exemptions shall be effective 

19 only after the Commission grants such peti20 tion.’’. 

21 SEC. 205. USER INTERFACE REGULATIONS. 

22 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 303 of the Communica23 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by 

24 adding at the end of the following new subsection: 

25 ‘‘(cc)(1) Require, after inquiry— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
44 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(A) that apparatus designed to receive or play 

2 back video programming transmitted simultaneously 

3 with sound, including apparatus designed to receive 

4 or display video programming transmitted by means 

5 of services using the Internet protocol (or a suc6 cessor protocol), be designed, developed, or fab7 ricated so that control of all apparatus functions en8 abling the receipt, display, navigation, or selection of 

9 video programming (and any other functions shared 

10 by, related to, or necessary to access such apparatus 

11 functions), are accessible to and usable by individ12 uals with disabilities; 

13 ‘‘(B) that where on-screen text menus or other 

14 visual indicators are used to access the functions de15 scribed in subparagraph (A), such functions be ac16 companied by audio output that is either integrated 

17 or peripheral to the apparatus, so that such menus 

18 or indicators are accessible to and usable by individ19 uals who are blind or visually impaired in real-time; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(C) that user controls needed to access closed 

22 captioning and video description, including— 

23 ‘‘(i) a button, key, or icon on the remote 

24 control of such apparatus (where a remote con25 trol is provided with the apparatus) designated 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
45 

•S 3304 RS

1 for activating the closed captioning function; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(ii) the inclusion of ‘closed-captions’ and 

4 ‘video description’ on the first menu that ap5 pears when on-screen menus are displayed on 

6 such apparatus. 

7 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection, the terms ‘video 

8 description’ and ‘video programming’ have the meanings 

9 given such terms in section 713(g).’’. 

10 (b) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—Within 18 

11 months after the submission of the report to Congress re12 quired by section 201(b) of this Act, the Federal Commu13 nications Commission shall prescribe such regulations as 

14 are necessary to implement the amendments made by sub15 section (a). 

16 SEC. 206. ACCESS TO VIDEO PROGRAMMING GUIDES AND 

17 MENUS. 

18 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 303 of the Communica19 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by 

20 adding after subsection (cc), as added by section 205, the 

21 following: 

22 ‘‘(dd) Require each provider or owner of video pro23 gramming (as such term is defined in section 713(g)), 

24 with the exception of consumer generated media (as such 

25 term is to be defined by the Commission) and each multiVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00045 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
46 

•S 3304 RS

1 channel programming distributor to ensure that video pro2 gramming information and selection provided by means of 

3 a navigational device, guide, or menu is accessible in real4 time by individuals with disabilities who are unable to read 

5 the visual display.’’. 

6 (b) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—Within 18 

7 months after the submission of the report to Congress re8 quired by section 201(b), the Federal Communications 

9 Commission shall prescribe such regulations as are nec10 essary to implement the amendments made by subsection 

11 (a). 

12 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

13 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

14 ‘‘Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Acces15 sibility Act of 2010’’. 

16 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.— 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Limitation on liability. 

TITLE I—COMMUNICATIONS ACCESS 

Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. Hearing aid compatibility. 

Sec. 103. Relay services. 

Sec. 104. Access to advanced communications services and equipment. 

Sec. 105. Universal service. 

Sec. 106. Emergency Access Advisory Committee. 

TITLE II—VIDEO PROGRAMMING 

Sec. 201. Video Programming and Emergency Access Advisory Committee. 

Sec. 202. Video description and closed captioning. 

Sec. 203. Closed captioning decoder and video description capability. 

Sec. 204. User interfaces on digital apparatus. 

Sec. 205. Access to video programming guides and menus provided on navigation 

devices. 

Sec. 206. Definitions. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
47 

•S 3304 RS

1 SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

3 (b), no person shall be liable for a violation of the require4 ments of this Act (or of the provisions of the Communica5 tions Act of 1934 that are amended or added by this Act) 

6 with respect to video programming, online content, applica7 tions, services, advanced communications services, or equip8 ment used to provide or access advanced communications 

9 services to the extent such person— 

10 (1) transmits, routes, or stores in intermediate or 

11 transient storage the communications made available 

12 through the provision of advanced communications 

13 services by a third party; or 

14 (2) provides an information location tool, such 

15 as a directory, index, reference, pointer, menu, guide, 

16 user interface, or hypertext link, through which an 

17 end user obtains access to such video programming, 

18 online content, applications, services, advanced com19 munications services, or equipment used to provide or 

20 access advanced communications services. 

21 (b) EXCEPTION.—The limitation on liability under 

22 subsection (a) shall not apply to any person who relies on 

23 third party applications, services, software, hardware, or 

24 equipment to comply with the requirements of this Act (or 

25 of the provisions of the Communications Act of 1934 that 

26 are amended or added by this Act) with respect to video 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
48 

•S 3304 RS

1 programming, online content, applications, services, ad2 vanced communications services, or equipment used to pro3 vide or access advanced communications services. 

4 TITLE I—COMMUNICATIONS 

5 ACCESS 

6 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

7 Section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

8 U.S.C. 153) is amended— 

9 (1) by adding at the end the following new para10 graphs: 

11 ‘‘(53) ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES.— 

12 The term ‘advanced communications services’ 

13 means— 

14 ‘‘(A) interconnected VoIP service; 

15 ‘‘(B) non-interconnected VoIP service; 

16 ‘‘(C) electronic messaging service; and 

17 ‘‘(D) interoperable video conferencing serv18 ice. 

19 ‘‘(54) CONSUMER GENERATED MEDIA.—The term 

20 ‘consumer generated media’ means content created 

21 and made available by consumers to online sites and 

22 venues on the Internet, including video, audio, and 

23 multimedia content. 

24 ‘‘(55) DISABILITY.—The term ‘disability’ has the 

25 meaning given such term under section 3 of the AmerVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
49 

•S 3304 RS

1 icans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

2 12102). 

3 ‘‘(56) ELECTRONIC MESSAGING SERVICE.—The 

4 term ‘electronic messaging service’ means a service 

5 that provides real-time or near real-time non-voice 

6 messages in text form between persons over commu7 nications networks. 

8 ‘‘(57) INTERCONNECTED VOIP SERVICE.—The 

9 term ‘interconnected VoIP service’ has the meaning 

10 given such term under section 9.3 of title 47, Code of 

11 Federal Regulations, as such section may be amended 

12 from time to time. 

13 ‘‘(58) NON-INTERCONNECTED VOIP SERVICE.— 

14 The term ‘non-interconnected VoIP service’— 

15 ‘‘(A) means a service that— 

16 ‘‘(i) enables real-time voice commu17 nications that originate from or terminate 

18 to the user’s location using Internet protocol 

19 or any successor protocol; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) requires Internet protocol compat21 ible customer premises equipment; and 

22 ‘‘(B) does not include any service that is an 

23 interconnected VoIP service. 

24 ‘‘(59) INTEROPERABLE VIDEO CONFERENCING

25 SERVICE.—The term ‘interoperable video conferencing 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
50 

•S 3304 RS

1 service’ means a service that provides real-time video 

2 communications, including audio, to enable users to 

3 share information of the user’s choosing.’’; and 

4 (2) by reordering paragraphs (1) through (52) 

5 and the paragraphs added by paragraph (1) of this 

6 section in alphabetical order based on the headings of 

7 such paragraphs and renumbering such paragraphs 

8 as so reordered. 

9 SEC. 102. HEARING AID COMPATIBILITY. 

10 (a) COMPATIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.— 

11 (1) TELEPHONE SERVICE FOR THE DISABLED.— 

12 Section 710(b)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934 

13 (47 U.S.C. 610(b)(1)) is amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) 

15 and subsection (c), the Commission shall require that cus16 tomer premises equipment described in this paragraph pro17 vide internal means for effective use with hearing aids that 

18 are designed to be compatible with telephones which meet 

19 established technical standards for hearing aid compat20 ibility. Customer premises equipment described in this 

21 paragraph are the following: 

22 ‘‘(A) All essential telephones. 

23 ‘‘(B) All telephones manufactured in the United 

24 States (other than for export) more than one year 

25 after the date of enactment of the Hearing Aid ComVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
51 

•S 3304 RS

1 patibility Act of 1988 or imported for use in the 

2 United States more than one year after such date. 

3 ‘‘(C) All customer premises equipment used with 

4 advanced communications services that is designed to 

5 provide 2-way voice communication via a built-in 

6 speaker intended to be held to the ear in a manner 

7 functionally equivalent to a telephone, subject to the 

8 regulations prescribed by the Commission under sub9 section (e).’’. 

