[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 96 (Wednesday, May 20, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23715-23716]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-11738]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[CG Docket No. 03-123 and WC Docket No. 05-196; DA 09-870]


Pleading Cycle Established for Filing of Oppositions To Petition 
for Partial Reconsideration and Limited Waiver, and Petition for 
Partial Reconsideration, Concerning the Assignment of Ten-Digit 
Telephone Numbers and E911 Requirements for Internet-Based 
Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS)

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission, via the Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, announces the filing of petitions for 
partial reconsideration by Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of 
Hearing, Inc. and five consumer organizations (TDI Coalition), and 
GoAmerica, Inc. (GoAmerica). Petitioners seek reconsideration of the 
eligibility requirement that limits the assignment of ten-digit 
telephone numbers to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing or who 
have a speech disability. Additionally, GoAmerica seeks 
reconsideration, or a limited waiver for six months, of the requirement 
that Internet-based TRS providers must answer a call back from the 
Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) with priority (i.e., move the call 
to the top of the queue).

DATES: Oppositions are due on or before June 4, 2009 and replies to 
oppositions are due on or before June 15, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Pursuant to 47 CFR 1.429(f) and (g), interested parties may 
submit oppositions or replies to oppositions identified by [CG Docket 
No. 03-123 and WC Docket No. 05-196], 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): 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 opposition 
or reply to opposition 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 
number. 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 in 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

[[Page 23716]]

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 documents on a 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. Such a submission 
should be on a compact disc formatted in an IBM compatible format using 
Word 2003 or compatible software. The compact disc should be 
accompanied by a cover letter and should be submitted in ``read only'' 
mode. It should also be clearly labeled with the party's name, the 
proceedings (including the docket numbers) which in this case are [CG 
Docket No. 03-123 and WC 05-196], type of pleading (opposition or reply 
to opposition), 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 pleadings, preferably in a single electronic file. In 
addition, paper filers must send compact disc copies to the 
Commission's copy contractor, Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room 
CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554.
    The Commission's contractor will receive hand-delivered or 
messenger-delivered paper filings and 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 mail 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, Express, and Priority mail should be addressed to 
445 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gregory Hlibok, Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau at (866) 954-4053 (voice and videophone), 
(202) 418-0431 (TTY), or e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's 
document DA 09-870, released April 20, 2009, which announces the 
January 29, 2009 filing by TDI Coalition of a Petition for Partial 
Reconsideration, and by GoAmerica of a Petition for Partial 
Reconsideration and Limited Waiver, of Telecommunications Relay 
Services and Speech-to-Speech Services for Individuals with Hearing and 
Speech Disabilities; E911 Requirements for IP-Enabled Service 
Providers, CG Docket No. 03-123, WC Docket No. 05-196, Second Report 
and Order and Order on Reconsideration, document FCC 08-275; published 
at 73 FR 79683, December 30, 2008 (Second Internet-Based TRS Order).
    Pursuant to 47 CFR 1.1206, this proceeding will be conducted as a 
permit-but-disclose proceeding in which ex parte communications are 
subject to disclosure. The full text of this document and copies of 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. This document and copies of subsequently 
filed documents in this matter may also be purchased from the 
Commission's duplicating contractor at Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW, 
Room CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554. Customers may contact the 
Commission's contractor at its Web site http://www.bcpiweb.com, by e-
mail at [email protected], or by calling 1-800-378-3160. A copy of the 
underlying petitions may also be found by searching ECFS at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs. 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). This document can also be downloaded in Word or Portable 
Document Format (PDF) at: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/trs.html.

Synopsis

    In the Second Internet-Based TRS Order, the Commission concluded, 
in part, that only individuals with a hearing or speech disability will 
be eligible to obtain ten-digit telephone numbers under the numbering 
system adopted in the Telecommunications Relay Services and Speech-to-
Speech Services for Individuals with Hearing and Speech Disabilities; 
E911 Requirement for IP-Enabled Service Providers, CG Docket No. 03-
123, WC Docket No. 05-196, Report and Order and Further Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking, document FCC 08-151 (Internet-Based TRS Order); 
published at 73 FR 41286, July 18, 2008 and 73 FR 41307, July 18, 2008. 
To this end, the Commission also required providers to verify that 
persons receiving ten-digit numbers ``have a medically recognized 
hearing or speech disability necessitating their use of TRS'' through a 
self-certification process. TDI Coalition and GoAmerica seek 
reconsideration of this eligibility requirement that limits the 
assignment of ten-digit telephone numbers to individuals who are deaf 
or hard of hearing or who have a speech disability. TDI Coalition and 
GoAmerica contend, in part, that allowing assignment of ten-digit 
numbers to hearing persons would facilitate point-to-point (i.e., non-
relay) calls between a voice telephone user and an individual with a 
hearing or speech disability, and therefore reduce the number of VRS 
calls that are compensated from the Interstate TRS Fund.
    In addition, GoAmerica requests that the Commission grant 
reconsideration or a limited waiver for six months of the requirement 
that Internet-based TRS providers answer a call back from the PSAP with 
priority. GoAmerica asserts that providers are not capable of meeting 
this requirement at the present time and are working collaboratively on 
a technical solution.

Federal Communications Commission.
Suzanne Tetreault,
Deputy Chief, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau.
[FR Doc. E9-11738 Filed 5-19-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P