MeAC – Measuring Progress of eAccessibility in Europe

Legislation/regulations

Overall, legislative and regulatory provisions for accessibility of telecommunications are strong in the US, covering fixed and mobile services and equipment. Regulation of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is more limited. For fixed services, all of the typical main provisions are covered. However, provision of and/or financial support for equipment (under Assistive Technology or other support schemes) has been reported to be variable and sometimes limited.

Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act, 1996

Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act 1996 and supporting rules written by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) require telecommunications equipment manufacturers and service providers to make their products and services accessible to people with disabilities, if ‘readily achievable’. Where access is not readily achievable, the Act requires manufacturers and service providers to make their devices and services compatible with equipment commonly used by people with disabilities.

The “readily achievable” standard requires companies to incorporate access features that are easily accomplishable without much difficulty or expense. The FCC will make readily achievable determinations on a case-by-case basis. A company may not need to provide access when the access feature would so fundamentally alter the product that it would substantially reduce the functionality of the product, make some features unusable, substantially impede or deter use of the product by other individuals, or substantially and materially alter the shape, size or weight of the product. Similarly, a company is not obligated to incorporate an access feature that is not technically possible. Companies wishing to use these defenses, however, must provide evidence to back up their positions.

Consumers encountering accessibility problems may file a complaint with the FCC. The FCC can impose a variety of penalties on companies that do not comply with Section 255, including proposing fines (against telephone companies only), cease and desist orders, and in extreme cases, requiring retrofitting products to make them accessible to people with disabilities. A number of complaints have been made to the FCC under Section 255, alleging the failure of named telecommunications companies to provide accessible telecommunications equipment and/or services. Some complaints were dismissed when settlement was reached between the parties.

The FCC’s rules cover all hardware and software telephone network equipment and customer premises equipment (CPE). CPE is telecommunications equipment used in the home or office (or other premises) to originate, route, or terminate telecommunications. Examples of CPE are telephones, fax machines, answering machines, and pagers. CPE that provides both telecommunications and non-telecommunications functions is covered only to the extent it provides telecommunications functions. An FCC Regulation of 2007 (FCC Report & Order, FCC 07-110) requires that VoIP providers and equipment manufacturers must also ensure that, consistent with Section 255, their services are available to and usable by individuals with disabilities, if such access is readily achievable. This Order also requires VoIP providers to comply with the commission’s relay services requirements.

The FCC’s rules cover basic and special telecommunications services, including regular telephone calls, call waiting, speed dialing, call forwarding, computer-provided directory assistance, call monitoring, caller identification, call tracing, and repeat dialing. In addition, the rules cover interactive voice response (IVR) systems and voice mail.

The FCC has also outlined the ways that companies should seek to identify barriers to accessibility and usability, and how they should consult with and engage with people with disabilities in this regard.

Hearing Aid Compatibility Act

The Hearing Aid Compatibility Act 1988 (HAC Act) requires that the FCC ensure that all telephones manufactured or imported for use in the United States after August 1989, and all “essential” telephones, are hearing aid-compatible. “Essential” telephones are defined as “coin-operated telephones, telephones provided for emergency use, and other telephones frequently needed for use by persons using such hearing aids.” “Essential” phones might include workplace phones, phones in confined settings (like hospitals and nursing homes), and phones in hotel and motel rooms.

FCC rules require that phones subject to the HAC Act: (1) produce a magnetic field of sufficient strength and quality to permit coupling with hearing aids that contain telecoils; and (2) provide an adequate range of volume.

In addition, the FCC has issued rules on hearing aid compatibility with digital wireless phones. The performance levels set forth in ANSI C63.19 (a technical standard established by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)) are the applicable standard for compatibility of digital wireless phones with hearing aids. Rules have been established requiring mobile operators to offer at least a minimum number of compatible mobile phones, and also that such phones must be appropriately labelled and include detailed product information.

Telecommunications Relay Services

The Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 (ADA) makes provision for relay services for deaf users of telephones. The ADA standards also address accessibility of telephones in public places and the Act requires all Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) to provide direct, equal access to their emergency response services for people with disabilities who use text telephones (TTYs) or other devices. A Text Relay Service (TRS) is available in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories for local and/or long distance calls. Users access the TRS via the toll free 711 dialing code.

The TRS service must meet detailed standards set by the FCC. There are several forms of TRS, depending on the particular needs of the user and the equipment available. These are: Traditional Text-to-Voice TTY-based TRS; Voice Carry Over; Hearing Carry Over; Speech-to-Speech (STS) Relay; Shared Non-English Language Relay Services; Captioned Telephone Service; Video Relay Service (VRS); Internet Protocol (IP) Relay; IP Captioned Telephone Service.

The development of Video Relay Services led to a dramatic increase in the costs of the TRS programme. As a result, in 2007 the FCC modified the funding regime in order to establish a funding method which resulted in fairer and more predictable rates of payment to service providers.

Other initiatives

No other initiatives reported.

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