"Americans receive a large amount of their information about what is happening in the world and right in their communities from television. In order for those who are deaf and hard of hearing to receive the same information as it is broadcast on live television, groups of captioners must work around the clock transcribing words as they are spoken,"Grassley said. "We need to make sure the millions of deaf and hard of hearing Americans have the ability to fully participate in many of the professional, education, and civic activities that other Americans enjoy."
The legislation is designed to address the shortage of individuals trained as realtime writers by providing grants to accredited court reporting programs to promote the training and placement of individuals as realtime writers. Specifically, court reporting programs could use these grants for items like recruitment of students for realtime writing programs, need-based scholarships, distance learning, education and training, job placement assistance, the encouragement of individuals with disabilities to pursue a career as a realtime writer, and personnel costs.
The Anti-Spam bill, which the Grassley-Harkin "Training for Realtime Writers Act" is included, must now be considered by the House of Representatives.