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 Federal  Communications  Commission  FCC  06-  57 
 STATEMENT  OF  COMMISSIONER  JONATHAN  S.  ADELSTEIN 
 Re:  Telecommunications  Relay  Services  and  Speech-  to-  Speech  Services  for  Individuals  with  Hearing  and  Speech  Disabilities,  CG  Docket  No.  03-  123,  Declaratory  Ruling  and  Further  Notice 
 of  Proposed  Rulemaking  (May  3,  2006). 
 I’m  pleased  to  support  this  Order  which  will  significantly  enhance  the  access  to  and  the  quality  of  communications  services  for  the  deaf  and  hard  of  hearing  community.  It  ensures  that 
 Video  Relay  Service  (VRS)  providers  do  not  block  or  degrade  consumers’  access  to  the  VRS  provider  of  their  choosing.  This  Order  will  improve  the  ability  of  Americans  with  disabilities  to 
 communicate  using  VRS  technology,  increase  access  to  emergency  services,  and  better  achieve  the  “functional  equivalency”  standard  of  the  Americans  with  Disabilities  Act  (ADA). 


 VRS  is  an  increasingly  important  tool  for  those  portions  of  the  deaf  and  hard  of  hearing  community  who  rely  on  American  Sign  Language  (ASL).  VRS  allows  ASL  and  hearing 
 individuals  to  have  real-  time  conversations  that  more  closely  mirror  the  speed  and  natural  flow  of  voice-  to-  voice  conversations.  For  anyone  who  has  had  the  chance  to  use  VRS  services  or  see 
 them  demonstrated,  it  is  not  surprising  that  VRS  has  been  widely  embraced  by  the  deaf  and  hard  of  hearing  community,  particularly  given  that  VRS  more  vividly  conveys  emotions  than 
 traditional  relay  services.  It  also  opens  a  world  of  new  communications  opportunities  for  many  senior  citizens,  children,  and  others  who  may  be  unable  to  type  on  a  TTY  phone  easily.  Users  of 
 VRS  rely  on  these  services  not  only  to  communicate  with  friends  and  family,  but  also  to  run  successful  businesses,  reach  operators  in  the  event  of  an  emergency,  and  complete  everyday 
 tasks  that  many  of  us  take  for  granted. 
 Given  the  increasing  adoption  of  VRS,  I’m  pleased  that  we  are  able  to  respond  to  concerns  about  VRS  blocking  practices.  This  Order  finds  that  restricting  access  to  competing  VRS 
 providers  is  inconsistent  with  the  ADA,  Section  225  of  the  Communications  Act,  and  the  public  interest.  The  approach  we  take  here  was  supported  by  the  leading  national  organizations  for 
 people  who  are  deaf  and  hard  of  hearing,  hundreds  of  individual  consumers,  and  the  FCC’s  own  Consumer  Advisory  Committee.  So,  I’m  glad  that  we  take  another  step  toward  ensuring  that 
 every  person  who  is  deaf  or  hard  of  hearing  will  have  access  to  a  dial  tone  and  the  critical  link  to  the  rest  of  the  world  that  our  telephone  system  provides. 


 We  also  move  forward  with  a  Further  Notice  that  seeks  comment  on  how  we  can  make  it  easier  for  hearing  persons  to  contact  VRS  users  through  any  VRS  provider.  VRS  has  a 
 reciprocal  role  as  a  valuable  tool  for  those  many  hearing  Americans  who  wish  to  reach  members  of  the  deaf  and  hard  of  hearing  community,  so  this  is  an  important  inquiry  and  I  look  forward  to 
 the  record  that  we  will  develop  here. 
 Finally,  I  want  to  commend  Chairman  Martin  and  my  colleagues  for  their  commitment  on  these  issues,  and  would  like  to  thank  Monica  Desai  and  the  staff  of  our  Consumer  and 
 Governmental  Affairs  Bureau  for  their  hard  work  on  this  item.  I  look  forward  to  working  with  my  colleagues  and  with  the  hearing  and  speech  impaired  communities  as  we  continue  to  work 
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 Federal  Communications  Commission  FCC  06-  57 
 towards  the  ADA’s  enduring  standard  of  accessibility  and  functional  equivalency  for  all  Americans. 
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