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Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program

Telecommunications Access for the Deaf and Disabled

Administrative Committee (TADDAC)

February 26, 2016

10:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program, Main Office

1333 Broadway, Suite 500, Oakland, CA 94612

The Telecommunications Access for the Deaf and Disabled Administrative Committee (TADDAC) held its business meeting at the Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program (DDTP or Program) main office in Oakland, California.

TADDAC Members Present:

Frances R. Acosta, At Large Seat/Spanish Speaking User, Vice Chair

Ken Cluskey, Hard of Hearing Community Seat

Nancy Hammons, Late Deafened Community Seat

Devva Kasnitz, Mobility Impaired Seat

Tommy Leung, Disabled Community - Blind/Low Vision Community Seat, Chair

TADDAC Members Absent:

Steve Longo, Deaf Community Seat

Robert Schwartz, Office of Ratepayer Advocates

TADDAC Non-Voting Liaisons Present:

Sue Wong, CPUC, Communications Division

Barry Saudan, CCAF, Chief Executive Officer

CCAF Staff Present:

Priya Barmanray, CRS Program Analyst

Silke Brendel-Evan, Associate Program Officer

Emily Claffy, Special Projects Coordinator

Patsy Emerson, Committee Coordinator

Barry Saudan, President and CEO

Jackie Taylor, Director of Operations

Sherrie Van Tyle, Product Training Specialist

David Weiss, CRS Relay Services Department Manager

CPUC Staff Present:

John Birznieks, Communications Division

Helen Mickiewicz, Legal Division

Others Present:

Kim Cantrell, CFILC

Christa Cervantes, Hamilton Relay

Otis Hopkins, Attendant to Tommy Leung

TADDAC Chair, Tommy Leung, called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m.

I.  Welcome and Introduction of TADDAC Members

The Committee Members, California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) staff and the California Communications Access Foundation (CCAF) staff introduced themselves. During the introductions, Nancy Hammons reported that Steve Longo would not be attending the meeting.

II.  Approval of Agenda

The agenda was approved without modification.

III.  Review of Minutes of the January 22, 2016 TADDAC Meeting

The minutes were approved as written.

Review and follow-up on TADDAC Action Items List from the January 22, 2015 meeting.

Action Item #35: Committee members to assist CRS Vendor outreach efforts by sending information on community events to David Weiss.

Tommy Leung reported that committee members had been sending information about events to David. This item’s status remains ongoing.

Action Item #60: CPUC CD will review internally and with CCAF the proposed utilization of social media platforms for the Program and will provide TADDAC with an update.

Nancy Hammons remarked that she felt this item should be removed from the Action Items list as the CPUC has indicated repeatedly that the DDTP would not have a Facebook page or other presence of social media. This item was closed later in the meeting after lengthy discussion.

Action Item #62: Nancy Hammons and Devva Kasnitz to develop a format to receive social media suggestions/comments from Committee Members to be sent to Patsy to go to the CPUC.

See item #60. This item was closed.

Action Item #63: The CPUC Communications Division, CCAF and Hamilton Relay will develop a list of consumer strategies for using CapTel.

The list of strategies was completed by CPUC CD, CCAF and Hamilton Relay and CCAF’s Priya Barmanray presented the list to the Committee and fielded questions from the Members. After much discussion about how to distribute this information to their constituents, the Committee decided to leave this item open until Members had shared the document with their communities and brought their input back to the Committee and then added additional strategies to the list. Nancy Hammons suggested that the completed list be included in all shipments of CapTel equipment, and Barry Saudan recommended that TADDAC write a letter to the CPUC asking that the tips be included in the CapTel box.

