[Missouri-l] FCC Report on Informal Complaints

[Denny Huff]

-----Original Message-----
From: Eric Bridges [mailto:ebridges at acb.org] 
Sent: Friday, May 08, 2009 5:26 PM
To: leadership at acb.org
Subject: [leadership] FCC Report on Informal Complaints

I am quite pleased to report another small but important  victory for
individuals with disabilities at the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC). For well over a year, ACB has worked with the Disability Rights
Office at the FCC to formulate a report that would detail complaints by the
disability community. As some of you know, the FCC collects reporting data
on   complaints  ranging from indecent content on TV and radio  to broadcast
rights. 

Historically however, the Commission has not published a report detailing
complaints by the disability community. I know that many of you have
completed informal complaints on inaccessible cell phones and access to
televised emergency information. These types of complaints are precisely
what this report will collect. Below is a notice announcing this report. In
the notice there is a link that will take you to a page so that an informal
complaint can be registered. Now that we have this report that will be made
available for the public to view, it is imperative that ACB members help to
populate  the relevant categories with many complaints.   

This report will give the blind community solid data to utilize when working
with Congress and industry on issues pertaining to telecommunications.
Please let me know if you require assistance in completing an informal
complaint. Have a great weekend! 

 

Eric  

 

For Immediate Release:
News Media Contact: 

 

May 6, 2009
Rosemary Kimball at (202) 418-0511

 

 
e-mail: 

rosemary.kimball at fcc.gov 

 

REPORT ON INFORMAL CONSUMER COMPLAINTS REGARDING 

ACCESS TO TELECOMMUNICATIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES             

 

Washington, D.C. – The Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB)
announces information regarding informal consumer complaints processed by
the Disability

Rights Office (DRO) during the fourth quarter of the calendar year 2008.
DRO processes informal complaints in the following five categories:  (1)
access

to telecommunications services and equipment (Section 255) (47 U.S.C § 255),
(2) telecommunications relay services (TRS) (47 U.S.C § 225), (3) closed
captioning

(47 C.F.R. § 79.1), (4) accessibility of video programming providing
emergency information (47 C.F.R. § 79.2), (5) and hearing aid compatibility
(47 U.S.C.

§ 610).   

 

            For the fourth quarter of 2008 (October 01, 2008 through
December 31, 2008), DRO received the following number of informal
complaints, by subject

matter, implicating the Commission’s disability access rules:  30 informal
complaints raised Section 255 issues; 38 informal complaints raised TRS
issues;

80 informal complaints raised closed captioning issues; 4 informal
complaints raised accessibility of video programming providing emergency
information

issues; and 2 informal complaints raised hearing aid compatibility issues.


 

            On February 1, 2008, CGB launched a new database tracking system
for informal complaints, the Consumer Complaint Management System (CCMS). 

CCMS utilizes the Form 2000C for all disability access informal complaints
regarding the five categories listed above.  Consumers can access this
complaint

form at: 

http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/form2000c.html.   

 

            The Commission receives many inquiries and complaints that do
not involve violations of the Communications Act, a Commission rule, or a
Commission

order.  The existence of a complaint does not necessarily indicate
wrongdoing by the company at issue.  For more information regarding access
to telecommunications

for people with disabilities and other related matters, visit the DRO
website at:  

http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro.  

 

            A copy of this document will be available during regular
business hours at the FCC Reference Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th
Street,

S.W., Room CY-A257, Washington, D.C. 20554.  This document and copies of
subsequently filed documents in this matter may also be purchased from the
Commission’s

duplicating contractor at, Portals II, 445 12th Street, S.W., Room CY-B402,
Washington, D.C. 20554.  Customers may contact the Commission’s duplicating

contractor at their website: 

www.bcpiweb.com

 or call 1-800-378-3160 or 202-488-5300.  

 

            To request materials in accessible formats for people with
disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an
e-mail

to 

fcc504 at fcc.gov

 or call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 (voice),
202-418-0432 (TTY).  This News Release can also be downloaded in Word and
Portable

Document Format (PDF) at 

http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/.   

 

            For further information regarding this informal complaint
information, contact Cheryl King, Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau,
Disability

Rights Office: (202) 418-2284 (voice), (202) 418-0416 (TTY), or e-mail 

Cheryl.King at fcc.gov.    

 

-FCC-   

 

Eric Bridges

 

Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs

 

American Council of the Blind

 

2200 Wilson Blvd. Suite 650

 

Arlington, VA 22201 

 

Phone: (202) 467-5081

 

Fax: (703) 465-5085 

 

Eric Bridges

Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs

American Council of the Blind

2200 Wilson Blvd. Suite 650

Arlington, VA 22201 

Phone: (202) 467-5081

Fax: (703) 465-5085