Florida Senate - 2025 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 344
Ì3752821Î375282
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
02/18/2025 .
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The Committee on Regulated Industries (Rodriguez) recommended
the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete lines 260 - 462
4 and insert:
5 value. This paragraph does not apply to specialized
6 telecommunications devices using standard telephone lines.
7 (3)(a) The commission shall select a the provider of the
8 telecommunications relay service pursuant to procedures
9 established by the commission. In selecting a the service
10 provider, the commission shall take into consideration the cost
11 of providing the relay service and the interests of the hearing
12 loss, speech impairment, and deafblind impaired and speech
13 impaired community in having access to a high-quality and
14 technologically advanced telecommunications system. The
15 commission shall award the contract to the bidder whose proposal
16 is the most advantageous to the state, taking into consideration
17 the following:
18 1. The appropriateness and accessibility of the proposed
19 telecommunications relay service for the residents citizens of
20 this the state, including persons with hearing loss or speech
21 impairment or who are deafblind who are hearing impaired or
22 speech impaired.
23 2. The overall quality of the proposed telecommunications
24 relay service.
25 3. The charges for the proposed telecommunications relay
26 service system.
27 4. The ability and qualifications of the bidder to provide
28 the proposed telecommunications relay service as outlined in the
29 request for proposals.
30 5. Any proposed service enhancements and technological
31 enhancements which improve service without significantly
32 increasing cost.
33 6. Any proposed inclusion of provision of assistance to
34 deaf persons with special needs to access the basic
35 telecommunications system.
36 7. The ability to meet the proposed commencement date for
37 the telecommunications relay service.
38 8. All other factors listed in the request for proposals.
39 (4)(a) The commission shall establish a mechanism to
40 recover the costs of implementing and maintaining the services
41 required pursuant to this part which must shall be applied to
42 each basic telecommunications access line. In establishing the
43 recovery mechanism, the commission shall:
44 1. Require all local exchange telecommunications companies
45 to impose a monthly surcharge on all local exchange
46 telecommunications company subscribers on an individual access
47 line basis, except that such surcharge may shall not be imposed
48 upon more than 25 basic telecommunications access lines per
49 account bill rendered.
50 2. Require all local exchange telecommunications companies
51 to include the surcharge as a part of the local service charge
52 that appears on the customer’s bill, except that the local
53 exchange telecommunications company shall specify the surcharge
54 on the initial bill to the subscriber and itemize it at least
55 once annually.
56 3. Allow the local exchange telecommunications company to
57 deduct and retain 1 percent of the total surcharge amount
58 collected each month to recover the billing, collecting,
59 remitting, and administrative costs attributed to the surcharge.
60 (5) The commission shall require each local exchange
61 telecommunications company to begin assessing and collecting the
62 surcharge in the amount of 5 cents per access line per month on
63 bills rendered on or after July 1, 1991, for remission to the
64 administrator for deposit in the operational fund. Each local
65 exchange telecommunications company shall remit moneys collected
66 to the administrator. On August 15, 1991, each local exchange
67 telecommunications company shall begin remitting the moneys
68 collected to the administrator on a monthly basis and in a
69 manner as prescribed by the commission. The administrator shall
70 use such moneys to administer the telecommunications access to
71 cover costs incurred during the development of the
72 telecommunications relay services and to establish and
73 administer the specialized telecommunications devices system.
74 (6) The commission shall establish a schedule for
75 completion of specific stages of the telecommunications relay
76 service development and implementation except that the statewide
77 telecommunications relay service shall commence on or before
78 June 1, 1992.
79 (7) The commission shall require the administrator to
80 submit financial statements for the distribution of specialized
81 telecommunications devices and for specialized communications
82 technology and for the telecommunications relay service to the
83 commission quarterly, in the manner prescribed by the
84 commission.
85 (7)(8) The commission shall adopt rules and may take any
86 other action necessary to implement the provisions of this act.
87 (8)(9) The commission shall prepare an annual report on the
88 operation of the telecommunications access system and, which
89 shall make such report be available on the commission’s Internet
90 website. Reports must be prepared in consultation with the
91 administrator and the advisory committee appointed pursuant to
92 s. 427.706. The reports must, at a minimum, briefly outline the
93 status of developments in the telecommunications access system,
94 the number of persons served, the call volume, revenues and
95 expenditures, the allocation of the revenues and expenditures
96 between provision of specialized telecommunications devices and
97 specialized communications technologies to individuals and
98 operation of statewide relay service, other major policy or
99 operational issues, and proposals for improvements or changes to
100 the telecommunications access system.
