Findings, purpose, and legislative intent.

(1) The Legislature finds and declares that:

(a) The Federal Government, in order to carry out the purposes established by Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, by the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act, endeavored to ensure that interstate and intrastate telecommunications relay services are available, to the extent possible and in the most efficient manner, to persons with hearing loss or speech impairment in the United States.

(b) Title IV of the Americans with Disabilities Act mandates that the telecommunications companies providing telephone services within the state shall provide telecommunications relay services on or before July 25, 1993, to persons with hearing loss or speech impairment within their certificated territories in a manner that meets or exceeds the requirements of regulations to be prescribed by the Federal Communications Commission.

(2) The purpose of this part is to establish a system whereby the residents of this state with hearing loss or speech impairment or who are deafblind have access to telecommunications services at a cost no greater than that paid by other telecommunications services customers, and whereby the cost of both the specialized telecommunications equipment necessary to ensure that such residents have such access to telecommunications services and the provision of telecommunications relay service is borne by all telecommunications customers in this state.

(3) It is the intent of the Legislature:

(a) That a telecommunications access system be established to provide equitable access to the telecommunications network for persons with hearing loss or speech impairment or who are deafblind.

(b) That the telecommunications access system includes a telecommunications relay service system that meets or exceeds the certification requirements of the Federal Communications Commission.

(c) That the telecommunications access system includes the distribution of telecommunications devices for the deaf that are compatible with the telecommunications relay service system and has the capability of incorporating new technologies as they develop.

(d) That the telecommunications access system includes the distribution of specialized telecommunications devices necessary for persons with hearing loss or speech impairment or who are deafblind to access telecommunications services.

(e) That the telecommunications access system provides access to specialized communications technology capable of using existing or future devices or equipment necessary for persons with hearing loss or speech impairment or who are deafblind to access telecommunications services.

(f) That the telecommunications access system ensures that users of the telecommunications relay service system pay rates no greater than the rates paid for functionally equivalent voice communications services.

(g) That the telecommunications access system be as cost-efficient as possible without diminishing the effectiveness or the quality of the system.

(h) That the telecommunications access system uses state-of-the-art technology for specialized telecommunications devices, specialized communications technology, and the telecommunications relay service and encourages the incorporation of new developments in technology, to the extent that it has demonstrated benefits consistent with the intent of this act and is in the best interest of the residents of this state.

(i) That the value of the involvement of persons with hearing loss or speech impairment, or who are deafblind, and organizations representing or serving those persons, be recognized and such persons and organizations be involved throughout the development, establishment, and implementation of the telecommunications access system through participation on the advisory committee as provided in s. 427.706.

(j) That the total cost of providing telecommunications relay services and distributing specialized telecommunications devices be spread equitably among and collected from customers of all local exchange telecommunications companies.