Tommy Leung mentioned an item in last month’s Consumer Reports that stated that a consumer had reported that a Communication Assistant (CA) on a recent relay call had refused to translate curse words. Tommy asked what the policy is for CAs regarding this issue, and David Weiss replied that CAs by law have to type everything they hear and if they refuse to, it’s a violation. David added that in the relay contract, CAs must perform at least a 98% accuracy rate. In response to remarks from Ken Cluskey, David replied that our CAs do maintain this accuracy rate, but it is measured in a test environment, not on actual calls. However, CA supervisors do monitor their performance remotely on live calls and address any issues by providing feedback to and coaching the CA. Devva Kasnitz and others expressed concern about the CA’s role in an emergency situation and asked about the process for reporting things such as suspected abuse or terrorist plots. The Committee decided to address these concerns and to discuss security and privacy issues with relay calls at a future meeting. Christa Cervantes of Hamilton reminded the Committee that the list of CapTel tips was developed in order to improve the communication flow, but that she’d be happy to return for later discussion about ethics and privacy.

Review of Emergency Evacuation Procedures

Patsy Emerson reviewed the emergency evacuation procedures with the Committee.

IV.  Presentation on the Proposed iPad Pilot Program

Sue Wong introduced Kim Cantrell, Director of Programs of the California Foundation for the Independent Living Centers (CFILC) who provided an overview of the iPad pilot program, the planned phases of the pilot, and how it will be conducted.

Kim began by describing the project length and goals. The pilot project, designed about a year ago, will run for 18 months from startup to the completed evaluation. The three goals are: to determine the need for tablet communication device funding in California, to determine whether the distribution process used is an effective mechanism on an ongoing basis, and to determine if self-selection of Alternative Augmentative Communication (AAC) devices is feasible, meaning that an evaluation by a speech language pathologist would not be required to qualify for the device.

The device chosen to test in the pilot is the iPad Air which will come with a protective case and which will have the user’s choice of one of five apps loaded onto it. CFILC has been working with the CPUC and their chosen advisory work group who selected the five apps: Proloquo4Text, Touch Chat with Word Power, Go Talk Now Plus, Lamp Words for Life, and Predictable. In this startup phase of the pilot, the plan is to contract with up to 14 partner centers such as the CFILC’s 12 device lending libraries that loan out assistive technology (AT) throughout the state and other AT centers. Reporting systems will be set up and marketing materials created to spread the word about the pilot. Each center will be given three devices, each device loaded with the five apps, to be available for consumers of all ages and disability types to demo and borrow for 30 days. This will give them the opportunity to try it out in different environments like work, school, or home. Staff at the centers will all be trained on the devices and apps. After 30 days, the consumer will select one of the five apps that works best for them and can then apply for a long-term loan of the device. This implementation phase will end when either all 200 of the iPads have been distributed or at the end of the 14th month. The search is still on for a separate, independent third-party evaluator who will help define the criteria for success, collect data during all stages of the pilot, and write a report of their findings at the end of the 18 months. This report will then be submitted to the CPUC for their evaluation and consideration of the long-term feasibility of the distribution model.

In response to questions from the Committee, Kim added that the iPads will have Wi-Fi but not a cellular data plan. If the consumer needs help getting connected, the CFILC has a digital access program that is just $10.00 a month. Kim then explained why the iPad was chosen when there are other comparable devices that are much less expensive. Nearly three years ago when the pilot program was first imagined there were many more apps available for iPads than for Android devices, offering more choices for the consumer. Kim also noted that the CFILC has been contracted only to run the pilot program which will include training and troubleshooting, and reiterated that the pilot will be open to all ages and disability types. Kim went on to explain more about the CFILC and described the many services and products they offer to disabled Californians.

VI.  Public Input

There was no public input at this time.

Lunch from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.

V.  Administrative Business

A.  Report from CPUC Staff

Sue Wong, in for Jonathan Lakritz, stated that TADDAC would next meet on Friday, March 25. Moving on to the various pilot programs, Sue mentioned the Odin VI pilot but stated that Barry Saudan would provide a more in depth update on that pilot with his report.

Sue reported that pilot programs have been approved and begun for the Odin VI and the Clarity D704 cordless, lightweight phone which is coupled with the ClearSounds ClearPower battery backup, and that the ClearSounds ANS3000 stand-alone answering machine has been added as a permanent part of the Program. Sue went on to note that the CPUC has been very busy with contract activities and that contracts have been awarded to AllWorld Language Consultants (ALC) for the ASL Interpreter services in both northern and southern California, Hannah Interpreting for the statewide Foreign Language Translator, to tmd group for the Marketing contract, to Hamilton Relay for the California Relay Service provider contract, to Communication Services for the Deaf (CSD) for the Equipment Processing Center, and to CCAF for the DDTP Primary Program and Contract Administrator.

