[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 211 (Thursday, November 1, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61882-61883]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-21523]



[[Page 61882]]

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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[WC Docket No. 04-36, CG Docket No. 03-123, WT Docket No. 96-198 and CC 
Docket No. 92-105; DA 07-4178]


IP-Enabled Services; Implementation of Sections 255 and 251(a)(2) 
of The Communications Act of 1934, as Enacted by The Telecommunications 
Act of 1996: Access to Telecommunications Service, Telecommunications 
Equipment and Customer Premises Equipment by Persons With Disabilities; 
Telecommunications Relay Services and Speech-to-Speech Services for 
Individuals With Hearing and Speech Disabilities; The Use of N11 Codes 
and Other Abbreviated Dialing Arrangements

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission seeks comment on petitions 
filed by the Voice on the Net (VON) Coalition, the United States 
Telecom Association (USTelecom), and Hamilton Telephone Company 
(Hamilton) seeking a stay or waiver of certain aspects of the 
Commission's Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) Telecommunications 
Relay Services (TRS) Order (VoIP TRS Order). In particular, the 
Commission seeks comment on technical solutions to the ability of 
interconnected VoIP providers to route all 711 calls to an appropriate 
relay center and to the ability of a relay center to identify the 
appropriate public safety answering point (PSAP) to call when receiving 
an emergency call via 711 abbreviated TRS dialing access and an 
interconnected VoIP service. The Commission expects that interested 
parties will work together to achieve technical solutions that will 
enable emergency 711 calls placed through interconnected VoIP providers 
to be handled in accordance with the Commission's emergency call 
handling procedures.

DATES: Comments are due on or before December 3, 2007. Reply comments 
are due on or before December 17, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may submit comments and reply comments 
identified by [WC Docket No. 04-36, CG Docket No. 03-123, WT Docket No. 
96-198 and CC Docket No. 92-105], by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting electronic filings.
     Federal Communications Commission's Electronic Comment 
Filing System (ECFS): http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/. Follow the 
instructions for submitting electronic filings.
     By filing paper copies.
     For electronic filers through ECFS or the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal, because multiple docket numbers appear in the 
caption of this proceeding, filers must transmit one electronic copy of 
the comments to each docket number referenced in the caption. In 
completing the transmittal screen, filers should include their full 
name, U.S. Postal Service mailing address, and the applicable docket 
numbers, which in this instance are [WC Docket No. 04-36, CG Docket No. 
03-123, WT Docket No. 96-198 and CC Docket No. 92-105]. Parties may 
also submit an electronic comment by Internet e-mail. To get filing 
instructions, filers should send an e-mail to [email protected], and include 
the following words in the body of the message, ``get form .'' A sample form and directions will be sent in response.
     Paper Filers: Parties who choose to file by paper must 
file an original and four copies of each filing. Because more than one 
docket number appears in the caption of this proceeding, filers must 
submit two additional copies for each additional docket number. Filings 
can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, by commercial overnight 
courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. Postal Service mail 
(although the Commission continues to experience delays in receiving 
U.S. Postal Service mail). All filings must be addressed to the 
Commission's Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Federal Communications 
Commission.
     Parties who choose to file by paper should also submit 
their filings on compact disc. The compact disc should be submitted, 
along with three paper copies, to: Dana Wilson, Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Disability Rights Office, 445 12th Street, 
SW., Room 3-C418, Washington, DC 20554. The compact disc should be 
formatted in an IBM compatible format using Word 2003 or a compatible 
software; accompanied by a cover letter; submitted in ``read only'' 
mode; and clearly labeled with the commenter's name, proceeding 
(including the docket numbers in this case [WC Docket No. 04-36, CG 
Docket No. 03-123, WT Docket No. 96-198 and CC Docket No. 92-105]), 
type of pleading (comment or reply comment), date of submission, and 
the name of the electronic file on the compact disc. The label should 
also include the following phrase ``Disc Copy--Not an Original.'' Each 
compact disc should contain only one party's pleading, preferably in a 
single electronic file. In addition, paper filers must send one copy of 
each compact disc to the Commission's duplicating contractor at Portals 
II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554.
     The Commission's contractor will receive hand-delivered or 
messenger-delivered filings 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 mail 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, Express, and Priority 
mail should be addressed to 445 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554.
    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 and Governmental 
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY). 
Document DA 07-4178 can also be downloaded in Word or Portable Document 
Format (PDF) at: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/headlines.html.
    Document DA 07-4178 and any subsequently filed documents in this 
matter 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, (202) 
418-0270. Document DA 07-4178 and any subsequently filed documents in 
this matter may also be purchased from the Commission's duplicating 
contractor at the contractor's Web site, http://www.bcpiweb.com, or by 
calling (800) 378-3160. Furthermore, document DA 07-4178, any 
subsequently filed documents in this matter, and a copy of the 
underlying petitions for waiver may be found by searching ECFS at 
http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs (insert [WC Docket No. 04-36, CG Docket No. 
03-123, WT Docket No. 96-198 or CC Docket No. 92-105] into the 
Proceeding block).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa Boehley, Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Policy Division, at (202) 418-7395 
(voice), or e-mail [email protected].

