S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  10101

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              March 4, 2010
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M. of A. KOON -- read once and referred to the Committee
  on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions

AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to telephone  access
  for all New Yorkers

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. The public service law is amended by adding a  new  section
91-b to read as follows:
  S  91-B. TELEPHONE ACCESS FOR ALL NEW YORKERS. 1. THE COMMISSION SHALL
ESTABLISH AND ADMINISTER A STATEWIDE PROGRAM TO DISTRIBUTE, AT  NO  COST
TO  THE  RECIPIENTS, ASSISTIVE TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICES TO PERSONS WHO
ARE DEAF, HARD OF HEARING, SEVERELY SPEECH IMPAIRED, OR  DEAF-BLIND,  OR
ADAPTIVE  EQUIPMENT TO PERMIT THE USE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT TO
PERSONS WITH OTHER PHYSICAL DISABILITIES SO THAT TELEPHONE SERVICE SHALL
BE MADE GENERALLY AVAILABLE TO ALL DISABLED PERSONS IN THE STATE.
  2. IN ORDER TO BE  ELIGIBLE  TO  RECEIVE  ASSISTIVE  TELECOMMUNICATION
DEVICES  OR  ADAPTIVE EQUIPMENT, INDIVIDUALS MUST BE AT LEAST FIVE YEARS
OLD AND MUST BE CERTIFIED AS HAVING THE  DISABILITY  THAT  REQUIRES  THE
PARTICULAR  ASSISTIVE  TELECOMMUNICATION  DEVICES  OR ADAPTIVE EQUIPMENT
REQUESTED BY THE INDIVIDUAL BY A PERSON  OR  AGENCY  AUTHORIZED  BY  THE
COMMISSION  TO  MAKE SUCH CERTIFICATIONS. SUCH PERSONS SHALL INCLUDE BUT
NEED NOT BE LIMITED TO PHYSICIANS, AUDIOLOGISTS, SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOL-
OGISTS, VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION COUNSELORS, OR OTHER QUALIFIED PROFES-
SIONALS WITHIN THE AREA OF THEIR QUALIFICATIONS.
  3. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF THIS SECTION, AN  INDIVIDUAL
WHO IS HEARING IMPAIRED TO A DEGREE THAT THE ONLY ASSISTIVE TELECOMMUNI-
CATION  DEVICES REQUIRED FOR EFFECTIVE TELEPHONE COMMUNICATIONS WOULD BE
AN AMPLIFIER, AMPLIFIED TELEPHONE, AN AUDIBLE SIGNALING DEVICE,  OR  ANY
COMBINATION THEREOF THAT ARE READILY AVAILABLE ON THE RETAIL MARKET AT A
PRICE SUCH THAT THE COST (AS DETERMINED BY THE COMMISSION) OF THE COMBI-
NATION  OF SUCH DEVICES DOES NOT EXCEED TWO HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE AVER-
AGE COST OF A NON-AMPLIFIED TELEPHONE OF SIMILAR QUALITY  SHALL  NOT  BE
ENTITLED  TO RECEIVE SUCH ASSISTIVE TELECOMMUNICATION DEVICES UNLESS THE

