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art.017/2/017/1

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ARTICLE 17 SUBSTITUTE A

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RELATING TO EMERGENCY AND PUBLIC COMMUNICATION ACCESS FUND

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     SECTION 1. Section 39-1-42 of the General Laws in Chapter 39-1 entitled "Public

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Utilities Commission" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     39-1-42. Access to telephone information services for persons with disabilities. -- (a)

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The public utilities commission shall establish, administer and promote an information

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accessibility service that includes:

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     (1) A statewide telephone relay service and, through the competitive bidding process,

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contract for the administration and operation of such a relay system for utilization of the

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telecommunications network by deaf, hard of hearing and speech impaired persons;

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     (2) The adaptive telephone equipment loan program capable of servicing the needs of

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persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, severely speech impaired, or those with neuromuscular

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impairments for use with a single party telephone line, to any subscriber who is certified as deaf,

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hard of hearing, severely speech impaired, or with neuromuscular impairments by a licensed

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physician, audiologist, speech pathologist, or a qualified state agency, pursuant to chapter 23 of

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this title; and

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     (3) A telephone access to the text of newspaper programs to residents who are blind, deaf

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or blind, visually impaired, or reading impaired with a single party telephone line.

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     (b) The commission shall establish, by rule or regulation, an appropriate funding

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mechanism to recover the costs of providing this service from each residence and business

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telephone access line or trunk in the state, including PBX trunks and centrex equivalent trunks

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and each service line or trunk, and upon each user interface number or extension number or

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similarly identifiable line, trunk, or path to or from a digital network. Notwithstanding the

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foregoing, there shall not be any additional funding mechanism used to charge each residence and

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business telephone access line or truck in the state, including PBX trunks and centrex equivalent

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trunks and each service line or trunk, or upon each user interface number or extension number or

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similarly identifiable line, trunk or path to or from a digital network, to recover the costs of

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providing the services outlined in subsections (a)(1), (2) or (3) above.

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     (c) The commission, with the assistance of the state commission on the deaf and hard of

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hearing, shall also develop the appropriate rules, regulations and service standards necessary to

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implement the provisions of subsection (a)(1) of this section. At a minimum, however, the

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commission shall require, under the terms of the contract, that the relay service provider:

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     (1) Offer its relay services seven (7) days a week, twenty-four (24) hours a day, including

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holidays;

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     (2) Hire only qualified salaried operators with deaf language skills; and

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     (3) Maintain the confidentiality of all communications.

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     (e) (d) The commission shall collect from the telecommunications service providers the

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     amounts of the surcharge collected from their subscribers and remit to the department of

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human services an additional ten thousand dollars ($10,000) annually commencing in fiscal year

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2005 for the adaptive telephone equipment loan program and forty thousand dollars ($40,000) to

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the department of human services for the establishment of a new telephone access to the text of

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newspaper programs. In addition, eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) shall annually be remitted to

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the Rhode Island Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing for an emergency and public

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communication access program, pursuant to section 23-1.8-4 of the Rhode Island general laws.

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The surcharge referenced hereunder shall be generated from existing funding mechanisms and

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shall not be generated as a result of any new funding mechanisms charged to each residence and

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business telephone access line or trunk in the state, including PBX trunks and centrex equivalent

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trunks and each service line or trunk, or upon each user interface number or extension number or

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similarly identifiable line, trunk or path to or from a digital network.

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     SECTION 2. Chapter 23-1.8 of the General Laws entitled "Commission on the Deaf and

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Hard of Hearing" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

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     23-1.8-4. Emergency and public communication access account. -- (a) There is

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established within the general fund the emergency and public communication access restricted

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receipt account, which shall be referred to as the EPCA account. The purpose of this account is to

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fund emergency communication and enhance public communication access for deaf and hard of

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hearing people, in accordance with subsection 39-1-42(e) of the Rhode Island general laws. In

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addition, the account shall be used to enhance emergency communication systems to alert deaf

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and hard of hearing people to any type of emergencies within the state.

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     (b) The account shall be used to purchase and install public communication access

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equipment and products at public sites for deaf and hard of hearing citizens.

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     (c) The commission is authorized to establish, administer and promote its emergency and

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public communication access program.

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     (d) The commission is authorized to make purchases specifically for the EPCA program

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and empowered to receive donations and grants from sources including, but not limited to, the

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federal government, governmental and private foundations, and corporate and individual donors;

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these donations and grants to be deposited in the EPCA account.

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     (e) The commission is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations that will set forth

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how the commission shall utilize the EPCA account. In preparing rules and regulations regarding

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emergency communications, the Commission shall confer with applicable departments and

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agencies.

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     SECTION 3. This article shall take effect upon passage.