By: Carona S.B. No. 512
(In the Senate - Filed February 12, 2013; February 20, 2013,
read first time and referred to Committee on Business and Commerce;
March 6, 2013, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 0; March 6, 2013,
sent to printer.)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 512 By: Carona
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the specialized telecommunications assistance program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 56.001, Utilities Code, is amended by
amending Subdivision (1) and adding Subdivision (2-a) to read as
follows:
(1) "Department" means the [Texas] Department of
Assistive and Rehabilitative [Human] Services.
(2-a) "Executive commissioner" means the executive
commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission.
SECTION 2. Section 56.021, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 56.021. UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUND ESTABLISHED. The
commission shall adopt and enforce rules requiring local exchange
companies to establish a universal service fund to:
(1) assist telecommunications providers in providing
basic local telecommunications service at reasonable rates in high
cost rural areas under two plans:
(A) the Texas High Cost Universal Service Plan
(16 T.A.C. Section 26.403); and
(B) the Small and Rural Incumbent Local Exchange
Company Universal Service Plan (16 T.A.C. Section 26.404);
(2) reimburse the telecommunications carrier that
provides the statewide telecommunications relay access service
under Subchapter D;
(3) finance the specialized telecommunications
assistance program established under Subchapter E;
(4) reimburse the department[, the Texas Commission
for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing,] and the commission for costs
incurred in implementing this chapter and Chapter 57;
(5) reimburse a telecommunications carrier providing
lifeline service as provided by 47 C.F.R. Part 54, Subpart E, as
amended;
(6) finance the implementation and administration of
an integrated eligibility process created under Section 17.007 for
customer service discounts relating to telecommunications
services, including outreach expenses the commission determines
are reasonable and necessary;
(7) reimburse a designated provider under Subchapter
F;
(8) reimburse a successor utility under Subchapter G;
and
(9) finance the program established under Subchapter
H.
SECTION 3. Subsection (a), Section 56.023, Utilities Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) The commission shall:
(1) in a manner that assures reasonable rates for
basic local telecommunications service, adopt eligibility criteria
and review procedures, including a method for administrative
review, the commission finds necessary to fund the universal
service fund and make distributions from that fund;
(2) determine which telecommunications providers meet
the eligibility criteria;
(3) determine the amount of and approve a procedure
for reimbursement to telecommunications providers of revenue lost
in providing tel-assistance service under Subchapter C;
(4) establish and collect fees from the universal
service fund necessary to recover the costs the department and the
commission incur in administering this chapter and Chapter 57;
[and]
(5) approve procedures for the collection and
disbursal of the revenue of the universal service fund; and
(6) audit voucher payments and other expenditures made
under the specialized telecommunications assistance program
established under Subchapter E.
SECTION 4. Subsection (a), Section 56.110, Utilities Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) An advisory committee to assist the commission in
administering this subchapter is composed of the following persons
appointed by the commission:
(1) two persons with disabilities that impair the
ability to effectively access the telephone network other than
disabilities described by Subdivisions (2)-(7);
(2) one deaf person recommended by the Texas Deaf
Caucus;
(3) one deaf person recommended by the Texas
Association of the Deaf;
(4) one person with a hearing impairment recommended
by Self-Help for the Hard of Hearing;
(5) one person with a hearing impairment recommended
by the American Association of Retired Persons;
(6) one deaf and blind person recommended by the Texas
Deaf/Blind Association;
(7) one person with a speech impairment and one person
with a speech and hearing impairment recommended by the Coalition
of Texans with Disabilities;
(8) two representatives of telecommunications
utilities, one representing a nonlocal exchange utility and one
representing a local exchange company, chosen from a list of
candidates provided by the Texas Telephone Association;
(9) two persons, at least one of whom is deaf, with
experience in providing relay services recommended by the
department [Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing]; and
(10) two public members recommended by organizations
representing consumers of telecommunications services.
SECTION 5. Section 56.111, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 56.111. ADVISORY COMMITTEE DUTIES. The advisory
committee shall:
(1) monitor the establishment, administration, and
promotion of the statewide telecommunications relay access
service;
(2) advise the commission in pursuing a service that
meets the needs of persons with an impairment of hearing or speech
in communicating with other telecommunications services users; and
(3) advise the department, at that department's
request [commission and the Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard
of Hearing, at the request of either commission], regarding any
issue related to the specialized telecommunications assistance
program established under Subchapter E, including:
(A) devices or services suitable to meet the
needs of persons with disabilities in communicating with other
users of telecommunications services; and
(B) oversight and administration of the program.
SECTION 6. Section 56.151, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 56.151. SPECIALIZED TELECOMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANCE
PROGRAM. (a) The executive commissioner, after consulting with
the department, [commission and the Texas Commission for the Deaf
and Hard of Hearing] by rule shall establish a specialized
telecommunications assistance program to provide financial
assistance to individuals with disabilities that impair the
individuals' ability to effectively access the telephone network to
assist the individuals with the purchase of basic specialized
equipment or services to provide the individuals with telephone
network access that is functionally equivalent to that enjoyed by
individuals without disabilities. The executive commissioner
[agencies] may adopt [joint] rules that identify devices and
services eligible for vouchers under the program.