10 (2) ADDITIONAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 710(b) 

11 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

12 610(b)) is further amended— 

13 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

14 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 

15 (I) in the matter preceding clause 

16 (i)— 

17 (aa) by striking ‘‘initial’’; 

18 (bb) by striking ‘‘of this sub19 section after the date of enactment 

20 of the Hearing Aid Compatibility 

21 Act of 1988’’; and 

22 (cc) by striking ‘‘paragraph 

23 (1)(B) of this subsection’’ and in24 serting ‘‘subparagraphs (B) and 

25 (C) of paragraph (1)’’; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
52 

•S 3304 RS

1 (II) by inserting ‘‘and’’ at the end 

2 of clause (ii); 

3 (III) by striking clause (iii); and 

4 (IV) by redesignating clause (iv) 

5 as clause (iii); 

6 (ii) by striking subparagraph (B) and 

7 redesignating subparagraph (C) as subpara8 graph (B); and 

9 (iii) in subparagraph (B) (as so redes10 ignated)— 

11 (I) by striking the first sentence 

12 and inserting ‘‘The Commission shall 

13 periodically assess the appropriateness 

14 of continuing in effect the exemptions 

15 for telephones and other customer 

16 premises equipment described in sub17 paragraph (A) of this paragraph.’’; 

18 and 

19 (II) in each of clauses (iii) and 

20 (iv), by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)(B)’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (B) or 

22 (C) of paragraph (1)’’; 

23 (B) in paragraph (4)(B)— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
53 

•S 3304 RS

1 (i) by striking ‘‘public mobile’’ and in2 serting ‘‘telephones used with public mo3 bile’’; 

4 (ii) by inserting ‘‘telephones and other 

5 customer premises equipment used in whole 

6 or in part with’’ after ‘‘means’’; 

7 (iii) by striking ‘‘and’’ after ‘‘public 

8 land mobile telephone service,’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘or’’; 

10 (iv) by striking ‘‘part 22 of’’; and 

11 (v) by inserting after ‘‘Regulations’’ 

12 the following: ‘‘, or any functionally equiva13 lent unlicensed wireless services’’; and 

14 (C) in paragraph (4)(C)— 

15 (i) by striking ‘‘term ‘private radio 

16 services’ ’’ and inserting ‘‘term ‘telephones 

17 used with private radio services’ ’’; and 

18 (ii) by inserting ‘‘telephones and other 

19 customer premises equipment used in whole 

20 or in part with’’ after ‘‘means’’. 

21 (b) TECHNICAL STANDARDS.—Section 710(c) of the 

22 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(c)) is amended 

23 by adding at the end the following: ‘‘A telephone or other 

24 customer premises equipment that is compliant with rel25 evant technical standards developed through a public parVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
54 

•S 3304 RS

1 ticipation process and in consultation with interested con2 sumer stakeholders (designated by the Commission for the 

3 purposes of this section) will be considered hearing aid com4 patible for purposes of this section, until such time as the 

5 Commission may determine otherwise. The Commission 

6 shall consult with the public, including people with hearing 

7 loss, in establishing or approving such technical standards. 

8 The Commission may delegate this authority to an em9 ployee pursuant to section 5(c). The Commission shall re10 main the final arbiter as to whether the standards meet the 

11 requirements of this section.’’. 

12 (c) RULEMAKING.—Section 710(e) of the Communica13 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(e)) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘impairments’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘loss’’; and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following sentence: 

17 ‘‘In implementing the provisions of subsection 

18 (b)(1)(C), the Commission shall use appropriate time19 tables or benchmarks to the extent necessary (1) due 

20 to technical feasibility, or (2) to ensure the market21 ability or availability of new technologies to users.’’. 

22 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Section 710(h) of the 

23 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(h)) is amend24 ed to read as follows: 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
55 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(h) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in the Twen2 ty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility 

3 Act of 2010 shall be construed to modify the Commission’s 

4 regulations set forth in section 20.19 of title 47 of the Code 

5 of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of enactment 

6 of such Act.’’. 

7 SEC. 103. RELAY SERVICES. 

8 (a) DEFINITION.—Paragraph (3) of section 225(a) of 

9 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 225(a)(3)) is 

10 amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘(3) TELECOMMUNICATIONS RELAY SERVICES.— 

12 The term ‘telecommunications relay services’ means 

13 telephone transmission services that provide the abil14 ity for an individual who is deaf, hard of hearing, 

15 deaf-blind, or who has a speech disability to engage 

16 in communication by wire or radio with one or more 

17 individuals, in a manner that is functionally equiva18 lent to the ability of a hearing individual who does 

19 not have a speech disability to communicate using 

20 voice communication services by wire or radio.’’. 

21 (b) INTERNET PROTOCOL-BASED RELAY SERVICES.— 

22 Title VII of such Act (47 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended 

23 by adding at the end the following new section: 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
56 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘SEC. 715. INTERNET PROTOCOL-BASED RELAY SERVICES. 

2 ‘‘Within one year after the date of enactment of the 

3 Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessi4 bility Act of 2010, each interconnected VoIP service pro5 vider and each provider of non-interconnected VoIP service 

6 shall participate in and contribute to the Telecommuni7 cations Relay Services Fund established in section 

8 64.604(c)(5)(iii) of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, 

9 as in effect on the date of enactment of such Act, in a man10 ner prescribed by the Commission by regulation to provide 

11 for obligations of such providers that are consistent with 

12 and comparable to the obligations of other contributors to 

13 such Fund.’’. 

14 SEC. 104. ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERV15 ICES AND EQUIPMENT. 

16 (a) TITLE VII AMENDMENT.—Title VII of the Commu17 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), as amended 

18 by section 103, is further amended by adding at the end 

19 the following new sections: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 716. ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERV21 ICES AND EQUIPMENT. 

22 ‘‘(a) MANUFACTURING.—With respect to equipment 

23 manufactured after the effective date of the regulations es24 tablished pursuant to subsection (e), and subject to those 

25 regulations, a manufacturer of equipment used for ad26 vanced communications services, including end user equipVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
57 

•S 3304 RS

1 ment, network equipment, and software, shall ensure that 

2 the equipment and software that such manufacturer de3 signs, develops, and fabricates shall be accessible to and usa4 ble by individuals with disabilities, unless the requirement 

5 of this subsection is not achievable. 

6 ‘‘(b) SERVICE PROVIDERS.—With respect to services 

7 provided after the effective date of the regulations estab8 lished pursuant to subsection (e), and subject to those regu9 lations, a provider of advanced communications services 

10 shall ensure that such services offered by such provider are 

11 accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, un12 less the requirement of this subsection is not achievable. 

13 ‘‘(c) COMPATIBILITY.—Whenever the requirements of 

14 subsections (a) or (b) are not achievable, a manufacturer 

15 or provider shall ensure that its equipment or service is 

16 compatible with existing peripheral devices or specialized 

17 customer premises equipment commonly used by individ18 uals with disabilities to achieve access, unless the require19 ment of this subsection is not achievable. 

20 ‘‘(d) NETWORK FEATURES, FUNCTIONS, AND CAPA21 BILITIES.—Each provider of advanced communications 

22 services has the duty not to install network features, func23 tions, or capabilities that do not impede accessibility or 

24 usability. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
58 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—Within one year after the date 

2 of enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications 

3 and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall 

4 promulgate such regulations as are necessary to implement 

5 this section. In prescribing the regulations, the Commission 

6 shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) include performance requirements to ensure 

8 the accessibility, usability, and compatibility of ad9 vanced communications services and the equipment 

10 used for advanced communications services by indi11 viduals with disabilities; 

12 ‘‘(2) provide that advanced communications 

13 services, the equipment used for advanced commu14 nications services, and networks used to provide ad15 vanced communications services may not impair or 

16 impede the accessibility of information content when 

17 accessibility has been incorporated into that content 

18 for transmission through advanced communications 

19 services, equipment used for advanced communica20 tions services, or networks used to provide advanced 

21 communications services; 

22 ‘‘(3) determine the obligations under this section 

23 of manufacturers, service providers, and providers of 

24 applications or services accessed over service provider 

25 networks; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
59 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(4) not mandate technical standards, except 

2 that the Commission may adopt technical standards 

3 as a safe harbor for such compliance if necessary to 

4 facilities the manufacturers’ and service providers’ 

5 compliance with sections (a) through (c); and 

6 ‘‘(5) not mandate the use or incorporation of 

7 specific proprietary technology. 