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD03493-01-9
              

A. 10101                            2

INDIVIDUAL IS A MEMBER OF A FAMILY WITH A FAMILY INCOME OF LESS THAN TWO
HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE FEDERAL POVERTY LEVEL.
  4.  THE  COMMISSION SHALL PROMULGATE SUCH REGULATIONS AS ARE NECESSARY
TO IMPLEMENT THE PROGRAM ESTABLISHED BY THIS SECTION, INCLUDING, BUT NOT
LIMITED TO, REGULATIONS CONCERNING TECHNOLOGY ELIGIBLE FOR DISTRIBUTION,
METHODS OF ENCOURAGING AND TAKING ADVANTAGE OF  TECHNOLOGICAL  ADVANCES,
AND  METHODS  OF  ESTABLISHING  PRIORITIES AMONG APPLICANTS, WHICH SHALL
TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE FACT THAT AN APPLICANT HAS ASSISTIVE  EQUIP-
MENT  AT THE TIME OF APPLICATION REGARDLESS OF THE SOURCE OF FUNDING FOR
SUCH ASSISTIVE EQUIPMENT.
  5. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL UTILIZE THE ASSISTANCE OF AND  COOPERATE  WITH
COMMUNITY-BASED  PROGRAMS  FOR  PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THE AREAS OF
TRAINING, OUTREACH, EQUIPMENT DISTRIBUTION, TROUBLESHOOTING,  AND  OTHER
AREAS  WHICH  MAY BE APPROPRIATE FOR COMMUNITY BASED PROGRAMS.  COMMUNI-
TY-BASED PROGRAMS SHALL BE  COMPENSATED  FOR  THE  SERVICES  WHICH  THEY
PROVIDE.
  6.  THE  DEPARTMENT  SHALL  CONVENE  AND  SUPPORT  A CITIZENS ADVISORY
COMMITTEE ON TELEPHONE ACCESS FOR ALL NEW YORKERS. THE ADVISORY  COMMIT-
TEE  SHALL  CONSIST  OF  ONE  MEMBER EACH APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR, THE
TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE, AND THE SPEAKER OF THE ASSEMBLY,  AND
AT LEAST FOUR ADDITIONAL MEMBERS WHO REPRESENT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES,
INCLUDING,  BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PEOPLE WHO ARE HARD OF HEARING, DEAF, OR
DEAF-BLIND. THE LATTER MEMBERS SHALL BE APPOINTED BY THE  GOVERNOR  UPON
NOMINATION BY PROVIDERS OF COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES TO PEOPLE WITH DISA-
BILITIES, INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES, AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES.
  7.  THE  DEPARTMENT, IN COOPERATION WITH THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE, SHALL
PROVIDE A REPORT TO THE GOVERNOR, THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE,
AND THE SPEAKER OF THE ASSEMBLY ONE YEAR FROM THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS
SECTION AND ANNUALLY ON THAT DATE THEREAFTER. THE REPORT SHALL  DOCUMENT
THE  PROGRESS  OF  THE  PROGRAM IN PROVIDING TELEPHONE ACCESS TO ALL NEW
YORKERS.
  S 2. Section 18-a of the public service law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 3-a to read as follows:
  3-A. THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMISSION SHALL ESTIMATE,  PRIOR  TO  THE
START OF EACH FISCAL YEAR BEGINNING AFTER MARCH THIRTY-FIRST OF THE YEAR
AFTER  THE YEAR IN WHICH THIS SUBDIVISION WAS ADDED, THE TOTAL COSTS AND
EXPENSES OF OPERATING THE PROGRAM TO PROVIDE EQUIPMENT  TO  ALLOW  TELE-
PHONE  ACCESS TO ALL NEW YORKERS ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO SECTION NINETY-
ONE-B OF THIS CHAPTER FOR THE FOLLOWING FISCAL YEAR, INCLUDING THE COSTS
OF EQUIPMENT AND OF ADMINISTERING THE PROGRAM. BASED ON  SUCH  ESTIMATE,
THE  CHAIRPERSON SHALL DETERMINE THE AMOUNT TO BE PAID AS A CONDITION OF
DOING BUSINESS WITHIN THIS STATE BY EACH TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY THAT
PROVIDES LOCAL SERVICE IN THIS STATE; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT THE  TOTAL
COSTS  AND  EXPENSES  SHALL BE ALLOCATED TO EACH SUCH TELECOMMUNICATIONS
COMPANY IN THE PROPORTION THAT THE NUMBER OF  TELEPHONE  LINES  IN  THIS
STATE  OF EACH SUCH TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY BEARS TO THE TOTAL NUMBER
OF LINES IN THE STATE, AND A BILL SHALL BE  RENDERED  THEREFOR  TO  EACH
SUCH TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY ACCORDINGLY.
  S  3.  Subdivision  5  of  section  18-a of the public service law, as
amended by chapter 788 of the laws  of  1978,  is  amended  to  read  as
follows:
  5.  On  demand  made  within  thirty days of the rendition of any bill
pursuant to subdivision two, three, THREE-A, or four  of  this  section,
the  party so charged shall be afforded an opportunity to be heard as to
the amount thereof.  Any amounts of such bills not  paid  within  thirty
days  from  the  date  of  determination upon such hearings, or, if none

A. 10101                            3

shall be demanded, on the date upon which such  payment  is  due,  shall
bear  interest  at  a rate to be prescribed by regulation of the commis-
sion. Such rate shall be not less than six [percentum]  PER  CENTUM  per
annum nor more than the rate of interest prescribed by the banking board
pursuant  to  the provisions of section fourteen-a of the banking law in
effect on the day immediately [preceeding] PRECEDING the date  on  which
the provisions of this subdivision, as amended, become effective, but if
the  commission  has  not set such rate, interest at six [percentum] PER
CENTUM per annum shall apply. Any interest rate set  by  the  commission
shall  become  effective  not  less  than  sixty days after such rate is
promulgated.
  S 4. This act shall take effect immediately.