HLAA supported local advocacy efforts when we filed comments with the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission urging adoption of rules for signage for taxis in New York City equipped with hearing loops.

The proposed amendment would provide for a decal on the inside and outside of all taxicabs that have hearing induction loop capability. That decal would feature the International Symbol of Access for Hearing Loss, including a “T” and the language “Induction loop installed, switch hearing aid to T-coil” on the interior decal.

In August, 2014, a former member of the HLAA Board of Trustees attended events at the Pro Football Hall of Fame (HOF) in Canton, Ohio. She had requested CART in advance, but received no accommodations. When she returned home, she sent a letter asking that future events are communication accessible. She received a response two months later, from the president of HOF, David Baker, stating, “I will make sure that your concerns are known as we begin preparing for the 2015 Enshrinement.”

The U.S. Access Board hosted a panel on communication access for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing on January 12, 2015. The agenda featured a consumer panel including HLAA that addressed access for people with hearing loss. 

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HLAA signed onto comments in the FCC’s proceeding on Wireless E911 Location Accuracy. These comments urged the Commission to move forward to adopt its proposed rules and begin the process of protecting wireless callers indoors as well as they do outdoors. These comments also recommended that the FCC consider the carriers’ roadmap exploring address-based solutions along with other alternatives for near-term verifiable and achievable rules and emphasized that, whatever rules are adopted need to promote continued improvement in wireless E911 location accuracy.