Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA)

February 2013 — The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Fiscal Year (FY) 2012 Annual Performance Report was released in early February and summarizes the FCC’s work on accomplishing strategic goals and meeting performance commitments established in the FCC FY 2012 Annual Performance Plan.

January 29, 2013 — A Public Notice [DA 13-114] was issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reminding the telecommunications service providers and equipment manufacturers subject to Section 255, 716, or 718 of the Communications Act, that as of January 30, 2013 they are required to maintain records of meeting accessibility compliance and to file the first annual recordkeeping certification by April 1, 2013.

January 11, 2013 — The Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau and Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission has extended the Emergency Access Advisory Committee (EAAC) charter by six months until June 14, 2013.

December 2012 - At the end of December, several disability organizations, referred to collectively as the “Consumer Groups,” filed an informal complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) alleging that Amazon.com, Inc. (Amazon) repeatedly violated the FCC Internet Protocol (IP) closed captioning rules, 47 C.F.R. § 79.4. Under the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) enacted in 2010, television shows and videos available online are required to provide captions and increase accessibility for all individuals, including those with disabilities.

The Wireless RERC filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to their Notice of Proposed Rulemaking In the Matter of Accessible Emergency Information, and Apparatus Requirements for Emergency Information and Video Description:  Implementation of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010.  The comments highlighted research findings of the Wireless RERC concerning the accessibility of emergency alerts, including that people with vision loss consistently encounter challenges in accessing the content of emergenc