[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 110 (Monday, July 26, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H5996-H6007]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY COMMUNICATIONS AND VIDEO ACCESSIBILITY ACT OF 2010

  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and pass the bill (H.R. 3101) to ensure that individuals with 
disabilities have access to emerging Internet Protocol-based 
communication and video programming technologies in the 21st Century, 
as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3101

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Twenty-
     First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 
     2010''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Limitation on liability.
Sec. 3. Proprietary technology.

                     TITLE I--COMMUNICATIONS ACCESS

Sec. 101. Definitions.
Sec. 102. Hearing aid compatibility.
Sec. 103. Relay services.
Sec. 104. Access to internet-based services and equipment.
Sec. 105. Emergency Access Advisory Committee.
Sec. 106. Relay services for deaf-blind individuals.

                      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.

                      TITLE III--PAYGO COMPLIANCE

Sec. 301. PAYGO Compliance.

     SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.

       (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), no 
     person shall be liable for a violation of the requirements of 
     this Act (or of the provisions of the Communications Act of 
     1934 that are amended or added by this Act) with respect to 
     video programming, online content, applications, services, 
     advanced communications services, or equipment used to 
     provide or access advanced communications services to the 
     extent such person--
       (1) transmits, routes, or stores in intermediate or 
     transient storage the communications made available through 
     the provision of advanced communications services by a third 
     party; or
       (2) provides an information location tool, such as a 
     directory, index, reference, pointer, menu, guide, user 
     interface, or hypertext link, through which an end user 
     obtains access to such video programming, online content, 
     applications, services, advanced communications services, or 
     equipment used to provide or access advanced communications 
     services.
       (b) Exception.--The limitation on liability under 
     subsection (a) shall not apply to any person to the extent 
     such person relies on third party applications, services, 
     software, hardware, or equipment to comply with the 
     requirements of this Act (or of the provisions of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 that are amended or added by this 
     Act).

     SEC. 3. PROPRIETARY TECHNOLOGY.

       No action taken by the Commission to implement the 
     requirements of this Act or the amendments made by this Act 
     shall mandate the use or incorporation of proprietary 
     technology.

                     TITLE I--COMMUNICATIONS ACCESS

     SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS.

        Section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
     153) is amended--
       (1) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
       ``(53) Advanced communications services.--The term 
     `advanced communications services' means--
       ``(A) interconnected VoIP service;
       ``(B) non-interconnected VoIP service;
       ``(C) electronic messaging service; and
       ``(D) video conferencing service.
       ``(54) Disability.--The term `disability' has the meaning 
     given such term under section 3 of the Americans with 
     Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102).
       ``(55) Electronic messaging service.--The term `electronic 
     messaging service' means a service that provides non-voice 
     messages in text form between individuals over communications 
     networks.
       ``(56) Interconnected voip service.--The term 
     `interconnected VoIP service' has the meaning given such term 
     under section 9.3 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, 
     as such section may be amended from time to time.
       ``(57) Non-interconnected voip service.--The term `non-
     interconnected VoIP service'--
       ``(A) means a service that--
       ``(i) enables real-time voice communications that originate 
     from or terminate to the user's location using Internet 
     protocol or any successor protocol; and
       ``(ii) requires Internet protocol compatible customer 
     premises equipment; and
       ``(B) does not include any service that is an 
     interconnected VoIP service.
       ``(58) Video conferencing service.--The term `video 
     conferencing service' means a service that provides real-time 
     video communications, including audio, to enable users to 
     share information of the user's choosing.''; and
       (2) by reordering paragraphs (1) through (52) and the 
     paragraphs added by paragraph (1) of this section in 
     alphabetical order based on the headings of such paragraphs 
     and renumbering such paragraphs as so reordered.

     SEC. 102. HEARING AID COMPATIBILITY.

       (a) Compatibility Requirements.--
       (1) Telephone service for the disabled.--Section 710(b)(1) 
     of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(b)(1)) is 
     amended to read as follows:
       ``(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) and 
     subsection (c), the Commission shall require that customer 
     premises equipment described in this paragraph provide 
     internal means for effective use with hearing aids that are 
     designed to be compatible with telephones which meet 
     established technical standards for hearing aid 
     compatibility. Customer premises equipment described in this 
     paragraph are the following:
       ``(A) All essential telephones.
       ``(B) All telephones manufactured in the United States 
     (other than for export) more than one year after the date of 
     enactment of the Hearing Aid Compatibility Act of 1988 or 
     imported for use in the United States more than one year 
     after such date.
       ``(C) All customer premises equipment used with advanced 
     communications services that is designed to provide 2-way 
     voice communications via a built-in speaker intended to be 
     held to the ear in a manner functionally equivalent to a 
     telephone, subject to the regulations prescribed by the 
     Commission under subsection (e).''.
       (2) Additional amendments.--Section 710(b) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(b)) is further 
     amended--
       (A) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) in the matter preceding clause (i)--

       (aa) by striking ``initial'';
       (bb) by striking ``of this subsection after the date of 
     enactment of the Hearing Aid Compatibility Act of 1988''; and
       (cc) by striking ``paragraph (1)(B) of this subsection'' 
     and inserting ``subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (1)'';

       (II) by inserting ``and'' at the end of clause (ii);
       (III) by striking clause (iii); and
       (IV) by redesignating clause (iv) as clause (iii);

       (ii) by striking subparagraph (B) and redesignating 
     subparagraph (C) as subparagraph (B); and
       (iii) in subparagraph (B) (as so redesignated)--

[[Page H5997]]

       (I) by striking the first sentence and inserting ``The 
     Commission shall periodically assess the appropriateness of 
     continuing in effect the exemptions for telephones and other 
     customer premises equipment described in subparagraph (A) of 
     this paragraph.''; and
       (II) in each of clauses (iii) and (iv), by striking 
     ``paragraph (1)(B)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (B) or (C) 
     of paragraph (1)'';

       (B) in paragraph (4)(B)--
       (i) by striking ``public mobile'' and inserting 
     ``telephones used with public mobile'';
       (ii) by inserting ``telephones and other customer premises 
     equipment used in whole or in part with'' after ``means'';
       (iii) by striking ``and'' after ``public land mobile 
     telephone service,'' and inserting ``or'';
       (iv) by striking ``part 22 of''; and
       (v) by inserting after ``Regulations'' the following: ``, 
     or any functionally equivalent unlicensed wireless 
     services''; and
       (C) in paragraph (4)(C)--
       (i) by striking ``term `private radio services' '' and 
     inserting ``term `telephones used with private radio 
     services' ''; and
       (ii) by inserting ``telephones and other customer premises 
     equipment used in whole or in part with'' after ``means''.
       (b) Technical Standards.--Section 710(c) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(c)) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following: ``A telephone or other 
     customer premises equipment that is compliant with relevant 
     technical standards developed through a public participation 
     process and in consultation with interested consumer 
     stakeholders (designated by the Commission for the purposes 
     of this section) will be considered hearing aid compatible 
     for purposes of this section, until such time as the 
     Commission may determine otherwise. The Commission shall 
     consult with the public, including people with hearing loss, 
     in establishing or approving such technical standards. The 
     Commission may delegate this authority to an employee 
     pursuant to section 5(c). The Commission shall remain the 
     final arbiter as to whether the standards meet the 
     requirements of this section.''.
       (c) Rulemaking.--Section 710(e) of the Communications Act 
     of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(e)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``impairments'' and inserting ``loss''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following sentence: ``In 
     implementing the provisions of subsection (b)(1)(C), the 
     Commission shall use appropriate timetables or benchmarks to 
     the extent necessary (1) due to technical feasibility, or (2) 
     to ensure the marketability or availability of new 
     technologies to users.''.
       (d) Rule of Construction.--Section 710(h) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 610(h)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(h) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in the Twenty-First 
     Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 
     shall be construed to modify the Commission's regulations set 
     forth in section 20.19 of title 47 of the Code of Federal 
     Regulations, as in effect on the date of enactment of such 
     Act.''.

     SEC. 103. RELAY SERVICES.

       (a) Definition.--Paragraph (3) of section 225(a) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 225(a)(3)) is amended 
     to read as follows:
       ``(3) Telecommunications relay services.--The term 
     `telecommunications relay services' means telephone 
     transmission services that provide the ability for an 
     individual who is deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind, or who 
     has a speech disability to engage in communication by wire or 
     radio with one or more individuals, in a manner that is 
     functionally equivalent to the ability of a hearing 
     individual who does not have a speech disability to 
     communicate using voice communication services by wire or 
     radio.''.
       (b) Internet Protocol-based Relay Services.--Title VII of 
     such Act (47 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by adding at the 
     end the following new section:

     ``SEC. 715. INTERNET PROTOCOL-BASED RELAY SERVICES.

       ``Within one year after the date of enactment of the 
     Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility 
     Act of 2010, each interconnected VoIP service provider and 
     each provider of non-interconnected VoIP service shall 
     participate in and contribute to the Telecommunications Relay 
     Services Fund established in section 64.604(c)(5)(iii) of 
     title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the 
     date of enactment of such Act, in a manner prescribed by the 
     Commission by regulation to provide for obligations of such 
     providers that are consistent with and comparable to the 
     obligations of other contributors to such Fund.''.
       (c) Telecommunications Relay Services Policy Advisory 
     Council.--Section 225 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
     U.S.C. 225) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     subsection:
       ``(h) Telecommunications Relay Services Policy Advisory 
     Council.--
       ``(1) In general.--Not later than 6 months after the date 
     of enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Chairman of the 
     Commission shall establish an advisory committee to be known 
     as the Telecommunications Relay Services Policy Advisory 
     Council (in this section referred to as the `Policy Advisory 
     Council') and shall require the Policy Advisory Council--
       ``(A) to conduct their meetings in a manner that is open to 
     the public;
       ``(B) to make a complete and comprehensive record of such 
     proceedings publicly available;
       ``(C) to establish safeguards to identify and mitigate 
     conflicts of interest with respect to members of the Policy 
     Advisory Council; and
       ``(D) to advise the Commission in the development or 
     proposal of any major changes or new rules relating to 
     telecommunications relay services.
       ``(2) Membership.--As soon as practicable after the date of 
     enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Chairman of the 
     Commission shall appoint the members of the Policy Advisory 
     Council, ensuring a balance between potential consumers and 
     other stakeholders. Members of the Policy Advisory Council 
     shall be selected from each of the following groups:
       ``(A) Individuals who are consumers of telecommunications 
     relay services.
       ``(B) Representatives of State commissions with 
     jurisdiction over intrastate telecommunications relay 
     services.
       ``(C) Representatives of providers of telecommunications 
     relay services.
       ``(3) Collection and dissemination of information and 
     advice.--The Commission--
       ``(A) shall seek the advice of the Policy Advisory Council 
     in assisting the Commission in developing or proposing any 
     major changes or issuing any new rules relating to 
     telecommunications relay services; and
       ``(B) shall, with the advice of the Policy Advisory 
     Council, make all regulations, rules, and orders relating to 
     telecommunications relay services fully and easily accessible 
     to consumers of such services.
       ``(4) Federal advisory committee act.--The Federal Advisory 
     Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Policy 
     Advisory Council.''.
       (d) Followup Proceeding.--Section 225 of the Communications 
     Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 225), as amended by subsection (c), is 
     further amended by adding after subsection (h) the following 
     new subsection:
       ``(i) Followup Proceeding.--
       ``(1) In general.--Not later than 30 months after the date 
     of enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission, in 
     consultation with all relevant Federal agencies, shall submit 
     to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
     the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
     House of Representatives a report--
       ``(A) concerning how the Commission is ensuring that 
     telecommunications relay service customers have access to 
     improved technologies, interoperability, and functionalities; 
     and
       ``(B) identifying impediments to the broad and efficient 
     use of telecommunications relay services in the workplace.
       ``(2) Suggestions for workplace adoption.--The Commission 
     shall develop suggestions to facilitate broader and more 
     efficient use of telecommunications relay services in the 
     workplace, including suggestions for facilitating the 
     replacement of outdated end-user telecommunications relay 
     services equipment in public places and government 
     offices.''.