8 ‘‘(f) SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT SUBJECT TO SECTION

9 255.—The requirements of this section shall not apply to 

10 any equipment or services, including interconnected VoIP 

11 service, that are subject to the requirements of section 255 

12 on the day before the date of enactment of the Twenty-First 

13 Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 

14 2010. Such services and equipment shall remain subject to 

15 the requirements of section 255. 

16 ‘‘(g) ACHIEVABLE DEFINED.—For purposes of this sec17 tion, the term ‘achievable’ means with reasonable effort or 

18 expense, as determined by the Commission. In determining 

19 whether the requirements of a provision are achievable, the 

20 Commission shall consider the following factors: 

21 ‘‘(1) The nature and cost of the steps needed to 

22 meet the requirements of this section with respect to 

23 the specific equipment or service in question. 

24 ‘‘(2) The technical and economic impact on the 

25 operation of the manufacturer or provider and on the 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
60 

•S 3304 RS

1 operation of the specific equipment or service in ques2 tion, including on the development and deployment of 

3 new communications technologies. 

4 ‘‘(3) The type of operations of the manufacturer 

5 or provider. 

6 ‘‘(4) The extent to which the service provider or 

7 manufacturer in question offers accessible services or 

8 equipment containing varying degrees of 

9 functionality and features, and offered at differing 

10 price points. 

11 ‘‘(h) COMMISSION FLEXIBILITY.—The Commission 

12 shall have the authority, on its own motion or in response 

13 to a petition by a manufacturer or provider, to waive the 

14 requirements of this section for any feature or function of 

15 equipment used to provide or access advanced communica16 tions services, or for any class of such equipment, that— 

17 ‘‘(1) is capable of accessing an advanced commu18 nications service; and 

19 ‘‘(2) is designed for multiple purposes, but is de20 signed primarily for purposes other than using ad21 vanced communications services. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 717. ENFORCEMENT AND RECORDKEEPING OBLIGA23 TIONS. 

24 ‘‘(a) COMPLAINT AND ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES.— 

25 Within one year after the date of enactment of the TwentyVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
61 

•S 3304 RS

1 First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act 

2 of 2010, the Commission shall establish regulations that fa3 cilitate the filing of formal and informal complaints that 

4 allege a violation of section 255 or 716, establish procedures 

5 for enforcement actions by the Commission with respect to 

6 such violations, and implement the recordkeeping obliga7 tions of paragraph (5) for manufacturers and providers 

8 subject to such sections. Such regulations shall include the 

9 following provisions: 

10 ‘‘(1) NO FEE.—The Commission shall not charge 

11 any fee to an individual who files a complaint alleg12 ing a violation of section 255 or 716. 

13 ‘‘(2) RECEIPT OF COMPLAINTS.—The Commis14 sion shall establish separate and identifiable elec15 tronic, telephonic, and physical receptacles for the re16 ceipt of complaints filed under section 255 or 716. 

17 ‘‘(3) COMPLAINTS TO THE COMMISSION.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person alleging a 

19 violation of section 255 or 716 by a manufac20 turer of equipment or provider of service subject 

21 to such sections may file a formal or informal 

22 complaint with the Commission. 

23 ‘‘(B) INVESTIGATION OF INFORMAL COM24 PLAINT.—The Commission shall investigate the 

25 allegations in an informal complaint and, withVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00061 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
62 

•S 3304 RS

1 in 180 days after the date on which such com2 plaint was filed with the Commission, issue an 

3 order concluding the investigation, unless such 

4 complaint is resolved before such time. The order 

5 shall include a determination whether any viola6 tion occurred. 

7 ‘‘(i) VIOLATION.—If the Commission 

8 determines that a violation has occurred, 

9 the Commission may, in the order issued 

10 under this subparagraph or in a subsequent 

11 order, require the manufacturer or service 

12 provider to take such remedial action as is 

13 necessary to comply with the requirements 

14 of this section. 

15 ‘‘(ii) NO VIOLATION.—If a determina16 tion is made that a violation has not oc17 curred, the Commission shall provide the 

18 basis for such determination. 

19 ‘‘(C) CONSOLIDATION OF COMPLAINTS.—The 

20 Commission may consolidate for investigation 

21 and resolution complaints alleging substantially 

22 the same violation. 

23 ‘‘(4) OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND.—Before the 

24 Commission makes a determination pursuant to 

25 paragraph (3), the party that is the subject of the 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
63 

•S 3304 RS

1 complaint shall have a reasonable opportunity to re2 spond to such complaint, and may include in such re3 sponse any factors that are relevant to such deter4 mination. 

5 ‘‘(5) RECORDKEEPING.—(A) Beginning one year 

6 after the effective date of regulations promulgated 

7 pursuant to section 716(e), each manufacturer and 

8 provider subject to sections 255 and 716 shall main9 tain, in the ordinary course of business and for a rea10 sonable period, records of the efforts taken by such 

11 manufacturer or provider to implement sections 255 

12 and 716, including the following: 

13 ‘‘(i) Information about the manufac14 turer’s or provider’s efforts to consult with 

15 individuals with disabilities. 

16 ‘‘(ii) Descriptions of the accessibility 

17 features of its products and services. 

18 ‘‘(iii) Information about the compat19 ibility of such products and services with 

20 peripheral devices or specialized customer 

21 premise equipment commonly used by indi22 viduals with disabilities to achieve access. 

23 ‘‘(B) An officer of a manufacturer or provider 

24 shall submit to the Commission an annual certifiVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00063 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
64 

•S 3304 RS

1 cation that records are being kept in accordance with 

2 subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(C) After the filing of a formal or informal 

4 complaint against a manufacturer or provider in the 

5 manner prescribed in paragraph (3), the Commission 

6 may request, and shall keep confidential, a copy of 

7 the records maintained by such manufacturer or pro8 vider pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this para9 graph that are directly relevant to the equipment or 

10 service that is the subject of such complaint. 

11 ‘‘(6) FAILURE TO ACT.—If the Commission fails 

12 to carry out any of its responsibilities to act upon a 

13 complaint in the manner prescribed in paragraph 

14 (3), the person that filed such complaint may bring 

15 an action in the nature of mandamus in the United 

16 States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia 

17 to compel the Commission to carry out any such re18 sponsibility. 

19 ‘‘(7) COMMISSION JURISDICTION.—The limita20 tions of section 255(f) shall apply to any claim that 

21 alleges a violation of section 255 or 716. Nothing in 

22 this paragraph affects or limits any action for man23 damus under paragraph (6) or any appeal pursuant 

24 to section 402(b)(10). 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
65 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(8) PRIVATE RESOLUTIONS OF COMPLAINTS.— 

2 Nothing in the Commission’s rules or this Act shall 

3 be construed to preclude a person who files a com4 plaint and a manufacturer or provider from resolving 

5 a formal or informal complaint prior to the Commis6 sion’s final determination in a complaint proceeding. 

7 In the event of such a resolution, the parties shall 

8 jointly request dismissal of the complaint and the 

9 Commission shall grant such request. 

10 ‘‘(b) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Every two years after the 

12 date of enactment of the Twenty-First Century Com13 munications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the 

14 Commission shall submit to the Committee on Com15 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and 

16 the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

17 of Representatives a report that includes the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(A) An assessment of the level of compli20 ance with section 255 and 716. 

21 ‘‘(B) An evaluation of the extent to which 

22 any accessibility barriers still exist with respect 

23 to new communications technologies. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
66 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(C) The number and nature of complaints 

2 received pursuant to subsection (a) during the 

3 two years that are the subject of the report. 

4 ‘‘(D) A description of the actions taken to 

5 resolve such complaints under this section, in6 cluding forfeiture penalties assessed. 

7 ‘‘(E) The length of time that was taken by 

8 the Commission to resolve each such complaint. 

9 ‘‘(F) The number, status, nature, and out10 come of any actions for mandamus filed pursu11 ant to subsection (a)(6) and the number, status, 

12 nature, and outcome of any appeals filed pursu13 ant to section 402(b)(10). 