101 Section 4. Paragraphs (a) and (c) of subsection (1),
102 subsection (4), paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (5), and
103 subsection (7) of section 427.705, Florida Statutes, are amended
104 to read:
105 427.705 Administration of the telecommunications access
106 system.—
107 (1) Consistent with the provisions of this act and rules
108 and regulations established by the commission, the administrator
109 shall:
110 (a) Purchase, license, store, distribute, and maintain
111 specialized telecommunications devices, equipment, and
112 specialized communications technology, either directly or
113 through contract with third parties, or a combination thereof.
114 (c) Administer training services for recipients of
115 specialized telecommunications devices, equipment, and
116 specialized communications technology and for telecommunications
117 relay service users as directed by the commission through
118 contract with third parties.
119 (4) In contracting for the provision of distribution of
120 specialized telecommunications devices, outreach services, and
121 training of recipients, the administrator shall consider
122 contracting with organizations that provide services to persons
123 with hearing loss or speech impairment or who are deafblind who
124 are hearing impaired or speech impaired.
125 (5) The administrator shall provide for the distribution of
126 specialized telecommunications devices to persons qualified to
127 receive such equipment in accordance with the provisions of this
128 act. The administrator shall establish procedures for the
129 distribution of specialized telecommunications devices and shall
130 solicit the advice and counsel and consider the recommendations
131 of the advisory committee in establishing such procedures. The
132 procedures shall:
133 (a) Provide for certification of persons with hearing loss
134 or speech impairment or who are deafblind as hearing impaired,
135 speech impaired, or dual sensory impaired. Such certification
136 process must shall include a statement attesting to such
137 impairment by a licensed physician, audiologist, speech-language
138 pathologist, hearing aid specialist, or deaf service center
139 director, or regional distribution center director; by a state
140 certified teacher of the hearing impaired; by a state-certified
141 teacher of the visually impaired; or by an appropriate state or
142 federal agency. The licensed physician, audiologist, speech
143 language pathologist, hearing aid specialist, state-certified
144 teacher of the hearing impaired, or state-certified teacher of
145 the visually impaired providing statements which attest to such
146 impairments shall work within their individual scopes of
147 practice according to their education and training. The deaf
148 service center directors, regional distribution center
149 directors, and appropriate state and federal agencies shall
150 attest to such impairments as provided for in the procedures
151 developed by the administrator.
152 (b) Establish characteristics and performance standards for
153 specialized telecommunications devices and specialized
154 communications technologies determined to be necessary, and for
155 the selection of equipment to be purchased for distribution to
156 qualified recipients. The characteristics and standards must
157 shall be modified as advances in equipment technology render
158 such standards inapplicable.
159 (7) The administrator shall assume responsibility for
160 distribution of specialized telecommunications devices and
161 specialized communications technologies.
162 Section 5. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 427.706,
163 Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
164 427.706 Advisory committee.—
165 (1) The commission shall appoint an advisory committee to
166 assist the commission with implementing the implementation of
167 the provisions of this part. The committee shall be composed of
168 no more than 10 persons and shall include, to the extent
169 practicable, persons recommended by organizations representing,
170 the following groups:
171 (a) The Two deaf persons recommended by the Florida
172 Association of the Deaf.
173 (b) Persons with hearing loss One hearing impaired person
174 recommended by Self-Help for the Hard of Hearing.
175 (c) The deafblind One deaf and blind person recommended by
176 the Coalition for Persons with Dual Sensory Disabilities.
177 (d) Persons with speech impairment One speech impaired
178 person recommended by the Florida Language Speech and Hearing
179 Association.
180 (e) The elderly Two representatives of telecommunications
181 companies.
182 (f) One person with experience in providing
183 Telecommunication relay service distribution centers services
184 recommended by the Deaf Service Center Association.
185 (g) Communications service providers One person recommended
186 by the Advocacy Center for Persons with Disabilities, Inc.
187 (h) One person recommended by the Florida League of
188 Seniors.
189 (2) The advisory committee shall provide the expertise,
190 experience, and perspective of persons with hearing loss or
191 speech impairment or who are deafblind who are hearing impaired
192 or speech impaired to the commission and to the administrator
193 during all phases of the development and operation of the
194 telecommunications access system. The advisory committee shall
195 advise the commission and the administrator on the quality and
196 cost-effectiveness of the telecommunications relay service and
197 the specialized telecommunications devices, equipment, and
198 specialized communications technologies distribution system. The
199 advisory committee may submit material for inclusion in the
200 annual report prepared pursuant to s. 427.704.
201
202 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
203 And the title is amended as follows:
204 Delete lines 19 - 23
205 and insert:
206 implementing the act; providing an effective date.