[[Page 61883]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 15, 2007, the Commission released 
the VoIP TRS Order, published at 72 FR 43546, August 6, 2007, WC Docket 
No. 04-36, CG Docket No. 03-123, WT Docket No. 96-198 and CC Docket No. 
92-105, FCC 07-110. In the VoIP TRS Order, the Commission extended to 
providers of interconnected VoIP services the application of its pre-
existing TRS rules under sections 225 and 255 of the Communications Act 
of 1934, as amended. Among other things, the VoIP TRS Order required 
interconnected VoIP providers to offer 711 abbreviated dialing access 
to TRS ``to ensure that TRS calls can be made from any telephone, 
anywhere in the United States, and that such calls will be properly 
routed to the appropriate relay center.''
    On September 14, 2007, the VON Coalition filed a ``Motion for Stay 
or Waiver,'' asking the Commission to stay the effective date of the 
TRS requirements, including the 711 dialing requirement, as applied to 
interconnected VoIP providers or, in the alternative, to waive those 
requirements.
    On September 21, 2007, USTelecom filed a petition requesting a two-
year waiver for interconnected VoIP providers of the requirement that 
they route emergency 711 calls to a TRS provider capable of determining 
the appropriate PSAP to call to respond to an emergency.
    On September 21, 2007, Hamilton--a provider of traditional TRS 
services in various states--filed a request for waiver of the TRS 
emergency call handling requirements, as applied to traditional TRS 
providers' handling of 711 calls that originate on interconnected VoIP 
networks.
    This is a summary of the Commission's public notice in document DA 
07-4178, IP-Enabled Services; Implementation of Sections 255 and 
251(a)(2) of The Communications Act of 1934, as Enacted by The 
Telecommunications Act of 1996: Access to Telecommunications Service, 
Telecommunications Equipment and Customer Premises Equipment by Persons 
with Disabilities; Telecommunications Relay Services and Speech-to-
Speech Services for Individuals with Hearing and Speech Disabilities; 
The Use of N11 Codes and other Abbreviated Dialing Arrangements, WC 
Docket No. 04-36, CG Docket No. 03-123, WT Docket No. 96-198 and CC 
Docket No. 92-105, adopted October 9, 2007, released October 9, 2007. 
Document DA 07-4178 also contains a separate order granting in part and 
denying in part the petitions for stay or waiver filed by the VON 
Coalition, USTelecom, and Hamilton.
    Pursuant to Sec.  1.1206 of the Commission's rules, 47 CFR 1.1206, 
this matter shall be treated as a ``permit-but-disclose'' proceeding in 
which ex parte communications are subject to disclosure.

Synopsis

    In document DA 07-4178, the Commission seeks comment on the 
petitions for stay or waiver filed by the VON Coalition, USTelecom, and 
Hamilton. In particular, the Commission seeks comment on technical 
solutions to the ability of interconnected VoIP providers to route all 
711 calls to an appropriate relay center--defined as the relay 
center(s) serving the state in which the caller is geographically 
located, or the relay center(s) corresponding to the caller's last 
registered address--and to the ability of a relay center to identify 
the appropriate PSAP to call when receiving an emergency call via 711 
and an interconnected VoIP service.
    The Commission expects that interconnected VoIP providers, relay 
service providers, and members of the industry and community will work 
closely together to achieve a solution as expeditiously as possible 
that will enable emergency 711 calls placed through interconnected VoIP 
providers to be handled in accordance with the Commission's emergency 
call handling procedures.

Federal Communications Commission.
Catherine W. Seidel,
Chief, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau.
[FR Doc. E7-21523 Filed 10-31-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P