14 ‘‘(G) An assessment of the effect of the re15 quirements of this section on the development 

16 and deployment of new communications tech17 nologies. 

18 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC COMMENT REQUIRED.—The Com19 mission shall seek public comment on its tentative 

20 findings prior to submission to the Committees of the 

21 report under this subsection. 

22 ‘‘(c) COMPTROLLER GENERAL ENFORCEMENT

23 STUDY.— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
67 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General 

2 shall conduct a study to consider and evaluate the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘(A) The Commission’s compliance with the 

5 requirements of this section, including the Com6 mission’s level of compliance with the deadlines 

7 established under and pursuant to this section 

8 and deadlines for acting on complaints pursuant 

9 to subsection (a). 

10 ‘‘(B) Whether the enforcement actions taken 

11 by the Commission pursuant to this section have 

12 been appropriate and effective in ensuring com13 pliance with this section. 

14 ‘‘(C) Whether the enforcement provisions 

15 under this section are adequate to ensure compli16 ance with this section. 

17 ‘‘(D) Whether, and to what extent (if any), 

18 the requirements of this section have an effect on 

19 the development and deployment of new commu20 nications technologies. 

21 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the 

22 date of enactment of the Twenty-First Century Com23 munications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the 

24 Comptroller General shall submit to the Committee on 

25 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
68 

•S 3304 RS

1 and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 

2 House of Representatives a report on the results of the 

3 study required by paragraph (1), with recommenda4 tions for how the enforcement process and measures 

5 under this section may be modified or improved. 

6 ‘‘(d) CLEARINGHOUSE.—Within one year after the 

7 date of enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communica8 tions and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission 

9 shall, in consultation with the Architectural and Transpor10 tation Barriers Compliance Board, the National Tele11 communications and Information Administration, trade 

12 associations, and organizations representing individuals 

13 with disabilities, establish a clearinghouse of information 

14 on the availability of accessible products and services and 

15 accessibility solutions required under sections 255 and 716. 

16 Such information shall be made publicly available on the 

17 Commission’s website and by other means, and shall in18 clude an annually updated list of products and services 

19 with access features. 

20 ‘‘(e) OUTREACH AND EDUCATION.—Upon establish21 ment of the clearinghouse of information required under 

22 subsection (d), the Commission, in coordination with the 

23 National Telecommunications and Information Adminis24 tration, shall conduct an informational and educational 

25 program designed to inform the public about the availVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
69 

•S 3304 RS

1 ability of the clearinghouse and the protections and rem2 edies available under sections 255 and 716.’’. 

3 (b) TITLE V AMENDMENTS.—Section 503(b)(2) of such 

4 Act (47 U.S.C. 503(b)(2)) is amended by adding after sub5 paragraph (E) the following: 

6 ‘‘(F) Subject to paragraph (5) of this section, if 

7 the violator is a manufacturer or service provider 

8 subject to the requirements of section 255 or 716, and 

9 is determined by the Commission to have violated any 

10 such requirement, the manufacturer or provider shall 

11 be liable to the United States for a forfeiture penalty 

12 of not more than $100,000 for each violation or each 

13 day of a continuing violation, except that the amount 

14 assessed for any continuing violation shall not exceed 

15 a total of $1,000,000 for any single act or failure to 

16 act.’’. 

17 (c) REVIEW OF COMMISSION DETERMINATIONS.—Sec18 tion 402(b) of such Act (47 U.S.C. 402(b)) is amended by 

19 adding the following new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(10) By any person who is aggrieved or whose 

21 interests are adversely affected by a determination 

22 made by the Commission under section 717(a)(3).’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
70 

•S 3304 RS

1 SEC. 105. RELAY SERVICES FOR DEAF-BLIND INDIVIDUALS. 

2 Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934, as 

3 amended by section 104, is further amended by adding at 

4 the end the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 718. RELAY SERVICES FOR DEAF-BLIND INDIVIDUALS. 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Within 6 months after the date of 

7 enactment of the Equal Access to 21st Century Communica8 tions Act, the Commission shall establish rules that define 

9 as eligible for relay service support those programs that are 

10 approved by the Commission for the distribution of special11 ized customer premises equipment designed to make tele12 communications service, Internet access service, and ad13 vanced communications, including interexchange services 

14 and advanced telecommunications and information serv15 ices, accessible by individuals who are deaf-blind. 

16 ‘‘(b) INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE DEAF-BLIND DEFINED.— 

17 For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘individuals who 

18 are deaf-blind’ has the same meaning given such term in 

19 the Helen Keller National Center Act, as amended by the 

20 Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1992 (29 U.S.C. 

21 1905(2)). 

22 ‘‘(c) ANNUAL AMOUNT.—The total amount of support 

23 the Commission may provide from its interstate relay fund 

24 for any fiscal year may not exceed $10,000,000.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
71 

•S 3304 RS

1 SEC. 106. EMERGENCY ACCESS ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—For the purpose of achieving 

3 equal access to emergency services by individuals with dis4 abilities, as a part of the migration to a national Internet 

5 protocol-enabled emergency network, not later than 60 days 

6 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Chairman of 

7 the Commission shall establish an advisory committee, to 

8 be known as the Emergency AccessAdvisory Committee (re9 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Advisory Committee’’). 

10 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—As soon as practicable after the 

11 date of enactment of this Act, the Chairman of the Commis12 sion shall appoint the members of the Advisory Committee, 

13 ensuring a balance between individuals with disabilities 

14 and other stakeholders, and shall designate two such mem15 bers as the co-chairs of the Committee. Members of the Advi16 sory Committee shall be selected from the following groups: 

17 (1) STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND EMER18 GENCY RESPONDER REPRESENTATIVES.—Representa19 tives of State and local governments and representa20 tives of emergency response providers, selected from 

21 among individuals nominated by national organiza22 tions representing such governments and representa23 tives. 

24 (2) SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS.—Individuals 

25 who have the technical knowledge and expertise to 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
72 

•S 3304 RS

1 serve on the Advisory Committee in the fulfillment of 

2 its duties, including representatives of— 

3 (A) providers of interconnected and non4 interconnected VoIP services; 

5 (B) vendors, developers, and manufacturers 

6 of systems, facilities, equipment, and capabilities 

7 for the provision of interconnected and non8 interconnected VoIP services; 

9 (C) national organizations representing in10 dividuals with disabilities and senior citizens; 

11 (D) Federal agencies or departments re12 sponsible for the implementation of the Next 

13 Generation E 9-1-1 system; 

14 (E) the National Institute of Standards and 

15 Technology; and 

16 (F) other individuals with such technical 

17 knowledge and expertise. 

18 (3) REPRESENTATIVES OF OTHER STAKE19 HOLDERS AND INTERESTED PARTIES.—Representa20 tives of such other stakeholders and interested and af21 fected parties as the Chairman of the Commission de22 termines appropriate. 

23 (c) DEVELOPMENT OF RECOMMENDATIONS.—Within 1 

24 year after the completion of the member appointment proc25 ess by the Chairman of the Commission pursuant to subVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00072 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
73 

•S 3304 RS

1 section (b), the Advisory Committee shall conduct a na2 tional survey of individuals with disabilities, seeking input 

3 from the groups described in subsection (b)(2), to determine 

4 the most effective and efficient technologies and methods by 

5 which to enable access to emergency services by individuals 

6 with disabilities and shall develop and submit to the Com7 mission recommendations to implement such technologies 

8 and methods, including recommendations— 

9 (1) with respect to what actions are necessary as 

10 a part of the migration to a national Internet pro11 tocol-enabled network to achieve reliable, interoperable 

12 communication transmitted over such network that 

13 will ensure access to emergency services by individ14 uals with disabilities; 

15 (2) for protocols, technical capabilities, and tech16 nical requirements to ensure the reliability and inter17 operability necessary to ensure access to emergency 

18 services by individuals with disabilities; 

19 (3) for the establishment of technical standards 

20 for use by public safety answering points, designated 

21 default answering points, and local emergency au22 thorities; 

23 (4) for relevant technical standards and require24 ments for communication devices and equipment and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
74 

•S 3304 RS

1 technologies to enable the use of reliable emergency ac2 cess; 

3 (5) for procedures to be followed by IP-enabled 

4 network providers to ensure that such providers do 

5 not install features, functions, or capabilities that 

6 would conflict with technical standards; 

7 (6) for deadlines by which providers of inter8 connected and non-interconnected VoIP services and 

9 manufacturers of equipment used for such services 

10 shall achieve the actions required in paragraphs (1) 

11 through (5), where achievable, and for the possible 

12 phase out of the use of current-generation TTY tech13 nology to the extent that this technology is replaced 

14 with more effective and efficient technologies and 

15 methods to enable access to emergency services by in16 dividuals with disabilities; 

17 (7) for the establishment of rules to update the 

18 Commission’s rules with respect to 9-1-1 services and 

19 E-911 services (as defined in section 158(e)(4) of the 

20 National Telecommunications and Information Ad21 ministration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 

22 942(e)(4))), for users of telecommunications relay 

23 services as new technologies and methods for pro24 viding such relay services are adopted by providers of 

25 such relay services; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
75 

•S 3304 RS

1 (8) that take into account what is technically 

2 and economically feasible. 

