BILL ANALYSIS HUMAN SERVICES C.S.H.B. 1330 By: Naishtat 4-9-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND People who cannot access conventional telephone equipment without assistance due to deafness or other hearing or speech impairments are at an economic disadvantage. They must purchase basic telephone equipment and still be faced with paying prohibitive costs for assistive equipment. This proposal suggests a way to equalize the cost for these consumers to access the telephone through a state subsidy. PURPOSE House Bill 1330 would establish the Specialized Telecommunications Device Assistance Program. This program, monitored by the Public Utility Commission (the commission), and administered by the Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TCDHH), would distribute vouchers, for a minimal fee, to eligible applicants who are deaf, hearing impaired, and/or speech impaired. These vouchers could be redeemed for assistive telecommunications devices from private vendors. This program would remove the barriers to communication that many of our citizens face, and bring us to the level of equal access that other states have reached. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill grants rulemaking authority to the Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TCDHH) and the Public Utility Commission in Section 1 (section 3.611(a), Public Utility Act of 1995.) Rulemaking authority is granted to the Public Utility Commission in Section 1 (Section 3.613, Public Utility Act of 1995.) SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Subtitle N, Title III, Public Utility Regulatory Act of 1995, is amended by adding Sections 3.611-3.613 to read as follows: Sec. 3.611.Specialized Telecommunications Device Assistance Program. (a)Directs the commission and TCDHH to establish the Specialized Telecommunications Device Assistance Program. (b) Directs the TCDHH to prescribe eligibility standards. (c) Establishes restrictions for eligibility to receive a second voucher. (d)Directs the TCDHH to determine a reasonable price for a basic assistive telecommunications device and establishes specifications for the vouchers to be issued. (e)Directs the TCDHH to process eligibility applications and distribute the vouchers upon payment of a $35 fee. (f)Directs TCDHH to maintain records of voucher recipients. (g)Directs TCDHH to deposit money collected under the program to the universal service fund (USF). Sec. 3.612. COMMISSION DUTIES FOR SPECIALIZED TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. (a) Directs the commission to reimburse the vendors from the USF and establishes guidelines for that payment. (b) Allows the commission to conduct investigations of voucher transaction validity. Sec. 3.613. RECOVERY OF SPECIALIZED TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM SURCHARGE. Directs the commission to allow a telecommunication utility to recover the USF assessments from the program created in this subtitle through a customer surcharge and establishes guidelines for that surcharge. SECTION 2. The heading to Subtitle N, Title III, Public Utility Regulatory Act of 1995, is amended to add the heading: SPECIALIZED TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. SECTION 3. Section 3.604, Public Utility Regulatory Act of 1995, is amended by amending Subsections (g) and (h) and adding subsections (i) - (k) to read as follows: (g) Amended to alter the composition of the advisory committee established by this section. (h) Amended to direct the advisory committee established by this section to advise the commission and TCDHH on issues related to the specialized telecommunications device assistance program established under this subtitle. SECTION 4. Section 3.608 (a), Public Utility Regulatory Act of 1995, is amended to read as follows: (a) Amended to authorize the USF to be used to finance the program established by this subtitle and reimburse TCDHH for costs incurred in implementing the provisions of this subtitle. SECTION 5. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF SUBSTITUTE TO ORIGINAL SECTION 1. Section 3.613 RECOVERY OF SPECIALIZED TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM SURCHARGE. Prohibits a utility from recovering an aggregation of more than 12 months of assessments in a single surcharge. The original version had no such time-limit prohibitions on the assessment of the surcharge. Directs the telecommunication utilities to include the surcharge, should they choose to impose it, in the "universal service fund surcharge" listing as provided by Section 3.604(c) of this Act. The original version directed the utilities to create a new and separate surcharge listing for the program established by this subsection.