Full Text of SB2517 93rd General Assembly
SB2517sam003 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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Sen. John J. Cullerton
Filed: 3/5/2004
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| AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 2517
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| AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 2517 by replacing | 3 |
| everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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| "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 |
| Accessible Electronic Information Act. | 6 |
| Section 5. Legislative findings. The Legislature finds and | 7 |
| declares all of the following: | 8 |
| (a) Thousands of citizens in this State have disabilities | 9 |
| (including blindness or visual impairment) that prevent them | 10 |
| from using conventional print material. | 11 |
| (b) The State fulfills an important responsibility by | 12 |
| providing books and magazines prepared in Braille, audio, and | 13 |
| large-type formats made available to eligible blind and | 14 |
| disabled persons. | 15 |
| (c) The technology, transcription methods, and means of | 16 |
| distribution used for these materials are labor-intensive and | 17 |
| cannot support rapid dissemination to individuals in rural and | 18 |
| urban areas throughout the State.
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| (d) Lack of direct and prompt access to information | 20 |
| included in newspapers, magazines, newsletters, schedules, | 21 |
| announcements, and other time-sensitive materials limits | 22 |
| educational opportunities, literacy, and full participation in | 23 |
| society by blind and disabled persons. |
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| Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: | 2 |
| "Accessible electronic information service" means news and | 3 |
| other timely information (including newspapers) provided to | 4 |
| eligible individuals from a multi-state service center, using | 5 |
| high-speed computers and telecommunications technology for | 6 |
| interstate acquisition of content and rapid distribution in a | 7 |
| form appropriate for use by such individuals. | 8 |
| "Blind and disabled persons" means those individuals who | 9 |
| are eligible for library loan services through the Library of | 10 |
| Congress and the State Library for the Blind and Physically | 11 |
| Handicapped pursuant to 36 CFR 701.10(b). | 12 |
| "Director" means the State Librarian. | 13 |
| "Qualified entity" means an agency, instrumentality, or | 14 |
| political subdivision of the State or a nonprofit organization | 15 |
| that: | 16 |
| (1) provides interstate access for eligible persons to | 17 |
| read daily newspapers by producing audio editions by | 18 |
| computer; and | 19 |
| (2) provides a means of program administration and | 20 |
| reader registration on the Internet.
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| Section 15. Accessible electronic information service | 23 |
| program. The Director by rule shall develop and implement a | 24 |
| program of grants to qualified entities for the provision of | 25 |
| accessible electronic information service to blind and | 26 |
| disabled persons throughout Illinois. The grants shall be | 27 |
| funded through appropriations from the Accessible Electronic | 28 |
| Information Service Fund established in Section 20. | 29 |
| Section 20. Accessible Electronic Information Service | 30 |
| Fund. | 31 |
| (a) In order to support the program described in Section | 32 |
| 15, the Illinois Commerce Commission shall enter into an |
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| agreement with the Director for the purpose of recovering the | 2 |
| cost by using the rate recovery mechanism established by the | 3 |
| Commission pursuant to Section 13-703(c) of the Public | 4 |
| Utilities Act. | 5 |
| (b) The Illinois Commerce Commission, in consultation with | 6 |
| the Director, shall annually determine the amount to be | 7 |
| recovered based on the amount of funding necessary to support | 8 |
| the program described in Section 15. | 9 |
| (c) The Illinois Commerce Commission shall determine the | 10 |
| percentage of the cost recovery rate established under Section | 11 |
| 13-703(c) of the Public Utilities Act needed annually to | 12 |
| support the program described in Section 15, and each local | 13 |
| exchange telecommunications company shall remit to the | 14 |
| Director an amount to be computed based on the percentage | 15 |
| required, less any amount allowed for administration. The | 16 |
| amounts remitted shall be deposited into the Accessible | 17 |
| Electronic Information Service Fund, a special fund created in | 18 |
| the State treasury that may be appropriated only for the | 19 |
| purposes of this Act. | 20 |
| Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding | 21 |
| Section
5.625 as follows:
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| (30 ILCS 105/5.625 new)
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| Sec. 5.625. The Accessible Electronic Information Service | 24 |
| Fund.
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| Section 95. The Public Utilities Act is amended by adding | 26 |
| Section 13-703.1 as follows: | 27 |
| (220 ILCS 5/13-703.1 new) | 28 |
| Sec. 13-703.1. Distribution of accessible information; | 29 |
| Illinois State Library.
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| (a) For the purposes of this Section: |
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| "Distribution of accessible information" means rapid | 2 |
| dissemination of digitized text content, including newspapers, | 3 |
| prepared for reproduction in synthetic speech or braille | 4 |
| formats provided to persons eligible for service in the State | 5 |
| Library's Talking Book Program. | 6 |
| "Qualified entity" means a nonprofit organization that (i) | 7 |
| produces digitized text editions of daily newspapers, | 8 |
| available for interstate distribution in synthetic speech or | 9 |
| braille format, using high-speed computer and | 10 |
| telecommunications technology, (ii) obtains electronic news | 11 |
| text through direct transfer arrangements made with | 12 |
| participating news organizations and does not replicate their | 13 |
| electronic editions that are otherwise available on the | 14 |
| Internet, and (iii) provides a means of program administration | 15 |
| and reader registration on the Internet. | 16 |
| (b) The Illinois Telecommunications Access Corporation, or | 17 |
| any other entity designated by the Illinois Commerce Commission | 18 |
| to implement a program under Section 13-703 of this Act for the | 19 |
| purposes of allowing those with hearing disabilities to use | 20 |
| effective telecommunications equipment, shall enter into an | 21 |
| agreement with the State Library providing for an annual | 22 |
| payment in an amount equal to the cost incurred for the | 23 |
| distribution of accessible information. Under the agreement, | 24 |
| the State Library shall obtain the service through a qualified | 25 |
| entity and provide blind and other persons eligible for its | 26 |
| talking book program with access to digitized text editions of | 27 |
| daily newspapers and other context of timely value. | 28 |
| (c) The State Library shall, in consultation with the | 29 |
| qualified entity, specify equipment that may be used by | 30 |
| eligible persons who, due to hearing loss, are unable to use | 31 |
| effectively standard telecommunications equipment to access | 32 |
| the content in the synthetic speech format otherwise provided, | 33 |
| and the Illinois Telecommunications Access Corporation or any | 34 |
| subsequent designee of the Illinois Commerce Commission shall |
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| acquire such equipment for such individuals under terms similar | 2 |
| to those required of individuals to whom the Illinois | 3 |
| Telecommunications Access Corporation provides TTY equipment.
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| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 5 |
| becoming law.".
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