[nfbmi-talk] Fw: [Missouri-l] Fw: National Broadband Plan Released; AFB Teleseminar, Resources

[fred olver]

National Broadband Plan Released; AFB Teleseminar, Resources
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Chip Hailey 
To: missouri-l at moblind.org 
Sent: Thursday, March 18, 2010 4:36 PM
Subject: [Missouri-l] Fw: National Broadband Plan Released;AFB Teleseminar, Resources



----- Original Message ----- 
From: AFB DirectConnect 
To: AFB Subscriber 
Sent: Thursday, March 18, 2010 4:13 PM
Subject: National Broadband Plan Released; AFB Teleseminar, Resources


        

          
      

Breathtaking National Broadband Plan's Release Puts Disability Access Center Stage

For further information, contact-

Mark Richert
Director, Public Policy, AFB
(202) 822-0833
MRichert at afb.net 

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released this week its long-awaited National Broadband Plan, a set of detailed policy recommendations and statement of FCC commitment to specific actions designed to ensure that every American will have access to, be able to afford, and fully use the equipment and services that comprise the nation's high-speed voice, data and video communications, emergency, and entertainment infrastructure. The full report can be accessed on line at http://www.broadband.gov/plan/.

In articulating a comprehensive vision for broadband accessibility, the FCC is endorsing, in some cases verbatim, the policy objectives of H.R. 3101, the Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act, introduced by Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) last Summer. In doing so, the FCC has officially gone on record calling for the application of existing federal telecommunications requirements to Internet-based mobile and other technologies, the wider availability of video description, the necessity for more relevant emergency information access requirements, and the critical need for video programming devices and program menus to be usable by people with disabilities, particularly individuals with vision loss.

In some cases, the FCC has indicated its sense that it already has congressional authority to issue regulations accomplishing these objectives. In other instances, the FCC is calling upon Congress in the Plan to grant the FCC unambiguous jurisdiction and authority to promulgate necessary rules. And in still other instances, the FCC is calling upon other federal agencies to undertake rulemaking or advisory committee proceedings to implement Plan recommendations.

For example, given that a federal court of appeals has ruled that the FCC lacks authority to require video description, the FCC is unequivocally urging Congress to give it the necessary authority through legislation. In addition, the FCC is urging the U.S. Department of Justice to amend its Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations to clarify the ADA's applicability to commercial websites. Advocates will recall that AFB and other organizations in the vision loss community have been aggressively pushing the Justice Department to issue such clarifying rules in order to ensure that retailers and other public accommodations that do business exclusively on line are nevertheless covered by the ADA's nondiscrimination protections. The Justice Department is expected to issue its much-anticipated updated ADA regulations in the coming months.

The release of the FCC's National Broadband Plan comes at a critical time in the progress of technology and disability policy development. For instance, the U.S. Access Board has just begun the official rulemaking process to update the requirements of section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, the federal provisions requiring federal government electronic and information technology accessibility. 

To keep advocates current on these and related information access issues, AFB is offering several opportunities to the vision loss community and beyond. In addition to its regular reporting on accessible mainstream and assistive technologies, AFB's free on line magazine, AccessWorld http://www.afb.org/accessworld, is currently providing readers with comprehensive coverage of the technology policy landscape and how advocates can make a difference.

Additionally, stay tuned to this newsletter, AFB DirectConnect, for details coming soon about an exciting teleseminar to be held in April offering attendees an opportunity to learn about the particulars of the National Broadband Plan and how you can participate in the effort to make its recommendations a reality.

In the meantime, advocates are urged to continue calling upon members of the U.S. House to cosponsor H.R. 3101 and work for its prompt passage. Detailed information about the legislation, including a tool kit for advocates, can be found on the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology website. http://www.coataccess.org





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