Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

By Mr. MCCAIN (for himself, Mr. HARKIN, Mr. STEVENS, and Mr. SMITH):

S. 900. A bill to reinstate the Federal Communications Commission's rules for the description of video programming; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Mr. MCCAIN. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Television Information-Enhancement for the Visually Impaired (TIVI) Act of 2005. This bill would require television broadcasters, during at least 50 hours of their prime time or children's programming every quarter, to insert verbal descriptions of actions or settings not contained in the normal audio track of a program. This can be accomplished through technology commonly referred to as ``video description services,'' which allows television programming to be more accessible and enjoyable for the visually impaired.

This bill is necessary due to a 2002 decision by District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals. In 2000, the Federal Communications Commission (``FCC'' or ``Commission''), recognizing the need to make television programming accessible to the visually impaired, promulgated rules that mandated television broadcast stations and their affiliates, which met certain market requirements, provide 50 hours of video descriptions during prime time or children's programming every calendar quarter. Television programmers challenged the Commission's authority to promulgate such rules. The Circuit Court held that the Commission did not have authority to issue the regulations.

This bill would provide the Commission the authority to promulgate such regulations and reinstate the FCC's video description rules issued in 2000. Additionally, the bill would require the FCC to consider whether it is economically and technically feasible and consistent with the public interest to include ``accessible information'' in its video description rules, which may include written information displayed on a screen, hazardous warnings and other emergency information, and local and national news bulletins.

Since the spectrum that television broadcasters utilize is a public asset, one would expect that programming over the public airwaves is accessible to all Americans. Unfortunately, that is not the case today and that is why we must pass the TIVI Act. I sincerely hope that television broadcasters will work with us to provide video descriptions for individuals with visual disabilities.

http://thomas.loc.gov/