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

       (a) Title VII Amendment.--Title VII of the Communications 
     Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), as amended by section 
     103, is further amended by adding at the end the following 
     new sections:

     ``SEC. 716. ACCESS TO INTERNET-BASED EQUIPMENT AND SERVICES.

       ``(a) Access to Equipment.--
       ``(1) Right to accessible equipment.--With respect to 
     equipment manufactured after the effective date of the 
     regulations established pursuant to this section, and subject 
     to those regulations, a manufacturer of equipment used for 
     advanced communications, including end user equipment, 
     network equipment, and software, shall ensure that such 
     equipment that such manufacturer offers for sale or otherwise 
     distributes in interstate commerce shall be accessible to and 
     usable by individuals with disabilities, unless doing so is 
     not achievable.
       ``(2) Industry flexibility.--A manufacturer of equipment 
     may satisfy the requirements of paragraph (1) with respect to 
     such equipment by--
       ``(A) ensuring that the equipment that such manufacturer 
     offers is accessible to and usable by individuals with 
     disabilities without the use of third party applications, 
     peripheral devices, software, hardware, or customer premises 
     equipment; or
       ``(B) if such manufacturer chooses, using third party 
     applications, peripheral devices, software, hardware, or 
     customer premises equipment that is available to the consumer 
     at nominal cost and that individuals with disabilities can 
     access.
       ``(b) Access to Services.--
       ``(1) Right to accessible services.--With respect to 
     advanced communications services offered after the effective 
     date of the regulations established pursuant to this section, 
     and subject to those regulations, a provider of services used 
     for advanced communications shall ensure that such services 
     that such provider offers for sale or otherwise distributes 
     in interstate commerce shall be accessible to and usable by 
     individuals with disabilities, unless doing so is not 
     achievable.
       ``(2) Industry flexibility.--A provider of services may 
     satisfy the requirements of paragraph (1) with respect to 
     such services by--

[[Page H5998]]

       ``(A) ensuring that the services that such provider offers 
     are accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities 
     without the use of third party applications, peripheral 
     devices, software, hardware, or customer premises equipment; 
     or
       ``(B) if such provider chooses, using third party 
     applications, peripheral devices, software, hardware, or 
     customer premises equipment that is available to the consumer 
     at nominal cost and that individuals with disabilities can 
     access.
       ``(c) Compatibility.--Whenever the requirements of 
     subsection (a) are not achievable for a manufacturer, or the 
     requirements of subsection (b) are not achievable for a 
     provider, a manufacturer or provider shall ensure that its 
     equipment or service is compatible with peripheral devices or 
     specialized customer premises equipment commonly used by 
     individuals with disabilities to achieve access, unless the 
     requirement of this subsection is not achievable.
       ``(d) Network Features, Functions, and Capabilities.--Each 
     provider of advanced communications services has the duty not 
     to install network features, functions, or capabilities that 
     impede accessibility or usability of advanced communications 
     services.
       ``(e) Regulations.--
       ``(1) In general.--Within one year after the date of 
     enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall 
     promulgate such regulations as are necessary to implement 
     this section. In prescribing the regulations, the Commission 
     shall--
       ``(A) include performance objectives to ensure the 
     accessibility, usability, and compatibility of advanced 
     communications services and the equipment used for advanced 
     communications services by individuals with disabilities;
       ``(B) provide that advanced communications services, the 
     equipment used for advanced communications services, and 
     networks used to provide advanced communications services may 
     not impair or impede the accessibility of information content 
     when accessibility has been incorporated into that content 
     for transmission through advanced communications services, 
     equipment used for advanced communications services, or 
     networks used to provide advanced communications services; 
     and
       ``(C) determine the obligations under this section of 
     manufacturers, service providers, and providers of 
     applications.
       ``(2) Prospective guidelines.--The Commission shall issue 
     prospective guidelines for a manufacturer or provider 
     regarding the requirements of this section.
       ``(f) Services and Equipment Subject to Section 255.--The 
     requirements of this section shall not apply to any equipment 
     or services, including interconnected VoIP service, that are 
     subject to the requirements of section 255 on the day before 
     the date of enactment of the Twenty-First Century 
     Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010. Such 
     services and equipment shall remain subject to the 
     requirements of section 255.
       ``(g) Achievable Defined.--For purposes of this section and 
     section 718, the term `achievable' means with reasonable 
     effort or expense, as determined by the Commission. In 
     determining whether the requirements of a provision are 
     achievable, the Commission shall consider the following 
     factors:
       ``(1) The nature and cost of the steps needed to meet the 
     requirements of this section with respect to the specific 
     equipment or service in question.
       ``(2) The impact on the operations of the manufacturer or 
     provider and on the operation of the specific equipment or 
     service in question, including on the development and 
     deployment of new communications technologies.
       ``(3) The financial resources of the manufacturer or 
     provider.
       ``(4) The type of operations of the manufacturer or 
     provider.
       ``(5) The extent to which the service provider or 
     manufacturer in question offers accessible services or 
     equipment containing varying degrees of functionality and 
     features, and offered at differing price points.
       ``(h) Commission Flexibility.--
       ``(1) Waiver.--The Commission shall have the authority, on 
     its own motion or in response to a petition by a manufacturer 
     or provider, to waive the requirements of this section for 
     any feature or function of equipment used to provide or 
     access advanced communications services, or for any class of 
     such equipment, that--
       ``(A) is capable of accessing an advanced communications 
     service; and
       ``(B) is designed for multiple purposes, but is designed 
     primarily for purposes other than using advanced 
     communications services.
       ``(2) Small entity exemption.--The Commission may exempt 
     small entities from the requirements of this section.
       ``(i) Customized Equipment or Services.--The provisions of 
     this section shall not apply to customized equipment or 
     services that are not offered directly to the public, or to 
     such classes of users as to be effectively available directly 
     to the public, regardless of the facilities used.
       ``(j) Rule of Construction.--This section shall not be 
     construed to require a manufacturer of equipment used for 
     advanced communications or a provider of advanced 
     communications services to make every feature and function of 
     every device or service accessible for every disability.

     ``SEC. 717. ENFORCEMENT AND RECORDKEEPING OBLIGATIONS.

       ``(a) Complaint and Enforcement Procedures.--Within one 
     year after the date of enactment of the Twenty-First Century 
     Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the 
     Commission shall establish regulations that facilitate the 
     filing of formal and informal complaints that allege a 
     violation of section 255, 716, or 718, establish procedures 
     for enforcement actions by the Commission with respect to 
     such violations, and implement the recordkeeping obligations 
     of paragraph (5) for manufacturers and providers subject to 
     such sections. Such regulations shall include the following 
     provisions:
       ``(1) No fee.--The Commission shall not charge any fee to 
     an individual who files a complaint alleging a violation of 
     section 255, 716, or 718.
       ``(2) Receipt of complaints.--The Commission shall 
     establish separate and identifiable electronic, telephonic, 
     and physical receptacles for the receipt of complaints filed 
     under section 255, 716, or 718.
       ``(3) Complaints to the commission.--
       ``(A) In general.--Any person alleging a violation of 
     section 255, 716, or 718 by a manufacturer of equipment or 
     provider of service subject to such sections may file a 
     formal or informal complaint with the Commission.
       ``(B) Investigation of informal complaint.--The Commission 
     shall investigate the allegations in an informal complaint 
     and, within 180 days after the date on which such complaint 
     was filed with the Commission, issue an order concluding the 
     investigation, unless such complaint is resolved before such 
     time. The order shall include a determination whether any 
     violation occurred.
       ``(i) Violation.--If the Commission determines that a 
     violation has occurred, the Commission may, in the order 
     issued under this subparagraph or in a subsequent order, 
     require the manufacturer or service provider to take such 
     action as is necessary to comply with the requirements of 
     this section.
       ``(ii) No violation.--If a determination is made that a 
     violation has not occurred, the Commission shall provide the 
     basis for such determination.
       ``(C) Consolidation of complaints.--The Commission may 
     consolidate for investigation and resolution complaints 
     alleging substantially the same violation.
       ``(4) Opportunity to respond.--Before the Commission makes 
     a determination pursuant to paragraph (3), the party that is 
     the subject of the complaint shall have a reasonable 
     opportunity to respond to such complaint, and may include in 
     such response any factors that are relevant to such 
     determination.
       ``(5) Recordkeeping.--
       ``(A) In general.--Beginning one year after the effective 
     date of regulations promulgated pursuant to section 716(e), 
     each manufacturer and provider subject to sections 255, 716, 
     or 718 shall maintain, in the ordinary course of business and 
     for a reasonable period, records of any efforts taken by such 
     manufacturer or provider to implement sections 255, 716, or 
     718, including the following:
       ``(i) Information about the manufacturer's or provider's 
     efforts to consult with individuals with disabilities.
       ``(ii) Descriptions of the accessibility features of its 
     products and services.
       ``(iii) Information about the compatibility of such 
     products and services with peripheral devices or specialized 
     customer premise equipment commonly used by individuals with 
     disabilities to achieve access.
       ``(B) Submission of annual certification.--An officer of a 
     manufacturer or provider shall submit to the Commission an 
     annual certification that records are being kept in 
     accordance with subparagraph (A).
       ``(C) Commission request for records.--After the filing of 
     a formal or informal complaint against a manufacturer or 
     provider in the manner prescribed in paragraph (3), the 
     Commission may request, and shall keep confidential, a copy 
     of the records maintained by such manufacturer or provider 
     pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this paragraph that are 
     directly relevant to the equipment or service that is the 
     subject of such complaint.
       ``(6) Failure to act.--If the Commission fails to carry out 
     any of its responsibilities to act upon a complaint in the 
     manner prescribed in paragraph (3), the person that filed 
     such complaint may bring an action in the nature of mandamus 
     in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of 
     Columbia to compel the Commission to carry out any such 
     responsibility.
       ``(7) Commission jurisdiction.--The limitations of section 
     255(f) shall apply to any claim that alleges a violation of 
     section 255, 716, or 718. Nothing in this paragraph affects 
     or limits any action for mandamus under paragraph (6) or any 
     appeal pursuant to section 402(b)(10).
       ``(8) Private resolutions of complaints.--Nothing in the 
     Commission's rules or this Act shall be construed to preclude 
     a person who files a complaint and a manufacturer or provider 
     from resolving a formal or informal complaint prior to the 
     Commission's final determination in a complaint proceeding. 
     In the event of such a resolution, the parties shall jointly 
     request dismissal of the complaint and the Commission shall 
     grant such request.
       ``(b) Reports to Congress.--
       ``(1) In general.--Every two years after the date of 
     enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall submit 
     to the Committee on Commerce,

[[Page H5999]]

     Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee 
     on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a 
     report that includes the following:
       ``(A) An assessment of the level of compliance with 
     sections 255, 716, and 718.
       ``(B) An evaluation of the extent to which any 
     accessibility barriers still exist with respect to new 
     communications technologies.
       ``(C) The number and nature of complaints received pursuant 
     to subsection (a) during the two years that are the subject 
     of the report.
       ``(D) A description of the actions taken to resolve such 
     complaints under this section, including forfeiture penalties 
     assessed.
       ``(E) The length of time that was taken by the Commission 
     to resolve each such complaint.
       ``(F) The number, status, nature, and outcome of any 
     actions for mandamus filed pursuant to subsection (a)(6) and 
     the number, status, nature, and outcome of any appeals filed 
     pursuant to section 402(b)(10).
       ``(G) An assessment of the effect of the requirements of 
     this section on the development and deployment of new 
     communications technologies.
       ``(2) Public comment required.--The Commission shall seek 
     public comment on its tentative findings prior to submission 
     to the Committees of the report under this subsection.
       ``(c) Comptroller General Enforcement Study.--
       ``(1) In general.--The Comptroller General shall conduct a 
     study to consider and evaluate the following:
       ``(A) The Commission's compliance with the requirements of 
     this section, including the Commission's level of compliance 
     with the deadlines established under and pursuant to this 
     section and deadlines for acting on complaints pursuant to 
     subsection (a).
       ``(B) Whether the enforcement actions taken by the 
     Commission pursuant to this section have been appropriate and 
     effective in ensuring compliance with this section.
       ``(C) Whether the enforcement provisions under this section 
     are adequate to ensure compliance with this section.
       ``(D) An assessment of the effect of the requirements of 
     this section on the development and deployment of new 
     communications technologies.
       ``(2) Report.--Not later than 5 years after the date of 
     enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Comptroller General 
     shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
     Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and 
     Commerce of the House of Representatives a report on the 
     results of the study required by paragraph (1), with 
     recommendations for how the enforcement process and measures 
     under this section may be modified or improved.
       ``(d) Clearinghouse.--Within one year after the date of 
     enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall, in 
     consultation with the Architectural and Transportation 
     Barriers Compliance Board, the National Telecommunications 
     and Information Administration, trade associations, and 
     organizations representing individuals with disabilities, 
     establish a clearinghouse of information on the availability 
     of accessible products and services and accessibility 
     solutions required under sections 255, 716, and 718. Such 
     information shall be made publicly available on the 
     Commission's website and by other means, and shall include an 
     annually updated list of products and services with access 
     features.
       ``(e) Outreach and Education.--Upon establishment of the 
     clearinghouse of information required under subsection (d), 
     the Commission, in coordination with the National 
     Telecommunications and Information Administration, shall 
     conduct an informational and educational program designed to 
     inform the public about the availability of the clearinghouse 
     and the protections and remedies available under sections 
     255, 716, and 718.

     ``SEC. 718. INTERNET BROWSERS BUILT INTO TELEPHONES USED WITH 
                   PUBLIC MOBILE SERVICES.

       ``(a) Accessibility.--If a manufacturer of a telephone used 
     with public mobile services (as such term is defined in 
     section 710(b)(4)(B)) includes an Internet browser in such 
     telephone, or if a provider of mobile service arranges for 
     the inclusion of a browser in telephones to sell to 
     customers, the manufacturer or provider shall ensure that the 
     functions of the included browser (including the ability to 
     launch the browser) are accessible to and usable by 
     individuals who are blind or have a visual impairment, unless 
     doing so is not achievable, except that this subsection shall 
     not impose any requirement on such manufacturer or provider--
       ``(1) to make accessible or usable any Internet browser 
     other than a browser that such manufacturer or provider 
     includes or arranges to include in the telephone; or
       ``(2) to make Internet content, applications, or services 
     accessible or usable (other than enabling individuals with 
     disabilities to use an included browser to access such 
     content, applications, or services).
       ``(b) Industry Flexibility.--A manufacturer or provider may 
     satisfy the requirements of subsection (a) with respect to 
     such telephone or services by--
       ``(1) ensuring that the telephone or services that such 
     manufacture or provider offers is accessible to and usable by 
     individuals with disabilities without the use of third party 
     applications, peripheral devices, software, hardware, or 
     customer premises equipment; or
       ``(2) using third party applications, peripheral devices, 
     software, hardware, or customer premises equipment that is 
     available to the consumer at nominal cost and that 
     individuals with disabilities can access.''.
       (b) Effective Date for Section 718.--Section 718 of the 
     Communications Act of 1934, as added by subsection (a), shall 
     take effect 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
       (c) Title V Amendments.--Section 503(b)(2) of such Act (47 
     U.S.C. 503(b)(2)) is amended by adding after subparagraph (E) 
     the following:
       ``(F) Subject to paragraph (5) of this section, if the 
     violator is a manufacturer or service provider subject to the 
     requirements of section 255, 716, or 718, and is determined 
     by the Commission to have violated any such requirement, the 
     manufacturer or provider shall be liable to the United States 
     for a forfeiture penalty of not more than $100,000 for each 
     violation or each day of a continuing violation, except that 
     the amount assessed for any continuing violation shall not 
     exceed a total of $1,000,000 for any single act or failure to 
     act.''.
       (d) Review of Commission Determinations.--Section 402(b) of 
     such Act (47 U.S.C. 402(b)) is amended by adding the 
     following new paragraph:
       ``(10) By any person who is aggrieved or whose interests 
     are adversely affected by a determination made by the 
     Commission under section 717(a)(3).''.

     SEC. 105. EMERGENCY ACCESS ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

       (a) Establishment.--For the purpose of achieving equal 
     access to emergency services by individuals with 
     disabilities, as a part of the migration to a national 
     Internet protocol-enabled emergency network, not later than 
     60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Chairman 
     of the Commission shall establish an advisory committee, to 
     be known as the Emergency Access Advisory Committee (referred 
     to in this section as the ``Advisory Committee'').
       (b) Membership.--As soon as practicable after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Chairman of the Commission shall 
     appoint the members of the Advisory Committee, ensuring a 
     balance between individuals with disabilities and other 
     stakeholders, and shall designate two such members as the co-
     chairs of the Committee. Members of the Advisory Committee 
     shall be selected from the following groups:
       (1) State and local government and emergency responder 
     representatives.--Representatives of State and local 
     governments and representatives of emergency response 
     providers, selected from among individuals nominated by 
     national organizations representing such governments and 
     representatives.
       (2) Subject matter experts.--Individuals who have the 
     technical knowledge and expertise to serve on the Advisory 
     Committee in the fulfillment of its duties, including 
     representatives of--
       (A) providers of interconnected and non-interconnected VoIP 
     services;
       (B) vendors, developers, and manufacturers of systems, 
     facilities, equipment, and capabilities for the provision of 
     interconnected and non-interconnected VoIP services;
       (C) national organizations representing individuals with 
     disabilities and senior citizens;
       (D) Federal agencies or departments responsible for the 
     implementation of the Next Generation E 9-1-1 system;
       (E) the National Institute of Standards and Technology; and
       (F) other individuals with such technical knowledge and 
     expertise.
       (3) Representatives of other stakeholders and interested 
     parties.--Representatives of such other stakeholders and 
     interested and affected parties as the Chairman of the 
     Commission determines appropriate.
       (c) Development of Recommendations.--Within one year after 
     the completion of the member appointment process by the 
     Chairman of the Commission pursuant to subsection (b), the 
     Advisory Committee shall develop and submit to the Commission 
     recommendations to implement such technologies and methods, 
     including recommendations--
       (1) with respect to what actions are necessary as a part of 
     the migration to a national Internet protocol-enabled network 
     to achieve reliable, interoperable communication transmitted 
     over such network that will ensure access to emergency 
     services by individuals with disabilities;
       (2) for protocols, technical capabilities, and technical 
     requirements to ensure reliability and interoperability 
     necessary to ensure access to emergency services by 
     individuals with disabilities;
       (3) for the establishment of technical standards for use by 
     public safety answering points, designated default answering 
     points, and local emergency authorities;
       (4) for relevant technical standards and requirements for 
     communication devices and equipment and technologies to 
     enable the use of reliable emergency access;
       (5) for procedures to be followed by IP-enabled network 
     providers to ensure that such providers do not install 
     features, functions, or capabilities that would conflict with 
     technical standards;
       (6) for deadlines by which providers of interconnected and 
     non-interconnected VoIP

[[Page H6000]]

     services and manufacturers of equipment used for such 
     services shall achieve the actions required in paragraphs (1) 
     through (5), and for the possible phase out of the use of 
     current-generation TTY technology to the extent that this 
     technology is replaced with more effective and efficient 
     technologies and methods to enable access to emergency 
     services by individuals with disabilities; and
       (7) for the establishment of rules to update the 
     Commission's rules with respect to 9-1-1 services and E-911 
     services, as such term is defined in section 158 of the 
     National Telecommunications and Information Administration 
     Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 942), for users of 
     telecommunications relay services as new technologies and 
     methods for providing such relay services are adopted by 
     providers of such relay services.
       (d) Meetings.--
       (1) Initial meeting.--The initial meeting of the Advisory 
     Committee shall take place not later than 45 days after the 
     completion of the member appointment process by the Chairman 
     of the Commission pursuant to subsection (b).
       (2) Other meetings.--After the initial meeting, the 
     Advisory Committee shall meet at the call of the chairs, but 
     no less than monthly until the recommendations required 
     pursuant to subsection (c) are completed and submitted.
       (3) Notice; open meetings.--Any meetings held by the 
     Advisory Committee shall be duly noticed at least 14 days in 
     advance and shall be open to the public.
       (e) Procedural Rules.--
       (1) Quorum.--One-third of the members of the Advisory 
     Committee shall constitute a quorum for conducting business 
     of the Advisory Committee.
       (2) Subcommittees.--To assist the Advisory Committee in 
     carrying out its functions, the chair may establish 
     appropriate subcommittees composed of members of the Advisory 
     Committee and other subject matter experts as determined to 
     be necessary.
       (3) Additional procedural rules.--The Advisory Committee 
     may adopt other procedural rules as needed.
       (f) Federal Advisory Committee Act.--The Federal Advisory 
     Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Advisory 
     Committee.
       (g) Implementing Recommendations.--The Commission shall 
     have the authority to promulgate regulations to implement the 
     recommendations proposed by the Advisory Committee, as well 
     as any other regulations as are necessary to achieve 
     reliable, interoperable communication that ensures access by 
     individuals with disabilities to an Internet protocol-enabled 
     emergency network.
       (h) Survey.--Not later than 30 months after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Commission shall conduct and 
     publish the results of a national survey of individuals with 
     disabilities concerning real time text, geolocation services, 
     instant messaging services, and mobile telecommunications 
     relay services. The survey shall seek to determine what 
     individuals with disabilities believe to be the most 
     effective and efficient technologies and methods by which to 
     enable access to emergency services by individuals with 
     disabilities.
       (i) Definitions.--In this section--
       (1) the term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
     Communications Commission;
       (2) the term ``Chairman'' means the Chairman of the Federal 
     Communications Commission; and
       (3) except as otherwise expressly provided, other terms 
     have the meanings given such terms in section 3 of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153).

     SEC. 106. RELAY SERVICES FOR DEAF-BLIND INDIVIDUALS.

       Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 601 
     et seq.), as amended by sections 103 and 104, is further 
     amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``SEC. 719. RELAY SERVICES FOR DEAF-BLIND INDIVIDUALS.

       ``(a) In General.--Within 6 months after the date of 
     enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall 
     establish rules that define as eligible for relay service 
     support those programs that are approved by the Commission 
     for the distribution of specialized customer premises 
     equipment designed to make telecommunications service, 
     Internet access service, and advanced communications, 
     including interexchange services and advanced 
     telecommunications and information services, accessible by 
     low-income individuals who are deaf-blind.
       ``(b) Individuals Who Are Deaf-blind Defined.--For purposes 
     of this section, the term `individuals who are deaf-blind' 
     has the meaning given such term in section 206 of the Helen 
     Keller National Center Act (29 U.S.C. 1905).
       ``(c) Annual Amount.--The total amount of support the 
     Commission may provide from its Telecommunications Relay 
     Services Fund for any fiscal year may not exceed 
     $10,000,000.''.

                      TITLE II--VIDEO PROGRAMMING

     SEC. 201. VIDEO PROGRAMMING AND EMERGENCY ACCESS ADVISORY 
                   COMMITTEE.

       (a) Establishment.--Not later than 60 days after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the Chairman shall establish an 
     advisory committee to be known as the Video Programming and 
     Emergency Access Advisory Committee.
       (b) Membership.--As soon as practicable after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Chairman shall appoint individuals 
     who have the technical knowledge and engineering expertise to 
     serve on the Advisory Committee in the fulfillment of its 
     duties, including the following:
       (1) Representatives of distributors and providers of video 
     programming or national organizations representing such 
     distributors and providers.
       (2) Representatives of vendors, developers, and 
     manufacturers of systems, facilities, equipment, and 
     capabilities for the provision of video programming delivered 
     using Internet protocol or a national organization 
     representing such vendors, developers, or manufacturers.
       (3) Representatives of manufacturers of consumer 
     electronics or information technology equipment or a national 
     organization representing such manufacturers.
       (4) Representatives of national organizations representing 
     accessibility advocates, including individuals with 
     disabilities and the elderly.
       (5) Representatives of the broadcast television industry or 
     a national organization representing such industry.
       (6) Other individuals with technical and engineering 
     expertise, as the Chairman determines appropriate.
       (c) Commission Oversight.--The Chairman shall appoint a 
     member of the Commission's staff to moderate and direct the 
     work of the Advisory Committee.
       (d) Technical Staff.--The Commission shall appoint a member 
     of the Commission's technical staff to provide technical 
     assistance to the Advisory Committee.
       (e) Development of Recommendations.--
       (1) Closed captioning report.--Within 6 months after the 
     date of the first meeting of the Advisory Committee, the 
     Advisory Committee shall develop and submit to the Commission 
     a report that includes the following:
       (A) An identification of the performance objectives for 
     protocols, technical capabilities, and technical procedures 
     needed to permit content providers, content distributors, 
     Internet service providers, software developers, and device 
     manufacturers to reliably encode, transport, receive, and 
     render closed captions of video programming delivered using 
     Internet protocol.
       (B) An identification of additional protocols, technical 
     capabilities, and technical procedures beyond those available 
     as of the date of enactment of this Act for the delivery of 
     closed captions of video programming delivered using Internet 
     protocol that are necessary to meet the performance 
     objectives identified under subparagraph (A).
       (C) A recommendation for any regulations that may be 
     necessary to ensure compatibility between video programming 
     delivered using Internet protocol and devices capable of 
     receiving and displaying such programming in order to 
     facilitate access to closed captions.
       (2) Video description, emergency information, user 
     interfaces, and video programming guides and menus.--Within 
     18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
     Advisory Committee shall develop and submit to the Commission 
     a report that includes the following:
       (A) An identification of the performance objectives for 
     protocols, technical capabilities, and technical procedures 
     needed to permit content providers, content distributors, 
     Internet service providers, software developers, and device 
     manufacturers to reliably encode, transport, receive, and 
     render video descriptions of video programming and emergency 
     information delivered using Internet protocol or digital 
     broadcast television.
       (B) An identification of additional protocols, technical 
     capabilities, and technical procedures beyond those available 
     as of the date of enactment of this Act for the delivery of 
     video descriptions of video programming and emergency 
     information delivered using Internet protocol that are 
     necessary to meet the performance objectives identified under 
     subparagraph (A).
       (C) A recommendation for any regulations that may be 
     necessary to ensure compatibility between video programming 
     delivered using Internet protocol and devices capable of 
     receiving and displaying such programming in order to 
     facilitate access to emergency information.
       (D) With respect to user interfaces, a recommendation for 
     the standards, protocols, and procedures used to enable the 
     functions of apparatus designed to receive or display video 
     programming transmitted simultaneously with sound (including 
     apparatus designed to receive or display video programming 
     transmitted by means of services using Internet protocol) to 
     be accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities.
       (E) With respect to user interfaces, a recommendation for 
     the standards, protocols, and procedures used to enable on-
     screen text menus and other visual indicators used to access 
     the functions on an apparatus described in subparagraph (D) 
     to be accompanied by audio output so that such menus or 
     indicators are accessible to and usable by individuals with 
     disabilities.
       (F) A recommendation for the standards, protocols, and 
     procedures used to enable the selection of video programming 
     information on an apparatus or navigation device by means of 
     a guide or menu to be accessible in real-time by individuals 
     who are blind or have a visual impairment.
       (3) Consideration of standards, protocols, and procedures 
     by standard-setting

[[Page H6001]]

     organizations.--The recommendations of the Advisory Committee 
     shall, to the extent possible, incorporate the standards, 
     protocols, and procedures that have been adopted by 
     appropriate industry standard-setting organizations for the 
     report requirements described in paragraphs (1) and (2).
       (f) Meetings.--
       (1) Initial meeting.--The initial meeting of the Advisory 
     Committee shall take place not later than 180 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act.
       (2) Other meetings.--After the initial meeting, the 
     Advisory Committee shall meet at the call of the Chairman.
       (3) Notice; open meetings.--Any meeting held by the 
     Advisory Committee shall be noticed at least 14 days before 
     such meeting and shall be open to the public.
       (g) Procedural Rules.--
       (1) Quorum.--The presence of one-third of the members of 
     the Advisory Committee shall constitute a quorum for 
     conducting the business of the Advisory Committee.
       (2) Subcommittees.--To assist the Advisory Committee in 
     carrying out its functions, the Chairman may establish 
     appropriate subcommittees composed of members of the Advisory 
     Committee and other subject matter experts.
       (3) Additional procedural rules.--The Advisory Committee 
     may adopt other procedural rules as needed.
       (h) Federal Advisory Committee Act.--The Federal Advisory 
     Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Advisory 
     Committee.

     SEC. 202. VIDEO DESCRIPTION AND CLOSED CAPTIONING.

       (a) Video Description.--Section 713 of the Communications 
     Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613) is amended--
       (1) by striking subsections (f) and (g);
       (2) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (j); and
       (3) by inserting after subsection (e) the following:
       ``(f) Video Description.--
       ``(1) Reinstatement of regulations.--On the day that is 1 
     year after the date of enactment of the Twenty-First Century 
     Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the 
     Commission shall, after a rulemaking, reinstate its video 
     description regulations contained in the Implementation of 
     Video Description of Video Programming Report and Order (15 
     F.C.C.R. 15,230 (2000)), modified as provided in paragraph 
     (2).
       ``(2) Modifications to reinstated regulations.--Such 
     regulations shall be modified only as follows:
       ``(A) The regulations shall apply to video programming, as 
     defined in subsection (i), insofar as such programming is 
     transmitted for display on television in digital format.
       ``(B) The Commission shall update the list of the top 25 
     Designated Market Areas, the list of the top 5 national 
     nonbroadcast networks that have at least 50 hours per quarter 
     of prime time programming that is not exempt under this 
     paragraph, and the designation of the beginning calendar 
     quarter for which compliance shall be calculated.
       ``(C) The regulations may permit a provider of video 
     programming or a program owner to petition the Commission for 
     an exemption from the requirements of this section upon a 
     showing that the requirements contained in this section would 
     be economically burdensome.
       ``(D) The Commission may exempt from the regulations 
     established pursuant to paragraph (1) a service, class of 
     services, program, class of programs, equipment, or class of 
     equipment for which the Commission has determined that the 
     application of such regulations would be economically 
     burdensome for the provider of such service, program, or 
     equipment.
       ``(E) The regulations shall not apply to live or near-live 
     programming.
       ``(F) The regulations shall provide for an appropriate 
     phased schedule of deadlines for compliance.
       ``(3) Inquiries on further video description 
     requirements.--The Commission shall commence the following 
     inquiries not later than 1 year after the completion of the 
     phase-in of the reinstated regulations and shall report to 
     Congress 1 year thereafter on the findings for each of the 
     following:
       ``(A) Video description in television programming.--The 
     availability, use, and benefits of video description on video 
     programming distributed on television, the technical and 
     creative issues associated with providing such video 
     description, and the financial costs of providing such video 
     description for providers of video programming and program 
     owners.
       ``(B) Video description in video programming distributed on 
     the internet.--The technical and operational issues, costs, 
     and benefits of providing video descriptions for video 
     programming that is delivered using Internet protocol.
       ``(4) Continuing commission authority.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Commission may issue additional 
     regulations if the Commission determines, at least 2 years 
     after completing the reports required in paragraph (3), that 
     the need for and benefits of providing video descriptions for 
     video programming, insofar as such programming is transmitted 
     for display on television, are greater than the technical and 
     economic costs of providing such additional programming. If 
     the Commission makes such a determination and issues 
     additional regulations, the Commission may increase, in 
     total, the hours requirement for described video programming, 
     insofar as such programming is transmitted for display on 
     television, up to 75 percent of the requirement in the 
     regulations reinstated under paragraph (1).
       ``(B) Further requirements.--
       ``(i) Report.--Nine years after the date of enactment of 
     the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video 
     Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall submit to the 
     Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
     Transportation of the Senate a report assessing--

       ``(I) the types of described video programming that is 
     available to consumers;
       ``(II) consumer use of such programming;
       ``(III) the costs to program owners, providers, and 
     distributors of creating such programming;
       ``(IV) the benefits to consumers of such programming;
       ``(V) the amount of such programming currently available; 
     and
       ``(VI) the need for additional described programming.

       ``(ii) Increased availability.--Ten years after the date of 
     enactment of the Twenty-First Century Communications and 
     Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the Commission shall have 
     the authority, based upon the findings, conclusions, and 
     recommendations contained in the report under clause (i), to 
     increase the availability of such programming.
       ``(C) Application to designated market areas.--
       ``(i) In general.--After the Commission completes the study 
     on video description, the Commission shall phase in the video 
     description regulations for all designated market areas, 
     except that the Commission may grant waivers to entities in 
     specific designated market areas where it deems appropriate.
       ``(ii) Phase-in deadline.--The phase-in described under 
     clause (i) shall be completed not later than 6 years after 
     the date of enactment of the Twenty-First Century 
     Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010.
       ``(g) Emergency Information.--Not later than 1 year after 
     the Video Programming and Emergency Access Advisory Committee 
     report under section 201(e)(2) of the Twenty-First Century 
     Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 is 
     submitted to the Commission, the Commission shall complete a 
     proceeding to--
       ``(1) identify methods to convey emergency information (as 
     that term is defined in section 79.2 of title 47, Code of 
     Federal Regulations) in a manner accessible to individuals 
     who are blind or have a visual impairment; and
       ``(2) promulgate regulations that require certain 
     designated video programming providers and video programming 
     distributors (as those terms are defined in section 79.1 of 
     title 47, Code of Federal Regulations) and program owners to 
     convey such emergency information in a manner accessible to 
     individuals who are blind or have a visual impairment.
       ``(h) Responsibilities.--
       ``(1) Video programming owner.--A video programming owner 
     shall ensure that any closed captioning and video description 
     required pursuant to this section is provided in accordance 
     with the technical standards, protocols, and procedures 
     established by the Commission.
       ``(2) Video programming provider or distributor.--A video 
     programming provider or video programming distributor shall 
     be deemed in compliance with this section and the rules and 
     regulation promulgated thereunder if such provider or 
     distributor enables the rendering or the pass through of 
     closed captions and video description signals.
       ``(i) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, section 
     303, and section 330:
       ``(1) Video description.--The term `video description' 
     means the insertion of audio narrated descriptions of a 
     television program's key visual elements into natural pauses 
     between the program's dialogue.
       ``(2) Video programming.--The term `video programming' has 
     the meaning given such term in section 602.''.
       (b) Closed Captioning on Video Programming Delivered Using 
     Internet Protocol.--Section 713 of such Act is further 
     amended by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(c) Deadlines for Captioning.--
       ``(1) In general.--The regulations prescribed pursuant to 
     subsection (b) shall include an appropriate schedule of 
     deadlines for the provision of closed captioning of video 
     programming published or exhibited on television.
       ``(2) Deadlines for programming delivered using internet 
     protocol.--
       ``(A) Regulations on closed captioning on video programming 
     delivered using internet protocol.--Not later than 6 months 
     after the submission of the report to the Commission required 
     by section 201(e)(1) of the Twenty-First Century 
     Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, the 
     Commission shall promulgate regulations to require the 
     provision of closed captioning on video programming delivered 
     using Internet protocol.
       ``(B) Schedule.--The regulations prescribed under this 
     paragraph shall include an appropriate schedule of decoding 
     for the provision of closed captioning, taking into account 
     whether such programming is prerecorded and edited for 
     Internet distribution, or whether such programming is live or 
     near-live and not edited for Internet distribution.

[[Page H6002]]

       ``(C) Cost.--The Commission may delay or waive the 
     regulation promulgated under subparagraph (A) to the extent 
     the Commission finds that the application of the regulation 
     to live video programming delivered using Internet protocol 
     would be economically burdensome to providers of video 
     programming or program owners.
       ``(D) Requirements for regulations.--
       ``(i) In general.--The regulations prescribed under this 
     paragraph--

       ``(I) shall contain a definition of `near-live programming' 
     and `edited for Internet distribution';
       ``(II) may exempt any service, class of service, program, 
     class of program, equipment, or class of equipment for which 
     the Commission has determined that the application of such 
     regulations would be economically burdensome to the provider 
     of such service, program, or equipment;
       ``(III) shall provide that de minimis failure to comply 
     with such regulations by a provider of video programming or 
     program owner shall not be treated as a violation of the 
     regulations; and
       ``(IV) shall only apply to video programming that is 
     transmitted for display on television with closed captioning 
     after the effective date of the regulations issued pursuant 
     to this section.

       ``(ii) Alternate means.--An entity may meet the 
     requirements of this section through alternate means than 
     those prescribed by regulations pursuant to paragraph (1) if 
     the requirements of this section are met, as determined by 
     the Commission.''.
       (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 713(d) of such Act is 
     amended by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(3)(A) a provider of video programming or program owner 
     may petition the Commission for an exemption from the 
     requirements of this section;
       ``(B) the Commission may grant such petition upon a showing 
     that the requirements contained in this section would be 
     economically burdensome;
       ``(C) during the pendency of such a petition, such provider 
     or owner shall be exempt from the requirements of this 
     section; and
       ``(D) the Commission shall act to grant or deny any such 
     petition, in whole or in part, within 6 months after the 
     Commission receives such petition, unless the Commission 
     finds that an extension of the 6-month period is necessary to 
     determine whether such requirements are economically 
     burdensome.''.
       (d) Reporting Requirement.--Two years after the effective 
     date of the regulations issued pursuant to this section, and 
     biennially thereafter, each broadcast television network and 
     each cable television network shall submit to the Commission 
     a report containing the number of hours, in the applicable 2-
     year period, of video programming not published or exhibited 
     on television after the date of enactment of this Act that 
     was provided on the Internet with closed captioning.
       (e) Report to Congress.--
       (1) In general.--Three years after the date of enactment of 
     this Act, the Commission shall submit a report to the 
     Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
     Transportation of the Senate--
       (A) assessing the technical, economic, and operational 
     issues regarding the captioning of video programming that is 
     distributed only over the Internet, including the types and 
     amounts of such video programming that is or could be 
     captioned, the types of entities producing such programming, 
     and the effects a closed captioning requirement may have on 
     the producers of such programming;
       (B) assessing the benefits to and use by consumers of 
     closed captioning of video programming that is distributed 
     only over the Internet for consumers; and
       (C) making recommendations, if any, of whether Congress 
     should adopt or the Commission should implement a closed 
     captioning requirement for such programming.
       (2) Updates.--The Commission shall periodically update the 
     report to the Committees as it determines appropriate.

     SEC. 203. CLOSED CAPTIONING DECODER AND VIDEO DESCRIPTION 
                   CAPABILITY.

       (a) Authority to Regulate.--Section 303(u) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303(u)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(u) Require that--
       ``(1) apparatus designed to receive or play back video 
     programming transmitted simultaneously with sound, if such 
     apparatus is manufactured in the United States or imported 
     for use in the United States and uses a picture screen of any 
     size--
       ``(A) be equipped with built-in closed caption decoder 
     circuitry or capability designed to display closed-captioned 
     video programming;
       ``(B) have the capability to decode and make available the 
     transmission and delivery of video description services as 
     required by regulations reinstated and modified pursuant to 
     section 713(f); and
       ``(C) have the capability to decode and make available 
     emergency information (as that term is defined in section 
     79.2 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations) in a manner 
     that is accessible to individuals who are blind or have a 
     visual impairment; and
       ``(2) notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this subsection--
       ``(A) apparatus described in such paragraph that use a 
     picture screen that is less than 13 inches in size meet the 
     requirements of subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of such 
     paragraph only if the requirements of such subparagraphs are 
     achievable (as defined in section 716);
       ``(B) any apparatus or class of apparatus that are display-
     only video monitors with no playback capability are exempt 
     from the requirements of such paragraph; and
       ``(C) the Commission shall have the authority to waive the 
     requirements of this subsection for any apparatus or class of 
     apparatus.''.
       (b) Other Devices.--Section 303 of the Communications Act 
     of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by adding at the 
     end the following new subsection:
       ``(z) Require that--
       ``(1) if achievable (as defined in section 716), apparatus 
     designed to record video programming transmitted 
     simultaneously with sound, if such apparatus is manufactured 
     in the United States or imported for use in the United 
     States, enable the rendering or the pass through of closed 
     captions, video description signals, and emergency 
     information (as that term is defined in section 79.2 of title 
     47, Code of Federal Regulations) so that viewers are able to 
     activate and de-activate the closed captions and video 
     description as the video programming is played back on a 
     picture screen of any size; and
       ``(2) interconnection mechanisms and standards for digital 
     video source devices are available to carry from the source 
     device to the consumer equipment the information necessary to 
     permit the display of closed captions and to make encoded 
     video description and emergency information audible.''.
       (c) Shipment in Commerce.--Section 330(b) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 330(b)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``section 303(u)'' in the first sentence 
     and inserting ``subsections (u) and (z) of section 303'';
       (2) by striking the second sentence and inserting the 
     following: ``Such rules shall provide performance and display 
     standards for such built-in decoder circuitry or capability 
     designed to display closed captioned video programming, the 
     transmission and delivery of video description services, and 
     the conveyance of emergency information as required by 
     section 303 of this Act.''; and
       (3) in the fourth sentence, by striking ``closed-captioning 
     service continues'' and inserting ``closed-captioning service 
     and video description service continue''.
       (d) Implementing Regulations.--
       (1) In general.--The Federal Communications Commission 
     shall, after consideration of the Advisory Committee reports 
     required by section 201(e), prescribe such regulations as are 
     necessary to implement the requirements of sections 303(u), 
     303(z), and 330(b) of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
     amended by this section, needed for the transmission of--
       (A) closed captioning within 6 months after the submission 
     to the Commission of the Advisory Committee report required 
     by section section 201(e)(1); and
       (B) video description and emergency information within 12 
     months after the submission to the Commission of the Advisory 
     Committee report required by section section 201(e)(2).
       (2) Alternate means.--An entity may meet the requirements 
     of sections 303(u), 303(z), and 330(b) of the Communications 
     Act of 1934 through alternate means than those prescribed by 
     regulations pursuant to paragraph (1) if the requirements of 
     such sections are met, as determined by the Commission.

     SEC. 204. USER INTERFACES ON DIGITAL APPARATUS.

       (a) Amendment.--Section 303 of the Communications Act of 
     1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by adding after 
     subsection (z), as added by section 203 of this Act, the 
     following new subsection:
       ``(aa) Require--
       ``(1) if achievable (as defined in section 716), that 
     digital apparatus designed to receive or play back video 
     programming, that are shipped in interstate commerce or 
     manufactured in the United States, transmitted in digital 
     format simultaneously with sound, including apparatus 
     designed to receive or display video programming transmitted 
     in digital format using Internet protocol, be designed, 
     developed, and fabricated so that control of all built-in 
     apparatus functions are accessible to and usable by 
     individuals with disabilities;
       ``(2) that if on-screen text menus or other visual 
     indicators built in to the digital apparatus are used to 
     access the functions of the apparatus described in paragraph 
     (1), such functions shall be accompanied by audio output that 
     is either integrated or peripheral to the apparatus, so that 
     such menus or indicators are accessible to and usable by 
     individuals who are blind or have a visual impairment in 
     real-time;
       ``(3) that built-in user controls on such apparatus shall 
     be capable of accessing closed captioning, including--
       ``(A) if a remote control is provided with the apparatus--
       ``(i) a button, key, or icon on the remote control of such 
     apparatus designated for activating closed captioning; or
       ``(ii) any other mechanism that provides a substantially 
     equivalent level of accessibility; and
       ``(B) if on-screen menus are displayed on such apparatus--
       ``(i) the inclusion of `closed captions' and `video 
     description' on the first menu that appears; or
       ``(ii) any other mechanism that provides a substantially 
     equivalent level of accessibility; and

[[Page H6003]]

       ``(4) that in applying this subsection the term `apparatus' 
     does not include a navigation device, as such term is defined 
     in section 76.1200 of title 47, Code of Federal 
     Regulations.''.
       (b) Implementing Regulations.--
       (1) In general.--Within 12 months after the submission to 
     the Commission of the Advisory Committee report required by 
     section 201(e)(2), the Commission shall prescribe such 
     regulations as are necessary to implement the amendments made 
     by subsection (a).
       (2) Alternate means.--An entity may meet the requirements 
     of sections 303(aa) of the Communications Act of 1934 through 
     alternate means than those prescribed by regulations pursuant 
     to paragraph (1) if the requirements of such section are met, 
     as determined by the Commission.
       (c) Deferral of Compliance With ATSC Mobile DTV Standard A/
     153.--A digital apparatus designed and manufactured to 
     receive or play back the Advanced Television Systems 
     Committee's Mobile DTV Standards A/153 shall not be required 
     to meet the requirements of the regulations prescribed under 
     subsection (b) for a period of not less than 24 months after 
     the date on which the final regulations are published in the 
     Federal Register.

     SEC. 205. ACCESS TO VIDEO PROGRAMMING GUIDES AND MENUS 
                   PROVIDED ON NAVIGATION DEVICES.

       (a) Amendment.--Section 303 of the Communications Act of 
     1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is further amended by adding after 
     subsection (aa), as added by section 204 of this Act, the 
     following new subsection:
       ``(bb) Require--
       ``(1) if achievable (as defined in section 716), that the 
     on-screen text menus and guides provided by navigation 
     devices (as such term is defined in section 76.1200 of title 
     47, Code of Federal Regulations) for the display or selection 
     of multichannel video programming are audibly accessible in 
     real-time upon request by individuals who are blind or have a 
     visual impairment, except that the Commission may not specify 
     the technical standards, protocols, procedures, and other 
     technical requirements for meeting this requirement; and
       ``(2) for navigation devices with built-in closed 
     captioning capability, access to such capability through a 
     button, key, or icon designated for activating the closed 
     captioning, or through any other mechanism that provides a 
     substantially equivalent level of accessibility.''
       (b) Implementing Regulations.--
       (1) In general.--Within 12 months after the submission to 
     the Commission of the Advisory Committee report required by 
     section 201(e)(2), the Commission shall prescribe such 
     regulations as are necessary to implement the amendment made 
     by subsection (a).
       (2) Exemption.--Such regulations may provide an exemption 
     from the regulations for cable systems serving 50,000 or 
     fewer subscribers.
       (3) Responsibility.--An entity shall only be responsible 
     for compliance with the requirements added by this section 
     with respect to navigation devices that such entity provides 
     to a requesting individual who is blind or has a visual 
     impairment and shall make reasonable efforts to make such 
     requirements known to consumers.
       (4) Separate equipment or software.--
       (A) In general.--Such regulations shall permit but not 
     require the entity providing the navigation device to the 
     requesting individual who is blind or has a visual impairment 
     to comply with section 303(bb)(1) of the Communications Act 
     of 1934 (as added by subsection (a) of this section) through 
     such entity's use of software, a peripheral device, 
     specialized consumer premises equipment, a network-based 
     service, or other solution, and shall provide such entity 
     with the flexibility to select the manner of compliance.
       (B) Requirements.--If an entity complies with section 
     303(bb)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934 (as added by 
     subsection (a) of this section) under subparagraph (A) of 
     this paragraph, such entity shall provide any such software, 
     peripheral device, equipment, service, or solution at no 
     additional charge and within a reasonable time to such 
     individual.
       (5) User controls for closed captioning.--Such regulations 
     shall permit the entity providing the navigation device 
     maximum flexibility in the selection of means for compliance 
     with section 303(bb)(2) of the Communications Act of 1934 (as 
     added by subsection (a) of this section).
       (6) Phase-in.--
       (A) In general.--The Commission shall provide affected 
     entities with--
       (i) not less than 2 years after the adoption of such 
     regulations to begin placing in service devices that comply 
     with the requirements of section 303(bb)(2) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (as added by subsection (a) of 
     this section); and
       (ii) not less than 3 years after the adoption of such 
     regulations to begin placing in service devices that comply 
     with the requirements of section 303(bb)(1) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (as added by subsection (a) of 
     this section).
       (B) Application.--Such regulations shall apply only to 
     devices manufactured or imported on or after the respective 
     effective dates established in subparagraph (A).

     SEC. 206. DEFINITIONS.

       In this title:
       (1) Advisory committee.--The term ``Advisory Committee'' 
     means the advisory committee established in section 201.
       (2) Chairman.--The term ``Chairman'' means the Chairman of 
     the Federal Communications Commission.
       (3) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
     Communications Commission.
       (4) Emergency information.--The term ``emergency 
     information'' has the meaning given such term in section 79.2 
     of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations.
       (5) Internet protocol.--The term ``Internet protocol'' 
     includes Transmission Control Protocol and a successor 
     protocol or technology to Internet protocol.
       (6) Navigation device.--The term ``navigation device'' has 
     the meaning given such term in section 76.1200 of title 47, 
     Code of Federal Regulations.
       (7) Video description.--The term ``video description'' has 
     the meaning given such term in section 713 of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613).
       (8) Video programming.--The term ``video programming'' has 
     the meaning given such term in section 713 of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 613).

                      TITLE III--PAYGO COMPLIANCE

     SEC. 301. PAYGO COMPLIANCE.

       The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 
     complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall 
     be determined by reference to the latest statement titled 
     ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, 
     submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the 
     Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such 
     statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Stearns) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Massachusetts.


                             General Leave

  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and 
extend their remarks and include extraneous materials in the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Massachusetts?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, it is great to see you, my colleague from New England, 
presiding in the chair today at this historic moment. You are always 
going to have a permanent place in the history of our country. You are 
a great leader and an inspiration to all of us. And everything that we 
are doing today is inspired by your incredible personal courage. With 
the incredible example that your service to the House is providing, I 
am confident that you will not be the last who will sit up there and 
preside, but only the first in a long line.
  Now since I introduced the legislation before us today, we have 
engaged in a bipartisan, extensive, and constructive process with 
stakeholders to find common ground on the legislative language and to 
move forward with this bill. I want to thank the leadership of Chairman 
Henry Waxman, without whom we would not be here today, Rick Boucher, 
who worked over the last year to construct this legislation before us, 
to Cliff Stearns from Florida, who worked in a bipartisan fashion to 
craft this historic legislation which we are about to consider, to Joe 
Barton from Texas, who ensured that from the very beginning this would 
be a bipartisan effort that we would put together in order to pass the 
historic legislation that is today before us.
  I would like to think that Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan are 
looking down on us here this afternoon and that they are smiling. This 
picture of the two of them was taken in 1888 in Brewster, 
Massachusetts, on Cape Cod. I am so proud to have the Perkins School 
for the Blind, where Annie Sullivan graduated and Helen Keller was 
educated, in my congressional district in Watertown, Massachusetts.
  When they met 122 years ago, they were a stunning study in contrast: 
Alabama and Massachusetts, a daughter of the south, a young woman of 
Irish descent traveling south from Boston. Nevertheless, they changed 
the world together, these two miracle workers.

                              {time}  1500

  They shattered expectations about what a person who was deaf or blind 
could achieve. Now, I am an American of Irish heritage from Boston, and 
my

[[Page H6004]]

mother was a Sullivan. She always told me that her relatives were a 
particularly smart and determined lot, but I can only imagine the 
bottomless resolve and resilience Annie Sullivan must have needed to 
navigate her way in the South in the aftermath of the Civil War.
  Whether it is a Braille reader or broadband connection access to 
technology, it is not a political issue. It is a participation issue. 
Each of us should be able to participate in the world to the fullest 
extent possible; and the latest communications, video services and 
devices can enrich and ennoble how Americans experience and enjoy their 
lives.
  We are debating this bill today on the 20th anniversary of the 
Americans with Disabilities Act, which the first President George Bush 
signed into law, underscoring the nonpartisan nature of this vital 
issue. The 20th anniversary is an opportunity to look back and to 
reflect on the progress which we have made. Coming out of the Energy 
and Commerce Committee's Telecommunications Subcommittee over the last 
two decades have been a whole series of legislative initiatives aimed 
at broadening the disabled community's access to technologies that can 
help them do things that most Americans take for granted.
  In 1990, we made sure that Americans who are deaf could make 
telephone calls. In 1990, we mandated that television shows be closed-
captioned for the deaf so that they could enjoy the same entertainment 
and other programming as other Americans. Many deaf and hard-of-hearing 
people say that closed-captioning is the single modern accessibility 
technology that has changed their lives the most. Then, in 1996, we 
inserted language which required the accessibility of all telephone 
equipment, including telephones, telephone calls, call waiting, speed 
dialing, caller ID, and related services.
  Two decades ago, Americans with disabilities couldn't get around if 
buildings weren't wheelchair accessible. Today, they can't get around 
without being Web accessible. That is what we are talking about here 
today. Twenty years ago, the ADA mandated physical ramps into 
buildings. Today, individuals with disabilities need online ramps to 
the Internet so that they can get to the Web from wherever they happen 
to be.
  From the time of Heller Keller and Annie Sullivan through the 
Americans with Disabilities Act, to closed-captioning for television 
programming, to the ability of the deaf to make telephone calls, and 
now to the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act on 
the floor today, we have made important progress. We have moved from 
Braille to broadcast TV, from broadband to the BlackBerry. We have 
moved to ensure that, in each area and today, we move to the Internet 
to ensure that everyone in our country has access to this key 
information technology.
  Annie Sullivan used special language. She spelled in Helen Keller's 
palm. In the 21st century, we have moved from tracing the letters of 
the alphabet in a palm to navigating a Palm-Pilot, and we must make 
sure that all of these modern devices are accessible. Annie Sullivan 
was an incredibly dedicated and determined teacher. Now technology 
needs to be the teacher--the constant companion providing instruction 
and access to the world and opportunities that otherwise would be out 
of reach.
  By age 10, Helen Keller had mastered reading, Braille and manual sign 
language. She then wanted to learn how to speak. At the Horace Mann 
School for the Deaf in Boston, Helen took lessons. Then Annie took over 
and worked with Helen. Helen did learn to speak, and Helen Keller is 
still speaking to us today about how all of us should make the most of 
our abilities and participate in society to the fullest, but we need 
the technologies to make that possible for every American.
  The bill we are considering today significantly increases 
accessibility for Americans with disabilities to the indispensable 
telecommunications and video technology tools of the 21st century by 
making Web access easier through improved user interfaces for 
smartphones; by enabling Americans who are blind to enjoy TV fully 
through audible descriptions of the on-screen action; by making cable 
TV program guides and selection menus accessible to people with vision 
loss; by providing Americans who are deaf the ability to watch new TV 
programs online with the captions included; by mandating that remote 
controls have a button or a similar mechanism to easily access the 
closed-captioning on broadcast and pay TV; by requiring that telecom 
equipment used to make calls over the Internet is compatible with 
hearing aids; and by providing a share of the total of $10 million per 
year of funding to purchase Internet access and telecom services for 
low-income Americans who are deaf and blind so that these individuals 
can more fully participate in society.

  Today's miracle worker--today's technology, today's ability to be 
able to provide the technologies that people need today--is one that, 
as we move forward, we have to make sure has the accessibility for all 
Americans. That technology is the iPad. The iPad is something that 
today makes it possible for Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller to be able 
to access with a touch the technologies that the Helen Kellers and the 
Annie Sullivans of today need in order to be able to communicate with 
each other and with all of the rest of us. So it is not just like 
touching the palm like it was in Annie and Helen's day. It's about 
touching the pad, touching these devices, having them speak to them, 
and having the ability to be able to speak back in a way that has a 
conversation with all of the rest of us in society.
  This morning, I did a teleconference with a group of phenomenal 
students from the Perkins School for the Blind and the Carroll Center 
for the Blind. These young people were born before President Bush 
signed the ADA into law. They were born before the BF era, before 
Facebook. That's how long ago all of this is. These two schools are led 
by two extraordinary visionaries who serve with amazing passion and 
commitment--Steve Rothstein of Perkins and Mike Festa of Carroll.
  Opportunity, independence, equal access for all--that's what this 
legislation is all about. These are timeless American values that were 
as relevant when Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller were working together 
as they are today. When we maximize participation for all Americans, we 
move forward as a country. When we expand the circle of inclusion, we 
evolve as a people. When we increase accessibility for Americans with 
disabilities, we get closer to fulfilling the ideals of our Nation's 
Founders that all men and women are endowed by their Creator with 
certain inalienable rights. Among these are life, liberty and the 
pursuit of happiness.
  This legislation which we are considering today is intended to 
increase access for all Americans with disabilities to the 
technological tools to succeed in today's interconnected world.
  Again, I want to thank the entire disabled community, the deaf and 
the blind communities that have advocated for years for this incredible 
revolution that is happening here on the floor of the House of 
Representatives today. We are in your debt for being the advocates, for 
being the witnesses to history so that we make this change today.
  Again, I want to thank Chairman Waxman, Mr. Boucher, Mr. Barton, Mr. 
Stearns, and all of the Members who worked together in order to make 
today the great historic success it is going to be.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1510

  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Let me also, at this point, thank Mr. Markey for his eloquent 
remarks. But also, he is steadfast in pushing this bill. He has been 
working on this bill for almost 4 years.
  Oftentimes, when you come to the floor on a suspension like this, 
many Members do not realize the amount of work that goes into a bill 
like this. And I know the ranking member before Mr. Markey had talked 
to us about the possibility of this 2 years ago, 3 years ago, 4 years 
ago, so I'm glad it's culminated as it is today, 20 years after the 
anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
  And obviously, I'd also like to compliment the gentleman from Rhode 
Island for being in the chair. It's altogether appropriate, historic 
and important.

[[Page H6005]]

  I think many of us have come out of the House floor and walked into 
the halls of Congress and saw veterans in wheelchairs. We've seen men 
and women without legs. We've seen men and women without arms, hands, 
some of them practically blind. Shouldn't they have the opportunity to 
come back from Afghanistan and Iraq and have the full benefits of the 
electronic media? Before this bill passed, they might not have had the 
complete opportunity, but now, with this bill they will.
  So I rise in strong support of H.R. 3101, the Twenty-First Century 
Communications and Video Accessibility Act. We know there's all kinds 
of new devices coming on. Mr. Markey mentioned the iPad.
  And as I mentioned, it's important that people with disabilities are 
not left behind, have access and are afforded the opportunity to enjoy 
this wide variety of technology. And in many cases, through the 
Internet it's going to be life saving, through tele-medicine and from 
other ways that we can help the handicapped, the people that are at 
home through emergency calls, and, ultimately, the D spectrum, when we 
have that kind of spectrum set aside just for safety and security.
  Whenever you do a bill like this, it gets complicated, because lots 
of people want to use a lot of mandates for the United States 
Government to mandate through the FCC. But I think, as Mr. Markey 
pointed out with the iPad, oftentimes industry can come to the front 
and voluntarily do it.
  We, in the United States Congress, if we mandate certain 
technologies, we attempt to pick winners or losers. The best approach 
to ensuring accessibility is to establish accessibility goals, but not 
dictate how to accomplish them. We need to encourage innovation to 
flourish and, my colleagues, this bill does that.
  Now, obviously, all legislation we bring up here is not perfect, and 
this bill, obviously, needs some additional improvements. Perhaps the 
FCC can do that. Nevertheless, I think, as Mr. Markey pointed out, 
through the bipartisan process we have had here, Republicans and 
Democrats, we achieved a consensus, which is not altogether an everyday 
occurrence here in Congress.
  So I think, in many ways, we can compliment ourselves, both as 
Democrats and Republicans, that we came together on a very important 
issue which affects a huge number of manufacturing companies in this 
United States and throughout the world. We came together in a 
consensus.
  And, of course, I would like to thank Chairman Waxman for doing this, 
Subcommittee Chairman Boucher from Virginia, Joe Barton, the ranking 
member from Texas, and my staff, particularly Neil, who worked with the 
Democrat staff to bring this consensus together. A collaboration of 
this kind doesn't often happen in such a short amount of time.
  My main concern was that the legislation was extremely broad in its 
original scope, and included unnecessary mandates. Changes that were 
adopted at the committee markup addressed many of my concerns. Language 
was added that explicitly states that the relevant section shall not be 
construed to require every feature and every function of every device 
or service to be accessible for every disability.
  So that the record is clear regarding the intentions that underlie 
this bill, I want to offer some guidance to the FCC regarding the way 
it should view several key provisions in this legislation.
  First, my colleagues, the bill creates a new achievable standard to 
guide manufacturers' and service providers' efforts to provide 
accessibility to the disabled. Under section 255 of the Communications 
Act, telecommunications services and equipment must be accessible if 
the provision of accessibility is ``readily achievable.''
  As introduced, H.R. 3101 proposed moving to a significantly higher 
standard under which accessibility would be required unless it imposed 
an ``undue burden.'' The ``achievable'' standard we adopt today is a 
compromise, a very simple compromise, very important compromise, 
between these two positions.
  The committee also recognized that it is not necessary for a 
manufacturer or service provider to make every piece of equipment or 
service accessible, if it offers or directs such person to functionally 
equivalent accessible alternatives to the equipment or service in 
question. This was a source of concern and confusion by many Members, 
and contention, early in the legislative process. And I'm pleased that 
this bill we are considering today resolves this issue by adopting 
clarifying language that makes this point in a clear and unambiguous 
manner.
  Finally, my colleagues, the bill before us also recognizes that 
advanced communication services and applications may be offered by 
third parties, and that manufacturers and network operators should not 
be held responsible for ensuring these third party advanced 
communication services comply with the act.
  Thus, section 2 makes clear that no person is liable for a violation 
of this Act to the extent that such person transmits, routes or 
provides intermediate or transient storage for content or 
communications, or provides an information location tool used to obtain 
access to content or information. These are the details that make for a 
sound bill.
  As I said previously, this legislation is not perfect, but it is 
much, much improved due to the hard work of industry and the disability 
community who came together, and the staff on both sides of the aisle. 
This legislation, Mr. Speaker, goes a long, long way to ensuring that 
people with disabilities can utilize all the new and exciting products, 
services and applications in the years ahead. I urge its passage.
  And for those veterans coming home, this will ensure that you have 
access to those new financial programs, those new video devices, those 
new devices that are going to make your life a lot easier.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. The legislation would not be here today 
without the incredible leadership of the Chairman of the Energy and 
Commerce Committee. He resolved the most nettlesome of issues in the 
final week in a way that has made it possible for us to bring this 
historic legislation here to the floor. I yield 3 minutes to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman).
  Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to rise in support of this very 
important legislation.
  It was in 1934 when the Communications Act was adopted that it set 
out that they would have the goal, in this country, of making 
available, so far as possible, to all people without discrimination on 
the basis of race, color, religion, national origin or sex, a rapid, 
efficient, nationwide, and worldwide wire and radio communications 
service.
  Well, this legislation before us today furthers this core principle 
by ensuring that Americans with disabilities can access the latest 
communications technology. It's only fitting that we're taking this 
bill up today, the 20th anniversary of the landmark Americans with 
Disabilities Act.
  Although the ADA remains a critical protection for Americans with 
disabilities, our communications laws have not been updated since 1996 
when Congress required that plain old telephone service be accessible 
to individuals with disabilities.
  Fourteen years is more than a lifetime in technology policy, 
especially in the Internet age. The world of communications has been 
transformed, and we need to update relevant laws so that individuals 
with disabilities can share in the amazing benefits these products and 
services have to offer.

                              {time}  1520

  H.R. 3101 updates these laws in a number of important ways. Among 
other things, the bill requires that advanced communications services 
such as videoconferencing and text messaging be accessible to 
individuals with disabilities. It ensures that Internet browsers on 
smartphones are accessible, and that TV programming distributed over 
the Internet contains captions. It reinstates video description rules 
designed to ensure that individuals with vision impairment have better 
access to TV programming, and it ensures the emergency alert scrolls 
that warn consumers of hazardous weather and other conditions can be 
heard by those who have vision impairments.
  Although the legislation requires access to up-to-date communications 
devices and video programming for individuals with disabilities, it's 
crafted to

[[Page H6006]]

allow the industry great flexibility in achieving these goals. Given 
the pace of technological change, industry should be allowed to meet 
the bill's requirements by utilizing the best, least expensive 
technology or application. So not only is the legislation the right 
thing to do for the millions of Americans with disabilities, it is 
friendly to business and encourages innovative solutions.
  I would like to recognize the bill's sponsor, Mr. Markey, for his 
ongoing dedication and passion for this cause. I want to commend 
Chairman Boucher for his leadership in guiding the bill through his 
subcommittee. I want to thank Ranking Member Barton and Ranking Member 
Stearns as well, and their staff, for their very significant 
contributions to this bill.
  As I said when we marked up this legislation at the Energy and 
Commerce Committee, H.R. 3101 is truly bipartisan, a consensus measure. 
It demonstrates what Congress can accomplish when we work together. 
H.R. 3101 will improve the lives of millions of Americans. And on this 
20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, I urge every 
Member to vote in support of this measure.
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I just want to speak briefly and sort of 
follow up with the gentleman from Massachusetts when he displayed in 
his hand the iPad.
  I think it's a good example of what Apple has done with the iPad and 
how they voluntarily went about to help the people who are impaired by 
sight and hearing. They took the necessary steps to make certain that 
their product and their applications are acceptable to all people.
  For example, when you look at the iPad, all of us think it's sort of, 
in a way, revolutionary. It gives you, at a touch of the fingers, an 
opportunity to go through and look at newspapers and magazines, to go 
on the Internet, to check your email effortlessly. It's sort of using 
technology that's breakthrough.
  Is it possible that this breakthrough technology could help people 
who are disabled? Absolutely.
  For example, Mr. Speaker, the iPad comes with a screen reader, 
support for playback of the closed caption content, and other 
innovative universal access features. This was done right out of the 
box. Apple did this voluntarily. These features make iPad easier to use 
for people who have vision impairment, are deaf or hard of hearing, or 
if they have a physical or learning disability. In addition, the iPad 
includes VoiceOver, a gesture-based screen reader for the blind. 
Instead of memorizing keyboard commands or pressing tiny arrow keys, 
you can simply touch the screen to hear a description of the item under 
your finger, then double-tap, drag, or flip to control the iPad.
  VoiceOver speaks 21 languages and works with all of the applications 
built into the iPad. Let me repeat that. The VoiceOver speaks 21 
languages and works with all the applications built into the iPad--a 
phenomenon. Apple also enables software developers to create 
applications for iPad that work with VoiceOver.
  Furthermore, every iPad can display subtitles and closed captioning 
for the deaf and hard of hearing when playing movies and podcasts that 
support it. Movies and podcasts with closed captioning are available on 
the iTunes Store, and can be downloaded directly to iPad or synced to 
the iPad using iTunes.
  It is important for my colleagues to remember that a company like 
Apple included these features without any government mandate. This 
suggests that the broader market could be providing better access to 
people with disabilities than it does today. This bill will go a long 
way towards doing that.
  The FCC should remember, when they come asking for comments, when 
they have responses, and they have an advisory committee that's all 
involved with this, the key for the FCC is for them to be flexible in 
their response so that industry, like Apple did with the iPad, has the 
flexibility to develop the most sound and comprehensive ways to help 
our disabled today.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, would you advise us as to 
how much time is remaining on either side?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Massachusetts has 3\1/2\ 
minutes remaining, and the gentleman from Florida has 8\1/2\ minutes 
remaining.
  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. STEARNS. In conclusion, I think, as has been pointed out by Mr. 
Markey, this is a historic day. Twenty years ago, the Americans with 
Disabilities Act passed. I voted for it, I supported it. I think many 
people in my district and many of my friends have children who have 
disabilities. It's important that these individuals do not feel left 
out.
  I think the eloquent arguments that we had 20 years ago are no less 
important today, particularly in light of the fact that the veterans 
that are coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan are coming home with 
disabilities that will impair them. And they're in their twenties. 
These are young men and women that want to work. And for many of them, 
they'd like to go back to their team, but they can't. They must find 
employment. They must, in many ways, adjust and transition.
  How much better will it be if they can use the Internet, if they can 
use the wireless devices that we have? And not to mention the myriad of 
new devices that are coming out. How important is this for them? Very 
important. So, today, I join with Mr. Markey and others to commend him 
for his hard work here and his effort, and I urge all my colleagues to 
support this bill.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I thank the gentleman from Florida again for his work on this 
legislation, and to Mr. Barton and to all of the Members on the 
minority, we could not be here without their cooperation today.
  This is a very complex piece of legislation. It's historic, but it 
required a lot of bipartisan work to bring us to this point.
  I want to thank Neil Fried and Will Carty on the minority staff for 
their work on this legislation. On the majority side, I want to thank 
Roger Sherman, Tim Powderly, Amy Levine, Sarah Fisher. For many years, 
Colin Crowell, on my staff, worked on this legislation. But over the 
last 1 year, Mark Bayer has worked every day on this bill. And I thank 
you, Mark, for your incredible effort on this issue. We could not be 
here without the incredible work that was put in by all of these 
people.
  Back 20 years ago, we had a force of nature, Tony Coelho, the 
majority whip, who said it's time for us to ensure that all Americans 
have access to all this great bounty in our country. And he had a 
handicap himself, and he inspired all the rest of us. A force of 
nature. And former Congressman Tony Coelho is out here on the floor 
with us today, and he was an inspiration to us.
  That inspiration was carried by Steny Hoyer to ensure that that 
legislation did pass here in 1990. It was signed by President Bush into 
law. And all of the advances that were made thus far that make it 
possible for the historic moment where we have a Speaker who is sitting 
up there today, Mr. Langevin from Rhode Island, and all the people who 
are using today's devices to gain access to the modern Internet 
technologies are benefited from the laws that have been put on the 
books today.

                              {time}  1530

  For the 21st century, this law may be the most important law. Because 
people now have wheelchair access, access to the Web. Access to 
information is what this century, this information century, is going to 
be all about. And the deaf and the blind, because of this legislation, 
will be able to make their contributions to our country and the world.
  And let's not kid ourselves. The technologies that are developed here 
in the United States are going to spread across the whole world for 
every deaf and blind person. And that's quite a gift that the people 
who are here in the Congress can make.
  So I thank the community. I thank you all. I know that so many of you 
are here and so many of you are watching and listening. I can only 
pledge to you that we will continue to ensure that access is something 
that we guarantee

[[Page H6007]]

as a right to be an American in every year that we will serve here in 
Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, it's my honor to have been here on the floor with you 
presiding over this historic 21st century legislation. You are the 
right person to be here to create a ramp for the Internet, for the 21st 
century, for all Americans. I urge an ``aye'' vote on this legislation.
  Mr. BOUCHER. Madam Speaker, today the House takes up a very important 
measure introduced by our colleague Mr. Markey that seeks to update the 
laws governing access to communications services by individuals with 
disabilities. Floor consideration of this measure marks the end of two 
years of effort by the gentleman from Massachusetts, and I commend him 
for his dedication to this critical issue.
  I would also like to recognize the gentleman from Rhode Island, Mr. 
Langevin, who is presiding over the House of Representatives for the 
first time today. Mr. Langevin co-chairs the Bipartisan Disabilities 
Caucus and has been a champion of efforts to make the Capitol complex, 
including the Speaker's rostrum, accessible. It is therefore fitting 
that he is in the Chair as we consider this bipartisan, historic 
measure to make much needed updates to our communications laws.
  Today marks the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities 
Act. It is a significant milestone, and we have come a long way in the 
two decades since 1990.
  We have also seen significant technological change since Congress 
enacted the ADA, including the emergence of the Internet as a core 
communications infrastructure; the daily use by many Americans of 
email, text messaging and video conferencing both at home and at work; 
and increasing use of the Internet to view video programming.
  It is therefore timely to update our communications laws to ensure 
that new technologies are accessible to individuals with visual or 
hearing impairments.
  As we learned at a legislative hearing before the Subcommittee on 
Communications, Technology, and the Internet on this measure last this 
month, there are close to one million Americans who have severe or 
profound hearing loss and more than one million who are legally blind. 
Four percent of our population has great difficulty hearing, and an 
additional three percent are visually impaired.
  Moreover, as much as some of us might not want to admit it, Americans 
are aging. There are approximately 40 million people over the age of 65 
living in the United States today, or 13 percent of the population. One 
estimate shows that by 2050, that number will more than double to 88.5 
million, or an estimated one-fifth of the population. Naturally, this 
growth will be accompanied by an increase in the number of Americans 
who are vision or hearing-impaired and who will need accessible 
communications products and services.
  With the explosion in Internet-delivered services, both the variety 
of information and entertainment offerings and the complexity and 
variety of the devices that receive those services have multiplied. Our 
challenge is to assure that all Americans can benefit from those 
advances, including individuals with vision or hearing impairments.
  The measure we take up today:
  Requires that advanced communications services, including voice over 
Internet protocol, electronic messaging and video conferencing 
services, are accessible to the disabled if doing so is achievable.
  Sets forth a list of factors the Federal Communications Commission 
shall consider to determine if making a product or service accessible 
is achievable, including whether the manufacturer or service provider 
makes available a range of accessible products with varying 
functionality and offered at different price points. A manufacturer or 
service provider may make a product accessible either by embedding 
accessibility in the device or relying on third-party applications that 
are available to consumers at nominal cost. To avoid stifling 
innovation, H.R. 3101 also allows the Commission to waive the 
accessibility requirements for small entities.
  Requires the closed captioning of video programming on the Internet 
that has been displayed on television.
  Reinstates Commission regulations regarding the provision of video 
described video programming that were previously invalidated by the 
D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on jurisdictional grounds and allows for 
future expansion of the video description requirements.
  Requires that emergency information, such as screen crawls, be made 
accessible to persons with disabilities.
  Ensures that Internet browsers on smart phones enable the disabled to 
navigate the Internet, if doing so is achievable.
  Ensures that the Commission does not, in implementing the 
requirements of the Act, mandate the use of any technology that might 
result in one entity unfairly profiting from such a mandate or 
requirement.
  These and other provisions in this measure will help ensure that 
persons with disabilities are not left behind as communications 
technology continues to advance.
  I appreciate all of the stakeholders who have been working diligently 
with myself, Chairman Waxman, Mr. Markey, Ranking Members Barton and 
Stearns and our staffs on a bipartisan basis to reach consensus on this 
measure. I look forward to our continued work together to promote 
accessibility and innovation, as well as to House passage of this 
historic legislation.
  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. I yield back the balance of my time.


                Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair will remind all persons in the 
gallery that they are here as guests of the House and that any 
manifestation of approval or disapproval of proceedings is in violation 
of the rules of the House.
  The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) that the House suspend the rules and pass 
the bill, H.R. 3101, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas 
and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

                          ____________________