3 (d) MEETINGS.— 

4 (1) INITIAL MEETING.—The initial meeting of 

5 the Advisory Committee shall take place not later 

6 than 45 days after the completion of the member ap7 pointment process by the Chairman of the Commis8 sion pursuant to subsection (b). 

9 (2) OTHER MEETINGS.—After the initial meet10 ing, the Advisory Committee shall meet at the call of 

11 the chairs, but no less than monthly until the rec12 ommendations required pursuant to subsection (c) are 

13 completed and submitted. 

14 (3) NOTICE; OPEN MEETINGS.—Any meetings 

15 held by the Advisory Committee shall be duly noticed 

16 at least 14 days in advance and shall be open to the 

17 public. 

18 (e) RULES.— 

19 (1) QUORUM.—One-third of the members of the 

20 Advisory Committee shall constitute a quorum for 

21 conducting business of the Advisory Committee. 

22 (2) SUBCOMMITTEES.—To assist the Advisory 

23 Committee in carrying out its functions, the chair 

24 may establish appropriate subcommittees composed of 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
76 

•S 3304 RS

1 members of the Advisory Committee and other subject 

2 matter experts as determined to be necessary. 

3 (3) ADDITIONAL RULES.—The Advisory Com4 mittee may adopt other rules as needed. 

5 (f) FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT.—The Fed6 eral Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not 

7 apply to the Advisory Committee. 

8 (g) IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Com9 mission shall have the authority to promulgate regulations 

10 to implement the recommendations proposed by the Advi11 sory Committee, as well as any other regulations, technical 

12 standards, protocols, and procedures as are necessary to 

13 achieve reliable, interoperable communication that ensures 

14 access by individuals with disabilities to an Internet pro15 tocol-enabled emergency network, where achievable and 

16 technically feasible. 

17 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

18 (1) the term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Federal 

19 Communications Commission; 

20 (2) the term ‘‘Chairman’’ means the Chairman 

21 of the Federal Communications Commission; and 

22 (3) except as otherwise expressly provided, other 

23 terms have the meanings given such terms in section 

24 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

25 153). 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
77 

•S 3304 RS

1 TITLE II—VIDEO PROGRAMMING 

2 SEC. 201. VIDEO PROGRAMMING AND EMERGENCY ACCESS 

3 ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 60 days after 

5 the date of enactment of this Act, the Chairman shall estab6 lish an advisory committee to be known as the Video Pro7 gramming and Emergency Access Advisory Committee. 

8 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—As soon as practicable after the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, the Chairman shall appoint 

10 individuals who have the technical knowledge and engineer11 ing expertise to serve on the Advisory Committee in the ful12 fillment of its duties, including the following: 

13 (1) Representatives of distributors and providers 

14 of video programming or a national organization rep15 resenting such distributors. 

16 (2) Representatives of vendors, developers, and 

17 manufacturers of systems, facilities, equipment, and 

18 capabilities for the provision of video programming 

19 delivered using Internet protocol or a national orga20 nization representing such vendors, developers, or 

21 manufacturers. 

22 (3) Representatives of manufacturers of con23 sumer electronics or information technology equip24 ment or a national organization representing such 

25 manufacturers. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
78 

•S 3304 RS

1 (4) Representatives of video programming pro2 ducers or a national organization representing such 

3 producers. 

4 (5) Representatives of national organizations 

5 representing accessibility advocates, including indi6 viduals with disabilities and the elderly. 

7 (6) Representatives of the broadcast television in8 dustry or a national organization representing such 

9 industry. 

10 (7) Other individuals with technical and engi11 neering expertise, as the Chairman determines appro12 priate. 

13 (c) COMMISSION OVERSIGHT.—The Chairman shall 

14 appoint a member of the Commission’s staff to moderate 

15 and direct the work of the Advisory Committee. 

16 (d) TECHNICAL STAFF.—The Commission shall ap17 point a member of the Commission’s technical staff to pro18 vide technical assistance to the Advisory Committee. 

19 (e) DEVELOPMENT OF RECOMMENDATIONS.— 

20 (1) CLOSED CAPTIONING REPORT.—Within 6 

21 months after the date of the first meeting of the Advi22 sory Committee, the Advisory Committee shall develop 

23 and submit to the Commission a report that includes 

24 the following: 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
79 

•S 3304 RS

1 (A) A recommended schedule of deadlines 

2 for the provision of closed captioning service. 

3 (B) An identification of the performance re4 quirement for protocols, technical capabilities, 

5 and technical procedures needed to permit con6 tent providers, content distributors, Internet 

7 service providers, software developers, and device 

8 manufacturers to reliably encode, transport, re9 ceive, and render closed captions of video pro10 gramming, except for consumer generated media, 

11 delivered using Internet protocol. 

12 (C) An identification of additional proto13 cols, technical capabilities, and technical proce14 dures beyond those available as of the date of en15 actment of the Twenty-First Century Commu16 nications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 for 

17 the delivery of closed captions of video program18 ming, except for consumer generated media, de19 livered using Internet protocol that are necessary 

20 to meet the performance requirements identified 

21 under subparagraph (B). 

22 (D) A recommendation for technical stand23 ards to address the performance requirements 

24 identified in subparagraph (B). 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
80 

•S 3304 RS

1 (E) A recommendation for any regulations 

2 that may be necessary to ensure compatibility 

3 between video programming, except for consumer 

4 generated media, delivered using Internet pro5 tocol and devices capable of receiving and dis6 playing such programming in order to facilitate 

7 access to closed captions. 

8 (2) VIDEO DESCRIPTION, EMERGENCY INFORMA9 TION, USER INTERFACES, AND VIDEO PROGRAMMING

10 GUIDES AND MENUS.—Within 18 months after the 

11 date of enactment of this Act, the Advisory Committee 

12 shall develop and submit to the Commission a report 

13 that includes the following: 

14 (A) A recommended schedule of deadlines 

15 for the provision of video description and emer16 gency information. 

17 (B) An identification of the performance re18 quirement for protocols, technical capabilities, 

19 and technical procedures needed to permit con20 tent providers, content distributors, Internet 

21 service providers, software developers, and device 

22 manufacturers to reliably encode, transport, re23 ceive, and render video descriptions of video pro24 gramming, except for consumer generated media, 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
81 

•S 3304 RS

1 and emergency information delivered using 

2 Internet protocol or digital broadcast television. 

3 (C) An identification of additional proto4 cols, technical capabilities, and technical proce5 dures beyond those available as of the date of en6 actment of the Twenty-First Century Commu7 nications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 for 

8 the delivery of video descriptions of video pro9 gramming, except for consumer generated media, 

10 and emergency information delivered using 

11 Internet protocol that are necessary to meet the 

12 performance requirements identified under sub13 paragraph (B). 

14 (D) A recommendation for technical stand15 ards to address the performance requirements 

16 identified in subparagraph (B). 

17 (E) A recommendation for any regulations 

18 that may be necessary to ensure compatibility 

19 between video programming, except for consumer 

20 generated media, delivered using Internet pro21 tocol and devices capable of receiving and dis22 playing such programming, except for consumer 

23 generated media, in order to facilitate access to 

24 video descriptions and emergency information. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
82 

•S 3304 RS

1 (F) With respect to user interfaces, a rec2 ommendation for the standards, protocols, and 

3 procedures used to enable the functions of appa4 ratus designed to receive or display video pro5 gramming transmitted simultaneously with 

6 sound (including apparatus designed to receive 

7 or display video programming transmitted by 

8 means of services using Internet protocol) to be 

9 accessible to and usable by individuals with dis10 abilities. 