(b) The department may contract, as necessary, to implement
and administer the specialized telecommunications assistance
program.
SECTION 7. Section 56.152, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 56.152. ELIGIBILITY. The executive commissioner,
after consulting with the department, [Texas Commission for the
Deaf and Hard of Hearing] by rule shall prescribe eligibility
standards for individuals, including deaf individuals and
individuals who have an impairment of hearing or speech, to receive
an assistance voucher under the program. To be eligible, an
individual must be a resident of this state with a disability that
impairs the individual's ability to effectively access the
telephone network.
SECTION 8. Subsections (a), (c), (e), (f), (g), and (h),
Section 56.153, Utilities Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) The department [Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard
of Hearing] shall determine a reasonable price for a basic
specialized telecommunications device that permits, or basic
specialized services that permit, telephone network access and
distribute to each eligible applicant a voucher that guarantees
payment of that amount to a distributor of new specialized
telecommunications devices described by Section 56.151 or to a
provider of services described by that section. The department
[Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing] may issue a
voucher for a service only if the service is less expensive than a
device eligible for a voucher under the program to meet the same
need.
(c) The executive commissioner, after consulting with the
department, [commission and the Texas Commission for the Deaf and
Hard of Hearing] by rule shall provide that a distributor of devices
or a provider of services will receive not more than the full price
of the device or service if the recipient of a voucher exchanges the
voucher for a device or service that the distributor or provider
sells for less than the voucher's value.
(e) Except as provided by rules adopted under this
subsection, an individual is not eligible for a voucher if the
department [Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing] has
issued a voucher for a device or service to another individual with
the same type of disability in the individual's household. The
executive commissioner, after consulting with the department,
[Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing] by rule may
provide for financially independent individuals who reside in a
congregate setting to be eligible for a voucher regardless of
whether another individual living in that setting has received a
voucher.
(f) The department [Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard
of Hearing] shall determine eligibility of each person who files an
application for a voucher and issue each eligible applicant an
appropriate voucher.
(g) The department [Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard
of Hearing] shall maintain a record regarding each individual who
receives a voucher under the program.
(h) The department [Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard
of Hearing] shall deposit money collected under the program to the
credit of the universal service fund.
SECTION 9. Section 56.154, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 56.154. DEPARTMENT [COMMISSION] DUTIES. (a) Not
later than the 45th day after the date the department [commission]
receives a voucher a telecommunications device distributor
presents for payment or a voucher a telecommunications service
provider presents for payment, the department [commission] shall
pay to the distributor or service provider the lesser of the value
of a voucher properly exchanged for a specialized
telecommunications device or service or the full price of the
device or service for which a voucher recipient exchanges the
voucher. The payments must be made from the universal service fund.
(b) The department [commission] may investigate whether the
presentation of a voucher for payment represents a valid
transaction for a telecommunications device or service under the
program. [The Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
shall cooperate with and assist the commission in an investigation
under this subsection.]
(c) Notwithstanding Section 56.153(a), the department
[commission] may:
(1) delay payment of a voucher to a distributor of
devices or a service provider if there is a dispute regarding the
amount or propriety of the payment or whether the device or service
is appropriate or adequate to meet the needs of the person to whom
the department [Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing]
issued the voucher until the dispute is resolved;
(2) provide that payment of the voucher is conditioned
on the return of the payment if the device is returned to the
distributor or if the service is not used by the person to whom the
voucher was issued; and
(3) provide an alternative dispute resolution process
for resolving a dispute regarding a subject described by
Subdivision (1) or (2).
(d) The executive commissioner, after consulting with the
department, may adopt rules to implement this section.
SECTION 10. Section 56.156, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 56.156. PROMOTION OF PROGRAM. The department [Texas
Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing] may promote the program
established under this subchapter by means of participation in
events, advertisements, pamphlets, brochures, forms, pins, or
other promotional items or efforts that provide contact information
for persons interested in applying for a voucher under the program.
SECTION 11. (a) On the effective date of this Act, the
following are transferred from the Public Utility Commission of
Texas to the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services:
(1) the powers, duties, functions, programs, and
activities of the Public Utility Commission of Texas relating to
the specialized telecommunications assistance program established
under Subchapter E, Chapter 56, Utilities Code, other than the
powers and duties of the commission specified by Section 56.155,
Utilities Code;
(2) all obligations and contracts of the Public
Utility Commission of Texas that are related to a power, duty,
function, program, or activity transferred under this subsection;
and
(3) all property and records in the custody of the
Public Utility Commission of Texas that are related to a power,
duty, function, program, or activity transferred under this
subsection and all funds appropriated by the legislature for that
power, duty, function, program, or activity.
(b) A rule or form adopted by the Public Utility Commission
of Texas that relates to a power, duty, function, program, or
activity transferred under Subsection (a) of this section is a rule
or form of the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services
and remains in effect until altered by the executive commissioner
of the Health and Human Services Commission.
(c) A reference in law to the Public Utility Commission of
Texas that relates to a power, duty, function, program, or activity
transferred under Subsection (a) of this section means the
Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services.
SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.
* * * * *