*Pages 1--2 from Microsoft Word - 39991* PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12 th St., S. W. Washington, D. C. 20554 News Media Information 202 / 418- 0500 Internet: http:// www. fcc. gov TTY: 1- 888- 835- 5322 DA 04- 2061 Released: July 9, 2004 The Federal Communications Commission Reminds TRS Providers of Upcoming Deadlines concerning Captioned Telephone VCO Service CC Docket 98- 67 By this Public Notice, the FCC reminds Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) providers that offer captioned telephone Voice Carry Over (VCO) service that the one- year waiver of the requirement that they offer access via 711 to captioned telephone VCO service for inbound calls made to a captioned telephone user expires at midnight on July 31, 2004. 1 Providers are also reminded that the annual reports required for the various three- year waivers of TRS mandatory minimum standards set forth in the Declaratory Ruling are due on August 2, 2004. 2 On August 1, 2003, the Commission released the captioned telephone VCO service Declaratory Ruling finding that: (1) captioned telephone VCO service is a type of TRS; (2) eligible providers of such service are eligible to recover their costs in accordance with section 225 of the Communications Act; (3) certain TRS mandatory minimum standards do not apply to the provision of captioned telephone VCO service; and (4) certain TRS mandatory minimum standards are waived for captioned telephone VCO service for certain time periods. Annual reports required to be filed pursuant to the captioned telephone VCO service Declaratory Ruling should 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 mail). The Commission’s contractor, Natek, Inc. will receive hand- delivered or messenger- delivered paper filings or electronic media 1 See Telecommunications Relay Services, and Speech- to- Speech Services for Individuals with Hearing and Speech Disabilities, Declaratory Ruling, FCC 03- 190, CC Docket No. 98- 67, 18 FCC Rcd 16121 at ¶¶ 1, 32- 35 (Aug. 1, 2003). 2 The three- year waivers apply to communications assistants’ (CA) competency skill requirements, CA oral- to- type test requirement, and sequential calls, and are contingent on the filing of annual reports. See id. at ¶¶ 38- 42, 43- 44, 45- 46, respectively. Although the anniversary date of the Declaratory Ruling is August 1, since that is a Sunday this year, the Reports will be due August 2. 1 2 for the Commission’s Secretary at 236 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Suite 110, Washington, DC 20002. The filing hours at this location are 8: 00 a. m. to 7: 00 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 12 th 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 12 th Street, SW, Room TW- B204, Washington, DC 20554. When filing annual reports, please reference CC Docket No. 98- 67. 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 12 th Street, SW, Room CY- A257, Washington, DC 20554. They may also be purchased from the Commission’s duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc. (BCPI), Portals II, 445 12 th Street, SW, Room CY- B402, Washington, DC 20554. Customers may contact BCPI, Inc. at their web site: www. bcpiweb. com or call 1- 800- 378- 3160. To request materials in accessible formats for people with disabilities (braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an e- mail to fcc504@ fcc. gov or call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 418- 0530 (voice) or (202) 418- 0432 (TTY). This Public Notice can also be downloaded in Word and Portable Document Format (PDF) at http:// www. fcc. gov/ cgb. dro. Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau Contact: Traci Randolph (202) 418- 0569 (voice), (202) 418- 0537 (TTY); e- mail traci. randolph@ fcc. gov. -FCC- 2