11 (G) With respect to user interfaces, a rec12 ommendation for the standards, protocols, and 

13 procedures used to enable on-screen text menus 

14 and other visual indicators used to access the 

15 functions on an apparatus described in subpara16 graph (F) to be accompanied by audio output so 

17 that such menus or indicators are accessible to 

18 and usable by individuals with disabilities. 

19 (H) With respect to video programming 

20 guides and menus, a recommendation for the 

21 standards, protocols, and procedures used to en22 able video programming information and selec23 tion provided by means of a navigation device, 

24 guide, or menu to be accessible in real-time by 

25 individuals who are blind or visually impaired. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
83 

•S 3304 RS

1 (3) CONSIDERATION OF WORK BY STANDARD-SET2 TING ORGANIZATIONS.—The recommendations of the 

3 advisory committee shall, insofar as possible, incor4 porate the standards, protocols, and procedures that 

5 have been adopted by recognized industry standard6 setting organizations for each of the purposes de7 scribed in paragraphs (1) and (2). 

8 (f) MEETINGS.— 

9 (1) INITIAL MEETING.—The initial meeting of 

10 the Advisory Committee shall take place not later 

11 than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 

12 Act. 

13 (2) OTHER MEETINGS.—After the initial meet14 ing, the Advisory Committee shall meet at the call of 

15 the Chairman. 

16 (3) NOTICE; OPEN MEETINGS.—Any meeting held 

17 by the Advisory Committee shall be noticed at least 

18 14 days before such meeting and shall be open to the 

19 public. 

20 (g) PROCEDURAL RULES.— 

21 (1) QUORUM.—The presence of one-third of the 

22 members of the Advisory Committee shall constitute a 

23 quorum for conducting the business of the Advisory 

24 Committee. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
84 

•S 3304 RS

1 (2) SUBCOMMITTEES.—To assist the Advisory 

2 Committee in carrying out its functions, the Chair3 man may establish appropriate subcommittees com4 posed of members of the Advisory Committee and 

5 other subject matter experts. 

6 (3) ADDITIONAL PROCEDURAL RULES.—The Ad7 visory Committee may adopt other procedural rules 

8 as needed. 

9 (h) FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT.—The Fed10 eral Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not 

11 apply to the Advisory Committee. 

12 (i) ADOPTION OF STANDARDS, PROTOCOLS, PROCE13 DURES, AND OTHER TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS.— 

14 (1) CLOSED CAPTIONING.—Not later than 6 

15 months after the date on which the Advisory Com16 mittee transmits its report under subsection (e)(1) to 

17 the Commission, the Commission shall take all ac18 tions necessary to adopt relevant technical standards, 

19 protocols, procedures, and other technical require20 ments to ensure compatibility between video program21 ming delivered using Internet protocol and devices ca22 pable of receiving and displaying such programming 

23 in order to facilitate access to closed captions. 

24 (2) VIDEO DESCRIPTION AND EMERGENCY INFOR25 MATION.—Not later than 18 months after the date on 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
85 

•S 3304 RS

1 which the Advisory Committee transmits its report 

2 under subsection (e)(2) to the Commission, the Com3 mission shall take all actions necessary to adopt rel4 evant technical standards, protocols, procedures, and 

5 other technical requirements to ensure compatibility 

6 between video programming, except for consumer gen7 erated media, delivered using Internet protocol or dig8 ital broadcast television and devices capable of receiv9 ing and displaying such programming in order to fa10 cilitate access to video descriptions and emergency in11 formation. 

12 (j) COMMISSION AUTHORITY.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall adopt 

14 the recommendations contained in the reports re15 quired under paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (e) 

16 if the Commissions finds that the recommendations 

17 are sufficient to meet the objectives of this Act. 

18 (2) ALTERNATIVE ADOPTION OF REQUIRE19 MENTS.—If the Commission finds that the rec20 ommendations are, in whole or in part, insufficient 

21 to meet the objectives of this Act, the Commission 

22 shall adopt the standards, protocols, procedures, or 

23 other technical requirements that it determines are 

24 necessary to meet the objectives of this Act. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
86 

•S 3304 RS

1 SEC. 202. VIDEO DESCRIPTION AND CLOSED CAPTIONING. 

2 (a) VIDEO DESCRIPTION.—Section 713 of the Commu3 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613) is amended— 

4 (1) by striking subsections (f) and (g); 

5 (2) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection 

6 (j); and 

7 (3) by inserting after subsection (e) the following: 

8 ‘‘(f) VIDEO DESCRIPTION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) REINSTATEMENT OF REGULATIONS.—On the 

10 day that is 1 year after the date of enactment of the 

11 Twenty-First Century Communications and Video 

12 Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall, after 

13 a rulemaking, reinstate its video description regula14 tions contained in the Implementation of Video De15 scription of Video Programming Report and Order 

16 (15 F.C.C.R. 15,230 (2000)), modified as provided in 

17 paragraph (2). 

18 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATIONS TO REINSTATED REGULA19 TIONS.—Such regulations shall be modified only as 

20 follows: 

21 ‘‘(A) The regulations shall apply to video 

22 programming, as defined in subsection (h), that 

23 is transmitted for display on television in digital 

24 format. 

25 ‘‘(B) The Commission shall update the list 

26 of the top 25 designated market areas, the list of 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
87 

•S 3304 RS

1 the top 5 national nonbroadcast networks, and 

2 the beginning calendar quarter for which compli3 ance shall be calculated. 

4 ‘‘(C) The regulations may permit a pro5 vider of video programming or a program owner 

6 to petition the Commission for an exemption 

7 from the requirements of this section upon a 

8 showing that the requirements contained in this 

9 section be economically burdensome. 

10 ‘‘(D) The Commission may exempt from the 

11 regulations established pursuant to paragraph 

12 (1) a service, class of services, program, class of 

13 programs, equipment, or class of equipment for 

14 which the Commission has determined that the 

15 application of such regulations would be eco16 nomically burdensome for the provider of such 

17 service, program, or equipment. 

18 ‘‘(E) The regulations shall not apply to live 

19 or near-live programming. 

20 ‘‘(F) The regulations shall provide for an 

21 appropriate phased schedule of deadlines for 

22 compliance. 

23 ‘‘(G) The Commission shall consider extend24 ing the exemptions and limitations in the rein25 stated regulations for technical capability reaVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00087 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
88 

•S 3304 RS

1 sons to all providers and owners of video pro2 gramming. 

3 ‘‘(3) INQUIRIES ON FURTHER VIDEO DESCRIP4 TION REQUIREMENTS.—The Commission shall com5 mence the following inquiries not later than 1 year 

6 after the completion of the phase-in of the reinstated 

7 regulations and shall report to Congress 1 year there8 after on the findings for each of the following: 

9 ‘‘(A) VIDEO DESCRIPTION IN TELEVISION

10 PROGRAMMING.—The availability, use, and bene11 fits of video description on video programming 

12 distributed on television, the technical and cre13 ative issues associated with providing such video 

14 description, and the financial costs of providing 

15 such video description for providers of video pro16 gramming and program owners. 

17 ‘‘(B) VIDEO DESCRIPTION IN VIDEO PRO18 GRAMMING DISTRIBUTED ON THE INTERNET.— 

19 The technical and operational issues, costs, and 

20 benefits of providing video descriptions for video 

21 programming that is delivered using Internet 

22 protocol. 

23 ‘‘(g) EMERGENCY INFORMATION.—Not later than 1 

24 year after the Advisory Committee report under subsection 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
89 

•S 3304 RS

1 (e)(2) is submitted to the Commission, the Commission shall 

2 complete a proceeding to— 

3 ‘‘(1) identify methods to convey emergency infor4 mation (as that term is defined in section 79.2 of title 

5 47, Code of Federal Regulations) in a manner acces6 sible to individuals who are blind or visually im7 paired; and 

8 ‘‘(2) promulgate regulations that require video 

9 programming providers and video programming dis10 tributors (as those terms are defined in section 79.1 

11 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations) and program 

12 owners to convey such emergency information in a 

13 manner accessible to individuals who are blind or vis14 ually impaired. 

15 ‘‘(h) RESPONSIBILITIES.— 

16 ‘‘(1) VIDEO PROGRAMMING OWNER.—A video 

17 programming owner shall ensure that any closed cap18 tioning and video description required pursuant to 

19 this section is provided in accordance with the tech20 nical standards, protocols and procedures established 

21 by the Commission. 

