SLS 16RS-2607 ORIGINAL
2016 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 132
BY SENATOR BARROW
COMMITTEE STUDIES. Requests a special committee to study the feasibility of requiring
two-way cameras with captioning for hearing impaired and hard of hearing individuals at
Louisiana businesses with drive-thru windows.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To urge and request a special committee to study the feasibility of requiring businesses in
3 Louisiana with drive-thru windows to utilize two-way cameras with captioning for
4 hearing impaired and hard of hearing individuals.
5 WHEREAS, the current deaf and hard of hearing population in the United States is
6 thirty-seven million; and
7 WHEREAS, Louisiana has the fifteenth largest population of deaf and hard of
8 hearing (DHH) individuals in the United States; and
9 WHEREAS, Acadiana has the world's second largest concentration of deaf-blind
10 individuals; and
11 WHEREAS, within the past thirty-five years, research and technology pertaining to
12 DHH individuals have begun to address the need to accommodate these individuals and
13 adhere to regulations stipulated in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; and
14 WHEREAS, for members of the DHH community, ordering food or drinks at a
15 drive-thru can be a frustrating or impossible experience; and
16 WHEREAS, technology used for communication between hearing and DHH
17 individuals, such as captioning and relay services, is relatively new; and
18 WHEREAS, before those services existed, the hearing and the DHH communities
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SLS 16RS-2607 ORIGINAL
1 had little to no experience interacting with one another; and
2 WHEREAS, two-way cameras with captioning eliminate the communication barrier
3 posed between the employee and customer, and minimizes communication errors due to
4 background noises and static; and
5 WHEREAS, communication, whether spoken or signed, is a basic and vital aspect
6 of life that no human being should be deprived of due to a lack of understanding or a
7 communication barrier.
8 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
9 does hereby request a special committee, composed of the chairman of the Senate
10 Committee on Commerce and three members of such committee appointed by him and the
11 chairman of the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare and three members of such
12 committee appointed by him, to study the feasibility of requiring businesses in Louisiana
13 with drive-thru windows to utilize two-way cameras with captioning for hearing impaired
14 and hard of hearing individuals.
15 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the special committee shall submit a written
16 report of its findings, together with any recommendations in the form of proposed
17 legislation, to the Legislature of Louisiana no later than February 1, 2017.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Nancy Vicknair.
DIGEST
SR 132 Original 2016 Regular Session Barrow
Requests a special committee, composed of the chairman and three members of the Senate
Committee on Commerce and the chairman and three members of the Senate Committee on
Health and Welfare, to study the feasibility of requiring businesses in La. with drive-thru
windows to utilize two-way cameras with captioning for hearing impaired and hard of
hearing individuals.
Requires submission of a written report of its findings, together with any recommendations
in the form of proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than Feb. 1, 2017.
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