PRINTER'S NO. 2607
No. 2093 Session of 1981
INTRODUCED BY J. L. WRIGHT AND BURNS, NOVEMBER 24, 1981
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CONSUMER AFFAIRS, NOVEMBER 24, 1981
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 66 (Public Utilities) of the Pennsylvania
2 Consolidated Statutes, providing for certain needs of the
3 deaf or severely hearing impaired.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Title 66, act of November 25, 1970 (P.L.707,
7 No.230), known as the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, is
8 amended by adding a section to read:
9 § 1510. Servicing needs of deaf or severely hearing impaired.
10 The commission shall implement a program whereby each
11 telephone utility shall provide a telecommunications device
12 capable of servicing the needs of the deaf or severely hearing
13 impaired, together with a single party line, to any subscriber
14 who is certified as deaf or severely hearing impaired by a
15 licensed physician or audiologist or a qualified Commonwealth
16 agency. The commission shall establish a sliding fee scale for
17 the rental of such devices based on the income of the deaf or
18 severely hearing impaired person. Deaf or severely hearing
1 impaired persons having an annual household income of less than
2 $9,000 shall be provided with a device at no charge. The
3 commission shall establish a rate recovery mechanism to allow
4 telephone utilities to recover any costs incurred under this
5 section which are not recovered through the sliding fee scale.
6 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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