22 ‘‘(2) VIDEO PROGRAMMING PROVIDER OR DIS23 TRIBUTOR.—A video programming provider or video 

24 programming distributor shall be deemed in compli25 ance with this section and the rules and regulation 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
90 

•S 3304 RS

1 promulgated thereunder if such entity enables the ren2 dering or the pass through of closed captions and 

3 video description signals. 

4 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, sec5 tion 303, and section 330: 

6 ‘‘(1) VIDEO DESCRIPTION.—The term ‘video de7 scription’ means the insertion of audio narrated de8 scriptions of a television program’s key visual ele9 ments into natural pauses between the program’s dia10 logue. 

11 ‘‘(2) VIDEO PROGRAMMING.—The term ‘video 

12 programming’ means programming by, or generally 

13 considered comparable to programming provided by a 

14 television broadcast station, but not including con15 sumer-generated media (as defined in section 3).’’. 

16 (b) CLOSED CAPTIONING ON VIDEO PROGRAMMING

17 DELIVERED USING INTERNET PROTOCOL.—Section 713 of 

18 such Act is further amended by striking subsection (c) and 

19 inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(c) DEADLINES FOR CAPTIONING.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The regulations prescribed 

22 pursuant to subsection (b) shall include an appro23 priate schedule of deadlines for the provision of closed 

24 captioning of video programming once published or 

25 exhibited on television. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
91 

•S 3304 RS

1 ‘‘(2) DEADLINES FOR PROGRAMMING DELIVERED

2 USING INTERNET PROTOCOL.— 

3 ‘‘(A) REGULATIONS ON CLOSED CAPTIONING

4 ON VIDEO PROGRAMMING DELIVERED USING

5 INTERNET PROTOCOL.—Not later than 6 months 

6 after the submission of the report to the Commis7 sion required by subsection (e)(1) of the Twenty8 First Century Communications and Video Acces9 sibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall revise 

10 its regulations to require the provision of closed 

11 captioning on video programming delivered 

12 using Internet protocol that was published or ex13 hibited on television with captions after the effec14 tive date of such regulations. 

15 ‘‘(B) SCHEDULE.—The regulations pre16 scribed under this paragraph shall include an 

17 appropriate schedule of deadlines for the provi18 sion of closed captioning, taking into account 

19 whether such programming is prerecorded and 

20 edited for Internet distribution, or whether such 

21 programming is live or near-live and not edited 

22 for Internet distribution. 

23 ‘‘(C) COST.—The Commission may delay or 

24 waive the regulation promulgated under sub25 paragraph (A) to the extent the Commission 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
92 

•S 3304 RS

1 finds that the application of the regulation to 

2 live video programming delivered using Internet 

3 protocol with captions after the effective date of 

4 such regulations would be economically burden5 some to providers of video programming or pro6 gram owners. 

7 ‘‘(D) REQUIREMENTS FOR REGULATIONS.— 

8 The regulations prescribed under this para9 graph— 

10 ‘‘(i) shall contain a definition of ‘near11 live programming’ and ‘edited for Internet 

12 distribution’; 

13 ‘‘(ii) may exempt any service, class of 

14 service, program, class of program, equip15 ment, or class of equipment for which the 

16 Commission has determined that the appli17 cation of such regulations would be eco18 nomically burdensome for the provider of 

19 such service, program, or equipment; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) shall provide that de minimis 

21 failure to comply with such regulations by 

22 a video programming provider or owner 

23 shall not be treated as a violation of the reg24 ulations.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
93 

•S 3304 RS

1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 713(d) of 

2 such Act is amended by striking paragraph (3) and insert3 ing the following: 

4 ‘‘(3) a provider of video programming or pro5 gram owner may petition the Commission for an ex6 emption from the requirements of this section, and the 

7 Commission may grant such petition upon a showing 

8 that the requirements contained in this section would 

9 be economically burdensome. During the pendency of 

10 such a petition, such provider or owner shall be ex11 empt from the requirements of this section. The Com12 mission shall act to grant or deny any such petition, 

13 in whole or in part, within 6 months after the Com14 mission receives such petition, unless the Commission 

15 finds that an extension of the 6-month period is nec16 essary to determine whether such requirements are 

17 economically burdensome.’’. 

18 SEC. 203. CLOSED CAPTIONING DECODER AND VIDEO DE19 SCRIPTION CAPABILITY. 

20 (a) AUTHORITY TO REGULATE.—Section 303(u) of the 

21 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303(u)) is amend22 ed to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘(u) Require that— 

24 ‘‘(1) apparatus designed to receive or play 

25 back video programming transmitted simultaVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00093 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
94 

•S 3304 RS

1 neously with sound, if such apparatus is manu2 factured in the United States or imported for use 

3 in the United States and uses a picture screen 

4 of any size— 

5 ‘‘(A) be equipped with built-in closed 

6 caption decoder circuitry or capability de7 signed to display closed-captioned video 

8 programming; 

9 ‘‘(B) have the capability to decode and 

10 make available the transmission and deliv11 ery of video description services as required 

12 by regulations reinstated and modified pur13 suant to section 713(f); and 

14 ‘‘(C) have the capability to decode and 

15 make available emergency information (as 

16 that term is defined in section 79.2 of the 

17 Commission’s regulations (47 CFR 79.2)) 

18 in a manner that is accessible to individ19 uals who are blind or visually impaired; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(2) notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this 

22 subsection— 

23 ‘‘(A) apparatus described in such 

24 paragraph that use a picture screen that is 

25 less than 13 inches in size meet the requireVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00094 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
95 

•S 3304 RS

1 ments of subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of 

2 such paragraph only if the requirements of 

3 such subparagraphs are achievable (as de4 fined in section 716); 

5 ‘‘(B) any apparatus or class of appa6 ratus that are display-only video monitors 

7 with no playback capability are exempt 

8 from the requirements of such paragraph; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(C) the Commission shall have the au11 thority, on its own motion or in response to 

12 a petition by a manufacturer, to waive the 

13 requirements of this subsection for any ap14 paratus or class of apparatus— 

15 ‘‘(i) primarily designed for activi16 ties other than receiving or playing 

17 back video programming transmitted 

18 simultaneously with sound; or 

19 ‘‘(ii0 for equipment designed for 

20 multiple purposes, capable of receiving 

21 or playing video programming trans22 mitted simultaneously with sound but 

23 whose essential utility is derived from 

24 other purposes.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
96 

•S 3304 RS

1 (b) OTHER DEVICES.—Section 303 of the Communica2 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by 

3 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

4 ‘‘(z) Require that— 

5 ‘‘(1) if achievable (as defined in section 

6 716), apparatus designed to record video pro7 gramming transmitted simultaneously with 

8 sound, if such apparatus is manufactured in the 

9 United States or imported for use in the United 

10 States, enable the rendering or the pass through 

11 of closed captions, video description signals, and 

12 emergency information (as that term is defined 

13 in section 79.2 of title 47, Code of Federal Regu14 lations) such that viewers are able to activate 

15 and de-activate the closed captions and video de16 scription as the video programming is played 

17 back on a picture screen of any size; and 

18 ‘‘(2) interconnection mechanisms and 

19 standards for digital video source devices are 

20 available to carry from the source device to the 

21 consumer equipment the information necessary 

22 to permit or render the display of closed captions 

23 and to make encoded video description and emer24 gency information audible.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
97 

•S 3304 RS

1 (c) SHIPMENT IN COMMERCE.—Section 330(b) of the 

2 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 330(b)) is amend3 ed— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘303(u)’’ in the first sentence and 

5 inserting ‘‘303(u) and (z)’’; 

6 (2) by striking the second sentence and inserting 

7 the following: ‘‘Such rules shall provide performance 

8 and display standards for such built-in decoder cir9 cuitry or capability designed to display closed cap10 tioned video programming, the transmission and de11 livery of video description services, and the convey12 ance of emergency information as required by section 

13 303 of this Act.’’; and 

14 (3) in the fourth sentence, by striking ‘‘closed15 captioning service continues’’ and inserting ‘‘closed16 captioning service and video description service con17 tinue’’. 