Sue then mentioned the marketing campaigns and plans to run ads in March in northern California in English, Spanish, and Chinese. Univision Spanish language TV in the Fresno area will also be running ads during the first week of March. Moving on to Speech Generating Devices (SGDs), Sue noted that 170 applications have been received for this durable medical equipment and 140 of them have been approved. Lastly, Sue reported that the CPUC is moving forward with an SGD tablet pilot.

B.  Report from CCAF

In response to Nancy Hammons’ question about the qualifications of the interpreting contractor, Barry Saudan stepped in to explain that although the ALC is not based in California, it is a large company with multiple government contracts including the Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) and that they have a large portfolio of ASL interpreters. CCAF’s role from an oversight perspective is to ensure that they are in compliance with the service levels set out in their contract.

In response to Tommy Leung’s question about the iPhone pilot report and what the next steps in the process will be, Barry shared the conclusions that were reached through conducting the pilot program. The first and most challenging component is the training and the time it takes individuals to become able to use the device. The second issue is the individual’s ability to use the phone in the way the legislature intended, as a communication device. And third is how to separate the communication features of the phone from all the other great things that iPhones can do. Now the DDTP and the CPUC are faced with sifting through all the data to learn how the distribution of the iPhone would be managed if it were to be added to the Program.

Barry then referred the Committee to the December reports in the binder, beginning with the CRS report and noting that the traditional relay service minutes have leveled off and captioned minutes are continuing to decline also, but at a slower rate. Barry then referred to the CapTel reports and also noted the slow, steady decline in conversation minutes. He added that the number of CapTel units in service has stabilized while the use of the device has declined and surmised that the decline in utilization of the phone over time is a natural trend and not reflective of the overall transition from analog to digital, though the transition to digital does have some bearing on how the phone functions. Next Barry pointed out the call center data reports and the barcode certification forms report which show the direct correlation of advertising campaigns to many of the low numbers in December. Then Barry looked at the Consumer Affairs Report and comments in it about the Odin VI pilot program, noting that people seem to like the device and are happy with the cost of the service plan, but there have been some issues with the vendor’s customer service. CCAF is continuing to work with them to sort out problems as they arise and to improve on their service. Lastly, Barry referred the Committee to the Field Operations Reports and showed that they bear out the fact that the largest constituency we serve is the hard of hearing community, and concluded his report by giving a brief summary of the current pilots.

C.  Report from the Chair

Tommy Leung reported that he had attempted to share a podcast of a Disability Advisory Committee (DAC) meeting at the FCC with the Committee members but the live feed kept crashing and he missed most of what former EPAC chair, Richard Ray, was saying. The Web page promised to post minutes of the meeting at FCC.GOV/disability-advisor-committee and Tommy encouraged committee members to look for them.

Tommy then asked Nancy Hammons to share her ideas about ways to memorialize former CCAF CEO Shelley Bergum and proposed that the Committee meeting room be named in her honor. At this point Barry Saudan informed Nancy that the subject had been discussed at length at TADDAC’s last meeting which Nancy was unable to attend and provided everyone with a brief summary. Barry explained that the CCAF offices are not state property but are leased, so naming the conference room in her name is not possible. An alternative suggestion was to create a commemorative plaque to hang in the room, which is possible. CCAF is working with the CPUC and the CCAF board to create an on-going tribute to Shelley. One idea is to name one of the conference rooms at the Ed Roberts Campus in Berkeley for Shelley and another is to create a Shelley Bergum scholarship fund to assist people with disabilities with their higher education expenses. Tommy suggested naming the annual joint committees meeting after her, or perhaps beginning a lecture series in her name. Barry asked the Committee members to forward any ideas they have to Patsy Emerson so that she can compile them and share them with everyone.