[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 115 (Wednesday, June 16, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33639-33640]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-13490]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[CC Docket 98-67; DA 04-1599]


Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau Reminds States and 
Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) Providers That the Annual 
Summary of Consumer Complaints Concerning TRS is Due Thursday, July 1, 
2004

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission notifies the public, state 
Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) programs, and interstate TRS 
providers that the annual consumer complaint log summaries are due on 
Thursday, July 1, 2004. Complaint log summaries should include 
information pertaining to complaints received between June 1, 2003 and 
May 31, 2004. To assist the Commission in monitoring the service 
quality of TRS providers, the Commission requires state TRS programs 
and interstate TRS providers to maintain a log of consumer complaints 
that allege violations of the federal TRS mandatory minimum standards. 
Complaint log summaries shall include the number of complaints received 
that allege a violation of the federal TRS mandatory minimum standards, 
the date of the complaint, the nature of the complaint, the date of its 
resolution, and an explanation of the resolution.

DATES: State TRS programs and interstate TRS providers must file the 
annual consumer complaint log summary no later than July 1, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Federal Communications Commission, 445 12th Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20554.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erica Myers, (202) 418-2429 (voice), 
(202) 418-0464 (TTY), or e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Public 
Notice, DA 04-1599 released June 2, 2004. This document notifies state 
TRS programs and TRS providers that the annual complaint log summary 
for complaints received between June 1, 2003, and May 31, 2004, is due 
on Thursday, July 1, 2004. States and TRS providers who choose to 
submit by paper must submit an original and four copies of each filing 
on or before Thursday, July 1, 2004. To expedite the processing of 
complaint log summaries, states and TRS providers are encouraged

[[Page 33640]]

to submit an additional copy to Attn: Erica Myers, Federal 
Communications Commission, Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, 445 
12th Street, SW., Room 6-A432, Washington, DC 20554 or by email at 
[email protected]. States and interstate TRS providers should also 
submit electronic disk copies of their complaint log summaries on a 
standard 3.5 inch diskette formatted in an IBM compatible format using 
Word 97 or compatible software. The diskette should be submitted in 
``read-only'' mode and must be clearly labeled with the state or 
interstate TRS provider name, the filing date and captioned ``Complaint 
Log Summary.''
    Filings can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, by electronic 
media, by commercial overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight 
U.S. Postal Service mail (although we continue to experience delays in 
receiving U.S. Postal Service mail). The Commission's contractor, 
Natek, Inc., will receive hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper 
filings or electronic media for the Commission's Secretary at 236 
Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Suite 110, Washington, DC 20002. The filing 
hours at this location are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. All hand deliveries must be 
held together with rubber bands or fasteners. Any envelopes must be 
disposed of before entering the building. Commercial and electronic 
media sent by overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal Service Express 
Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9300 East Hampton Drive, 
Capitol Heights, MD 20743. U.S. Postal Service first-class mail, 
Express Mail, and Priority Mail should be addressed to 445 12th Street, 
SW., Washington, DC 20554. All filings must be addressed to the 
Commission's Secretary, Marlene H. Dortch, Office of the Secretary, 
Federal Communications Commission, 445 12th Street, SW., Room TW-B204, 
Washington, DC 20554.
    The filings and comments will be available for public inspection 
and copying during regular business hours at the FCC Reference 
Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-A257, 
Washington, DC 20554. They may also be purchased from the Commission's 
duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc., Portals II, 445 
12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554, telephone (202) 
863-2893, facsimile (202) 863-2898, or via e-mail http://www.bcpiweb.com. Filings and comments may also be viewed on the 
Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, Disability Rights Office 
homepage at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro. To request materials in 
accessible formats for people with disabilities (Braille, large print, 
electronic files, audio format), send an e-mail to [email protected] or 
call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-7365 
(TTY). This Public Notice can also be downloaded in text and ASCII 
formats at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro.
    Synopsis: State TRS programs should report all complaints made to 
the state agency, as well as those made to the state's TRS provider. 
TRS providers that provide interstate TRS, interstate STS, interstate 
Spanish relay, interstate captioned telephone relay, VRS, and IP Relay 
are required to submit complaint log summaries. These logs are intended 
to provide an early warning system to the Commission of possible 
service quality problems. Additionally, this information allows the 
Commission to determine whether a state or interstate TRS provider has 
appropriately addressed consumer complaints and to spot national trends 
that may lend themselves to coordinated solutions. This information 
further enables states to learn how other states are resolving 
complaints. Id. at ] 122.
    We note that according to the data presented in the state complaint 
log summary submissions for 2003, more than thirty million outgoing 
calls were placed by individuals through state relay facilities. 
Approximately thirty-five hundred complaints were reported that alleged 
a violation of one or more of the Commission's mandatory minimum 
standards for TRS. See 47 CFR 64.604. This number represents that less 
than one hundredth of a percent (.01%) of TRS calls, a statistically 
negligible number, resulted in an alleged violation of required service 
standards. This is good news for TRS users. At the same time, the 
complaint log summaries identified some areas where there is room for 
improvement. Over seventy-five percent of all complaints stemmed from 
the interaction between the calling party and the communications 
assistant. We therefore remind TRS providers and state administrators 
that their CAs must, among other things, be knowledgeable of TRS 
procedures, follow customer's instructions, and continue to keep 
callers informed about the progress of their call.
    The complaint log summaries that have been submitted to the 
Commission by state TRS programs for 2002 and 2003 are currently 
available on the FCC Web site at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/trs_by_state.html. All 2004 complaint log summary submissions by state TRS 
programs and interstate TRS providers will also be available on this 
Web site.

Federal Communications Commission.
K. Dane Snowden,
Chief, Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau.
[FR Doc. 04-13490 Filed 6-15-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P