,,ii #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #cdgc ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,march #ab1 #bjbj,mr4 ,casey 7for himself1 ,ms4 ,baldwin1 ,mr4 ,markey1 ,mr4 ,brown1 ,ms4 ,duckworth1 and ,mr4 ,blumenthal7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation ,a ,,bill ,to amend title #di1 ,united ,states ,code1 to improve the accessibility of airline information and entertainment programming provided by air carriers on passenger flights1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,airline ,information and ,entertainment ,access ,act4 #b4 ,accessibility of in-flight safety and entertainment programming 7a7 ,in general ,subchapter ,i of chapter #dag of title #di1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by inserting after section #dagje the following new section3 #dagje;a4 ,accessibility of in-flight airline information and entertainment programming 7a7 ,requirement 7#a7 ,programming ,on and after the date that is #ahj days after the date of the enactment of the ,airline ,information and ,entertainment ,access ,act1 in providing air transportation1 an air carrier1 including 7subject to section #djaje7;b77 any foreign air carrier1 shall ensure that all visually displayed airline information and entertainment programming available to passengers on a flight is accessible to persons with disabilities1 including by providing 7or making available7-- 7,a7 open captioning and ,american ,sign ,language option for persons with disabilities when such programming is available to passengers through shared video displays1 such as a monitor located in a passenger access aisle2 7,b7 closed captioning and ,american ,sign ,language option for persons with disabilities when such programming is available to passengers through individual video displays2 7,c7 video description for persons with disabilities when such programming is available to passengers through individual video displays or shared video displays2 and 7,d7 any aural ,,pa announcement in textual format through individual video displays or shared video displays4 7#b7 ,video displays ,not later than the effective date of the regulations prescribed under subsection 7c77#b71 in providing air transportation1 an air carrier1 including 7subject to section #djaje7;b77 any foreign air carrier1 shall ensure that all individual video displays of visually displayed airline information and entertainment programming to passengers on a flight that are operated primarily by using touchscreens or other contact-sensitive controls include a mechanism that allows persons with disabilities to nonvisually operate the displays in accordance with the standards prescribed under subsection 7c74 7b7 ,civil action 7#a7 ,aggrieved persons 7,a7 ,in general ,any person aggrieved by the violation by an air carrier of this section or a regulation prescribed under this section may1 during the #b-year period beginning on the date of the violation1 bring a civil action in an appropriate district court of the ,united ,states4 7,b7 ,available relief ,if a court finds in favor of the plaintiff in a civil action brought under subparagraph 7,a71 the court may award to the plaintiff equitable and legal relief1 including compensatory and punitive damages1 and shall1 in addition to any such relief1 award reasonable attorney's fees1 reasonable expert fees1 and cost of the action to the plaintiff4 7,c7 ,no requirement to exhaust administrative remedies ,any person aggrieved by the violation by an air carrier of this section or a regulation prescribed under this section shall not be required to exhaust administrative remedies before bringing a civil action under subparagraph 7,a74 7,d7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to invalidate or limit other ,federal or ,state laws affording to people with disabilities greater legal rights or protections than those granted by this section4 7#b7 ,enforcement by ,attorney ,general 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,attorney ,general may bring a civil action on behalf of persons aggrieved by the violation by an air carrier of this section or a regulation prescribed under this section in any appropriate district court of the ,united ,states4 7,b7 ,authority of court ,in a civil action under subparagraph 7,a71 the court may-- 7i7 grant any equitable relief that the court considers to be appropriate2 7ii7 award such other relief as the court considers to be appropriate1 including monetary damages to persons aggrieved by the violation by an air carrier of this section or a regulation prescribed under this section1 when requested by the ,attorney ,general2 and 7iii7 assess a civil penalty against the air carrier4 7c7 ,establishment of standards for operation of individual video displays 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #ah months after the date of the enactment of the ,airline ,information and ,entertainment ,access ,act1 the ,architectural and ,transportation ,barriers ,compliance ,board shall1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,transportation1 prescribe standards in accordance with chapter #e of title #e 7commonly known as the ,administrative ,procedure ,act7 setting forth the minimum technical criteria for individual video displays described in subsection 7a77#b7 to ensure that such video displays include a mechanism that allows persons with disabilities to operate the displays nonvisually4 7#b7 ,regulations ,not later than #ahj days after the ,architectural and ,transportation ,barriers ,compliance ,board issues standards under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall prescribe such regulations as are necessary to implement those standards and shall publish those regulations in an accessible format4 7#c7 ,review and amendment ,the ,architectural and ,transportation ,barriers ,compliance ,board1 in consultation with the ,secretary1 shall periodically review and1 as appropriate1 amend the standards prescribed under paragraph 7#a7 in accordance with chapter #e of title #e4 ,not later than #ahj days after the ,architectural and ,transportation ,barriers ,compliance ,board issues amended standards under this paragraph1 the ,secretary shall make such revisions to the regulations prescribed under paragraph 7#b7 as are necessary to implement the amended standards4 7d7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,closed captioning ,the term closed captioning means a method1 process1 or mechanism1 which may include a device1 that-- 7,a7 allows an individual who is deaf or hard of hearing to have access to the content of visually displayed airline information and entertainment programming2 and 7,b7 allows that access by displaying1 through an individual device or individually used technology1 all of the audio portion of the programming 7including displaying the dialogue and any narration1 as well as descriptions of on- and off-screen sounds such as sound effects1 music1 or lyrics for music1 and information identifying the character who is speaking7 as text that can be effectively viewed and controlled by that individual while the individual simultaneously watches the programming4 7#b7 ,person with a disability ,the term person with a disability means any person who has a disability as defined in section #c of the ,americans with ,disabilities ,act of #aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abajb71 including a person with a sensory disability4 7#c7 ,open captioning ,the term open captioning means a method1 process1 or mechanism that-- 7,a7 allows an individual who is deaf or hard of hearing to have access to the content of visually displayed airline information and entertainment programming2 and 7,b7 allows that access by openly displaying on the video display on which the programming is displayed all of the audio portion of the programming 7including displaying the dialogue and any narration1 as well as descriptions of on- and off-screen sounds such as sound effects1 music1 or lyrics for music1 and information identifying the character who is speaking7 as text that can be effectively viewed by that individual and other passengers while the individual and passengers simultaneously watch the programming4 7#d7 ,video description ,the term video description means a method1 process1 or mechanism1 including a device1 that-- 7,a7 allows an individual who is blind or visually impaired to have access to the key visual elements of visually displayed airline information and entertainment programming 7such as actions1 settings1 facial expressions1 costumes1 and scene changes72 and 7,b7 allows that access through the provision of contemporaneous audio narrated descriptions of those elements during the natural pauses in the audio portion of the programming1 or during the audio portion if necessary4 7#e7 ,visually displayed airline information and entertainment programming ,the term visually displayed airline information and entertaining programming means pre-flight safety briefing videos1 live televised events1 recorded programming 7including television programs71 or motion pictures that are available to passengers1 for a fee or without cost1 on a flight in air transportation4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the analysis for chapter #dag of title #di1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #dagje the following3 #dagje;a4 ,accessibility of in-flight airline information and entertainment programming4 4