18 (d) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—The Federal Com19 munications Commission shall prescribe such regulations as 

20 are necessary to implement the requirements of sections 

21 303(u), 303(z), and 330(b) of the Communications Act of 

22 1934, as amended by this section, including any technical 

23 standards, protocols, and procedures needed for the trans24 mission of— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
98 

•S 3304 RS

1 (1) closed captioning within 6 months after the 

2 submission to the Commission of the Advisory Com3 mittee report required by section 201(e)(1); and 

4 (2) video description and emergency information 

5 within 18 months after the submission to the Com6 mission of the Advisory Committee report required by 

7 section 201(e)(2). 

8 SEC. 204. USER INTERFACES ON DIGITAL APPARATUS. 

9 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 303 of the Communications 

10 Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by adding 

11 after subsection (z), as added by section 203 of this Act, 

12 the following new subsection: 

13 ‘‘(aa) Require— 

14 ‘‘(1) if achievable (as defined in section 

15 716) that digital apparatus designed to receive 

16 or play back video programming transmitted in 

17 digital format simultaneously with sound, in18 cluding apparatus designed to receive or display 

19 video programming transmitted in digital for20 mat using Internet protocol, be designed, devel21 oped, and fabricated so that control of appro22 priate built-in apparatus functions are accessible 

23 to and usable by individuals who are blind or 

24 visually impaired, except that the Commission 

25 may not specify the technical standards, protoVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00098 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
99 

•S 3304 RS

1 cols, procedures, and other technical require2 ments for meeting this requirement; 

3 ‘‘(2) that if on-screen text menus or other 

4 visual indicators built in to the digital appa5 ratus are used to access the functions of the ap6 paratus described in paragraph (1), such func7 tions shall be accompanied by audio output that 

8 is either integrated or peripheral to the appa9 ratus, so that such menus or indicators are ac10 cessible to and usable by individuals who are 

11 blind or visually impaired in real-time; 

12 ‘‘(3) that for such apparatus equipped with 

13 the functions described in paragraphs (1) and 

14 (2) built in access to those closed captioning and 

15 video description features through a mechanism 

16 that is reasonably comparable to a button, key, 

17 or icon designated by activating the closed cap18 tioning or accessibility features; and 

19 ‘‘(4) that in applying this subsection the 

20 term ‘apparatus’ does not include a navigation 

21 device, as such term is defined in section 76.1200 

22 of the Commission’s rules (47 CFR 76.1200).’’. 

23 (b) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—Within 18 months 

24 after the submission to the Commission of the Advisory 

25 Committee report required by section 201(e)(2), the ComVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:13 Aug 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00099 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3304.RS S3304

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
100 

•S 3304 RS

1 mission shall prescribe such regulations as are necessary to 

2 implement the amendments made by subsection (a). 

3 (c) DEFERRAL OF COMPLIANCE WITH ATSC MOBILE

4 DTV STANDARD A/153.—A digital apparatus designed and 

5 manufactured to receive or play back the Advanced Tele6 vision Systems Committee’s Mobile DTV Standards A/153 

7 shall not be required to meet the requirements of the regula8 tions prescribed under subsection (b) for a period of not 

9 less than 24 months after the date on which the final regula10 tions are published in the Federal Register. 

11 SEC. 205. ACCESS TO VIDEO PROGRAMMING GUIDES AND 

12 MENUS PROVIDED ON NAVIGATION DEVICES. 

13 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 303 of the Communications 

14 Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by adding 

15 after subsection (aa), as added by section 204 of this Act, 

16 the following new subsection: 

17 ‘‘(bb) Require— 

18 ‘‘(1) if achievable (as defined in section 716), 

19 that the on-screen text menus and guides provided by 

20 navigation devices (as such term is defined in section 

21 76.1200 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations) for 

22 the display or selection of multichannel video pro23 gramming are audibly accessible in real-time upon 

24 request by individuals who are blind or visually im25 paired, except that the Commission may not specify 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
101 

•S 3304 RS

1 the technical standards, protocols, procedures, and 

2 other technical requirements for meeting this require3 ment; and 

4 ‘‘(2) for navigation devices with built-in closed 

5 captioning capability, that access to that capability 

6 through a mechanism is reasonably comparable to a 

7 button, key, or icon designated for activating the 

8 closed captioning, or accessibility features. 

9 With respect to apparatus features and functions delivered 

10 in software, the requirements set forth in this subsection 

11 shall apply to the manufacturer of such software. With re12 spect to apparatus features and functions delivered in hard13 ware, the requirements set forth in this subsection shall 

14 apply to the manufacturer of such hardware.’’. 

15 (b) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Within 18 months after the 

17 submission to the Commission of the Advisory Com18 mittee report required by section 201(e)(2), the Com19 mission shall prescribe such regulations as are nec20 essary to implement the amendment made by sub21 section (a). 

22 (2) EXEMPTION.—Such regulations may provide 

23 an exemption from the regulations for cable systems 

24 serving 20,000 or fewer subscribers. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
102 

•S 3304 RS

1 (3) RESPONSIBILITY.—An entity shall only be 

2 responsible for compliance with the requirements 

3 added by this section with respect to navigation de4 vices that it provides to a requesting blind or visually 

5 impaired individual. 

6 (3) SEPARATE EQUIPMENT OR SOFTWARE.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Such regulations shall 

8 permit but not require the entity providing the 

9 navigation device to the requesting blind or vis10 ually impaired individual to comply with sec11 tion 303(bb)(1) of the Communications Act of 

12 1934 through that entity’s use of software, a pe13 ripheral device, specialized consumer premises 

14 equipment, a network-based service or other solu15 tion, and shall provide the maximum flexibility 

16 to select the manner of compliance. 

17 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—If an entity complies 

18 with section 303(bb)(1) of the Communications 

19 Act of 1934 under subparagraph (A), the entity 

20 providing the navigation device to the requesting 

21 blind or visually impaired individual shall pro22 vide any such software, peripheral device, equip23 ment, service, or solution at no additional charge 

24 and within a reasonable time to such individual 

25 and shall ensure that such software, device, 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
103 

•S 3304 RS

1 equipment, service, or solution provides the ac2 cess required by such regulations. 

3 (4) USER CONTROLS FOR CLOSED CAPTIONING.— 

4 Such regulations shall permit the entity providing the 

5 navigation device maximum flexibility in the selec6 tion of means for compliance with section 303(bb)(2) 

7 of the Communications Act of 1934 (as added by sub8 section (a) of this section). 

9 (5) PHASE-IN.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 

11 provide affected entities with— 

12 (i) not less than 2 years after the adop13 tion of such regulations to begin placing in 

14 service devices that comply with the require15 ments of section 303(bb)(2) of the Commu16 nications Act of 1934 (as added by sub17 section (a) of this section); and 

18 (ii) not less than 3 years after the 

19 adoption of such regulations to begin plac20 ing in service devices that comply with the 

21 requirements of section 303(bb)(1) of the 

22 Communications Act of 1934 (as added by 

23 subsection (a) of this section). 

24 (B) APPLICATION.—Such regulations shall 

25 apply only to devices manufactured or imported 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
104 

•S 3304 RS

1 on or after the respective effective dates estab2 lished in subparagraph (A). 

3 SEC. 206. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this title: 

5 (1) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Advisory 

6 Committee’’ means the advisory committee established 

7 in section 201. 

8 (2) CHAIRMAN.—The term ‘‘Chairman’’ means 

9 the Chairman of the Federal Communications Com10 mission. 

11 (3) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

12 means the Federal Communications Commission. 

13 (4) EMERGENCY INFORMATION.—The term 

14 ‘‘emergency information’’ has the meaning given such 

15 term in section 79.2 of title 47, Code of Federal Regu16 lations. 

17 (5) INTERNET PROTOCOL.—The term ‘‘Internet 

18 protocol’’ includes Transmission Control Protocol and 

19 a successor protocol or technology to Internet protocol. 

20 (6) NAVIGATION DEVICE.—The term ‘‘navigation 

21 device’’ has the meaning given such term in section 

22 76.1200 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations. 

23 (7) VIDEO DESCRIPTION.—The term ‘‘video de24 scription’’ has the meaning given such term in section 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
105 

•S 3304 RS

1 713 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

2 613). 

3 (8) VIDEO PROGRAMMING.—The term ‘‘video pro4 gramming’’ has the meaning given such term in sec5 tion 713 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

6 U.S.C. 613). 

Æ 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 509 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3304 

A BILL 

To increase the access of persons with disabilities 

to modern communications, and for other purposes. 

AUGUST 3, 2010 

Reported with an amendment 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS