[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 102 (Friday, May 24, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26155-26156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-13149]



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ARCHITECTURAL AND TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS COMPLIANCE BOARD


Telecommunications Act Accessibility Guidelines for 
Telecommunications Equipment and Customer Premises Equipment

AGENCY: Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board.

ACTION: Notice of appointment of advisory committee members and notice 
of first meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board 
(Access Board) is announcing the appointment of members to its 
Telecommunications Access Advisory Committee (Committee). The Committee 
will make recommendations to the Access Board on accessibility 
guidelines for telecommunications equipment and customer premises 
equipment. These recommendations will be used by the Access Board to 
develop accessibility guidelines under section 255 (e) of the 
Telecommunications Act of 1996. The Committee is composed of 
representatives of manufacturers of telecommunications equipment and 
customer premises equipment; organizations representing the access 
needs of individuals with disabilities; telecommunications providers 
and carriers; and other persons affected by the guidelines. This notice 
also announces the time and place of the first Committee meeting, which 
will be open to the public.

DATES: The first meeting of the Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, 
June 12, 1996 through Friday, June 14, 1996, beginning at 9:30 a.m. 
each day. Decisions with respect to future meetings will be made at the 
first meeting and from time to time thereafter. Notices of future 
meetings will be published in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: The first meeting of the Committee will be held at the 
American Speech-Language and Hearing Association offices, 10801 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. Persons attending the meetings are 
strongly encouraged to use public transportation since parking is 
extremely limited. The American Speech-Language and Hearing Association 
offices are located north of the Grosvenor Metro subway station. 
Persons who must drive should call Dennis Cannon at the Access Board. 
The facility is accessible to individuals with disabilities. Sign 
language interpreters, assistive listening systems and real time 
transcription will be available.

[[Page 26156]]

Subsequent meetings will be held at locations to be announced.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Cannon, Office of Technical and 
Information Services, Architectural and Transportation Barriers 
Compliance Board, 1331 F Street, NW., suite 1000, Washington, D.C. 
20004-1111. Telephone number (202) 272-5434 extension 35 (Voice); (202) 
272-5449 (TTY). Electronic mail address: [email protected]. This 
document is available in alternate formats (cassette tape, braille, 
large print, or computer disc) upon request.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 28, 1996, the Access Board 
published a notice of intent to establish an advisory committee to make 
recommendations to the Access Board on accessibility guidelines for 
telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment. 61 FR 
13813 (March 28, 1996). Under section 255 (e) of the Telecommunications 
Act of 1996, the Access Board is responsible for developing these 
guidelines, in conjunction with the Federal Communications Commission. 
The notice requested nominations for membership on the Committee from 
manufacturers of telecommunications equipment and customer premises 
equipment; manufacturers and developers of peripheral devices or 
specialized customer premises equipment commonly used by individuals 
with disabilities to achieve access; organizations representing the 
access needs of individuals with disabilities affecting hearing, 
vision, movement, manipulation, speech, and interpretation of 
information; telecommunications providers and carriers; developers of 
telecommunications software; and other persons affected by these 
accessibility guidelines.
    Over 60 nominations were submitted. For the reasons stated in the 
notice of intent, the Access Board has determined that establishing the 
Committee is necessary and in the public interest. The Access Board has 
appointed members to the Committee from the following organizations:

AT&T American Council of the Blind
American Foundation for the Blind
Arkenstone
Bay Area Multi Media Technology Consortium
Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association
Consumer Action Network
Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association
The Council of Organizational Representatives
Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program
Digital Equipment Corporation
The Ericsson Corporation
Gallaudet University
Inclusive Technologies
Lucent Technologies
Massachusetts Assistive Technology Partnership Center
NCR Project Freedom
National Association for State Relay Administration
National Federation of the Blind
Northern Telecom
NYNEX Corporation
Pacific Bell
Pennsylvania Citizens Consumer Council
Personal Communications Industry Association
RESNA
Self Help for Hard of Hearing People, Inc.
Siemens Rolm Communications, Inc.
Telecommunications Industry Association
Trace Research and Development Center
United Cerebral Palsy Associations, Inc.
U.S. Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication
United States Telephone Association
World Institute on Disability

    The Access Board regrets being unable to accommodate all requests 
for membership on the Committee. There were several factors which were 
important in the Access Board's decision not to add more members. In 
order to keep the Committee to a size that can be effective, it is 
necessary to limit membership. It is also desirable to have balance 
among members of the Committee representing different clusters of 
interest, such as disability organizations and the telecommunications 
industry. In addition, it is not essential that every concerned 
organization is represented, so long as every interest is represented 
by an appropriate organization. The Committee membership identified 
above provides representation for each interest affected by issues to 
be discussed.
    Committee meetings will be open to the public and interested 
persons can attend the meetings and communicate their views. Members of 
the public will have an opportunity to address the Committee on issues 
of interest to them and the Committee. Members of groups or individuals 
who are not members of the Committee may also have the opportunity to 
participate with subcommittees of the Committee. The Access Board 
believes that participation of this kind can be very valuable for the 
advisory committee process. Additionally, all interested persons will 
have the opportunity to comment when the proposed accessibility 
guidelines for telecommunications equipment and customer premises 
equipment are issued in the Federal Register by the Access Board.
Judith E. Heumann,
Chairman, U.S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance 
Board.
[FR Doc. 96-13149 Filed 5-23-96; 8:45 am]
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