H. B. 2092
(By Delegate Spencer)
[Introduced February 10, 1993; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend chapter twenty-four of the code of West Virginia,
one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding
thereto a new article, designated article two-e, relating to
defining certain terms related to telecommunication devices
for the deaf; requiring the public service commission to
recover certain costs, promulgate rules, and make certain
services available to certain language and speech-impaired
persons; and requiring the department of health and human
resources to distribute telecommunication devices for the
deaf to eligible persons.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That chapter twenty-four of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by
adding thereto a new article, designated article two-e, to read
as follows:
ARTICLE 2E. TEXT TELEPHONES FOR CERTAIN HEARING-IMPAIRED AND
SPEECH-IMPAIRED SUBSCRIBERS TO TELEPHONE SERVICE.
§24-2E-1. Definitions.
As used in this article:
"Hearing-impaired" means severe to profound impairment of
the sense of hearing, whereby the use of a telephone is
unattainable with or without amplification, and visual
communication is used as the primary mode of communication.
"Speech-impaired" means a severe to profound impairment of
the ability to speak, whereby the use of a telephone is
unattainable, and visual communication is used as the primary
mode of communication.
"Text telephone" means a machine, used by hearing-impaired
or speech-impaired individuals, which employs graphic
communication in the transmission of coded signals through
telecommunications, and is synonymous with the terms
"telecommunications device for the deaf" or "TDD."
§24-2E-2. Availability of text telephones to certain hearing-
impaired and speech-impaired subscribers of
telephone service; determination of eligibility;
promulgation of rules.
(a) The public service commission shall establish rules
governing the availability of text telephones to hearing-impaired
and speech-impaired subscribers to telephone service based upon
financial need. In addition, the public service commission shall
establish rules providing for the recovery of the costs of such
text telephones through a surcharge on access telephone lines or
their equivalent, not to exceed two cents per access line orequivalent. All such rules shall be promulgated pursuant to
section seven, article one of this chapter and adopted within one
hundred eighty days of the effective date of this article.
(b) The department of health and human resources shall
establish rules governing the procedures for the application by
hearing-impaired and speech-impaired persons for text telephones
under this article, governing the determination on a continuing
basis by the department of health and human resources of the
eligibility of such persons, and governing the purchase and
distribution of text telephones. Such eligibility and
distribution shall be in accordance with the rules governing
availability promulgated by the public service commission under
this section. The rules of the department of health and human
resources shall initially be adopted and filed in the state
register within one hundred eighty days of the effective date of
this article and shall not otherwise be subject to the
requirements of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. The rules
initially adopted shall become effective immediately upon filing
in the state register and remain in effect until supplanted by
legislative rules promulgated pursuant to chapter twenty-nine-a
of this code. Final approved legislative rules shall be
submitted by the department of health and human resources to the
legislative rule-making review committee on or before the first
day of August, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require the public
service commission to promulgate rules to recover certain costs
to provide for a telecommunications device for the deaf program
in this state. The bill requires the Department of Health and
Human Resources to distribute the devices to eligible persons.
This article is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.