HOUSE BILL REPORT

HB 2556

BYRepresentatives Jacobsen, May, Nelson, Hankins, Brooks, H. Myers, Miller, Cooper, Anderson, Pruitt, Holland, Rector, Dellwo, R. Meyers, Dorn, Wood and Todd

Providing telecommunications devices for persons unable to use customary telephones.

House Committe on Energy & Utilities

Majority Report:  The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (11)

      Signed by Representatives Nelson, Chair; H. Myers, Vice Chair; Hankins, Ranking Republican Member; Bennett, Cooper, Jacobsen, Jesernig, May, R. Meyers, Miller and S. Wilson.

House Staff:Fred Adair (786-7113)

Rereferred House Committee on Appropriations

Majority Report:  The substitute bill by Committee on Energy & Utilities be substituted therefor and the substitute bill as amended by Committee on Appropriations do pass.  (26)

      Signed by Representatives Locke, Chair; Grant, Vice Chair; H. Sommers, Vice Chair; Silver, Ranking Republican Member; Youngsman, Assistant Ranking Republican Member; Appelwick, Belcher, Braddock, Brekke, Dorn, Doty, Ebersole, Ferguson, Hine, Holland, Inslee, May, McLean, Nealey, Peery, Rust, Spanel, Sprenkle, Valle, Wang and Wineberry.

Minority Report:  Do not pass.  (2)

      Signed by Representatives Bowman and Padden.

House Staff:      Michelle Hauth (786-7384)

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS FEBRUARY 1, 1990

BACKGROUND:

State policy is that every home should be able to have a telephone.  Yet, the hearing-impaired community is not able to communicate with ordinary telephones.  Telecommunications devices for the deaf (TDDs) have been developed and a program was established in 1987 to provide the devices to all deaf and hearing-impaired persons in the state.  Subsequently a relay station was established to enable telecommunications between hearing-impaired and non- hearing-impaired persons.  The program is managed by the Department of Social and Health Services.

An excise tax, set by the Utilities and Transportation Commission and not to exceed 10 cents/month, is applied to each subscriber access line to fund the program.  The relay center went into operation just late last year and cost projections indicate the program cost may exceed revenues possible with the 10 cent/month excise tax.

The program expires June 30, 1990, but the need for the assistance continues.  Moreover, speech-impaired persons are, likewise, unable to use ordinary telephones, but devices for the deaf work equally well for speech-impaired persons.  The speech-impaired community is 25 percent or less of the hearing-impaired community.

SUMMARY:

SUBSTITUTE BILL:  The telecommunications devices for the deaf (TDD) program is continued indefinitely with the following changes:  Telecommunications devices for the deaf will be provided to speech-impaired persons, the TDD Advisory Committee is given more specific and annual reporting requirements, and the Department of Social and Health Services will perform a comprehensive study of the program, reporting to the energy and utilities committees of the House and Senate by December 1, 1990.

SUBSTITUTE BILL COMPARED TO ORIGINAL:  The excise tax ceiling was returned from 12 to 10 cents, the departmental study was added, and the bill was rearranged to bring all departmental or office functions into one section.  These and TDD advisory committee functions were intermixed in the original bill and the statute.

CHANGES PROPOSED BY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS (AMENDMENTS):  The amendments add a definition of "switched access line."

Revenue:    The bill has a revenue impact.

Fiscal Note:      Requested January 19, 1990.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    (Energy & Utilities)  Leon Curtis and Patty Hughes, Department of Social & Health Services; Ed Pottharst, Chairman, TDD Advisory Committee and President, A. G. Bell Association; Michael Isak and Matt Burns, Washington State Association for the Deaf; Jack Doyle, Washington Independent Telephone Association; Consuelo Gonzalez and David Goularte, A. G. Bell Association; Dale Vincent, U.S. West; Bob Bratton, General Telephone; and Fred Rose, Northwest Deaf & Hearing Association and TDD Advisory Committee.

(Appropriations)  Patty Hughes, Director, Office of Deaf Services, Department of Social & Health Services.

House Committee - Testified Against:      (Energy & Utilities)  No one.

(Appropriations)  No one.

House Committee - Testimony For:    (Energy & Utilities)  All testifiers considered the TDD program valuable and successful.  Speech-impaired persons should be added to the program, being a small percentage addition.  The excise tax ceiling raise in the bill is desirable.  Federal legislation may be enacted that would help.  There were mixed views as to whether the program should remain within the department or be removed to function as a private non-profit corporation.

(Appropriations)  The Office of Deaf Services is comfortable with the current lid on the excise tax per access line.  They also welcome the in-depth study to review operations.  The TDD program has experienced double the anticipated growth since the November 12, 1989 start of the relay system but believes they can manage within the current resources.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      (Energy & Utilities)  None.

(Appropriations)  None.