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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 84 / Tuesday, May 4, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
b Hearing aid compatibility;
technical standards1 Handset compatibility on or after June 5, 2023.
In order to satisfy a manufacturer or service providers obligations under paragraphs c and d of this section, a handset submitted for equipment certification or for a permissive change relating to hearing aid compatibility on or after June 5, 2023 must meet the 2019
ANSI standard.
2 Handset compatibility before June 5, 2023. In order to satisfy a manufacturer or service providers obligations under paragraphs c and d of this section, a handset submitted for equipment certification or for a permissive change relating to hearing aid compatibility before June 5, 2023
must meet either:
i At a minimum, the M3 and T3
ratings associated with the 2011 ANSI
standard; or ii The 2019 ANSI standard.
3 Handsets operating over multiple frequency bands or air interfaces. i Beginning on June 5, 2023, a handset is hearing aid-compatible if it meets the 2019 ANSI standard for all frequency bands that are specified in the ANSI
standard and all air interfaces over which it operates on those frequency bands, and the handset has been certified as compliant with the test requirements for the 2019 ANSI
standard pursuant to 2.1033d of this chapter.
ii Before June 5, 2023, a handset that uses only the frequencies specified in the 2011 ANSI standard is hearing aidcompatible with regard to radio frequency interference and inductive coupling if it meets the 2011 ANSI
standard for all frequency bands and air interfaces over which it operates, and the handset has been certified as compliant with the test requirements for the 2011 ANSI standard pursuant to 2.1033d of this chapter. Before June 5, 2023, a handset that incorporates operations outside the frequencies specified in the 2011 ANSI standard is hearing aid-compatible if the handset otherwise satisfies the requirements of this paragraph b.
4 Factual questions. All factual questions of whether a handset meets the technical standards of this paragraph b shall be referred for resolution to the Chief, Office of Engineering and Technology, Federal Communications Commission, 45 L
Street NE, Washington, DC 20554.
5 Certification. A handset certified under any version of the ANSI standard previous to the 2019 ANSI standard remains hearing aid-compatible for purposes of this section.

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c Phase-in of hearing aidcompatibility requirements. The following applies to each manufacturer and service provider that offers handsets used to deliver the services specified in paragraph a of this section and that does not fall within the de minimis exception set forth in paragraph e of this section.
1 ManufacturersNumber of hearing aid-compatible handset models offered. For each digital air interface for which it offers handsets in the United States or imported for use in the United States, each manufacturer must offer hearing aid compatible handsets as follows:
i Beginning October 3, 2018, at least sixty-six 66 percent of those handset models rounded down to the nearest whole number must be hearing aidcompatible under paragraph b of this section.
ii Beginning October 4, 2021, at least eighty-five 85 percent of those handset models rounded down to the nearest whole number must be hearing aidcompatible under paragraph b of this section.
2 Tier I carriersNumber of hearing aid-compatible handsets models offered. For each digital air interface for which it offers handsets to customers, each Tier I carrier must:
i Beginning April 3, 2019, ensure that at least sixty-six 66 percent of the handset models it offers are hearing aidcompatible under paragraph b of this section, calculated based on the total number of unique handset models the carrier offers nationwide.
ii Beginning April 4, 2022, ensure that at least eighty-five 85 percent of the handset models it offers are hearing aid-compatible under paragraph b of this section, calculated based on the total number of unique handset models the carrier offers nationwide.
3 Service providers other than Tier I carriersNumber of hearing aidcompatible handsets models offered.
For each digital air interface for which it offers handsets to customers, each service provider other than a Tier I
carrier must:
i Beginning April 3, 2020, ensure that at least sixty-six 66 percent of the handset models it offers are hearing aidcompatible under paragraph b of this section, calculated based on the total number of unique handset models the carrier offers.
ii Beginning April 3, 2023, ensure that at least eighty-five 85 percent of the handset models it offers are hearing aid-compatible under paragraph b of this section, calculated based on the total number of unique handset models the carrier offers.

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4 In-store testing. All service providers must make available for consumers to test, in each retail store owned or operated by the service provider, all of its handset models that are hearing aid-compatible under paragraph b of this section.

e De minimis exception. 1i Manufacturers or service providers that offer two or fewer handsets in an air interface in the United States are exempt from the requirements of this section in connection with that air interface, except with regard to the reporting and certification requirements in paragraph i of this section. Service providers that obtain handsets only from manufacturers that offer two or fewer handset models in an air interface in the United States are likewise exempt from the requirements of this section other than paragraph i of this section in connection with that air interface.
ii Notwithstanding paragraph e1i of this section, manufacturers that have had more than 750 employees for at least two years and service providers that have had more than 1500
employees for at least two years, and that have been offering handsets over an air interface for at least two years, that offer one or two handsets in that air interface in the United States must offer at least one handset model that is hearing aid-compatible under paragraph b of this section in that air interface.
Service providers that obtain handsets only from manufacturers that offer one or two handset models in an air interface in the United States, and that have had more than 750 employees for at least two years and have offered handsets over that air interface for at least two years, are required to offer at least one handset model in that air interface that is hearing aid-compatible under paragraph b of this section. For purposes of this paragraph e1ii, employees of a parent, subsidiary, or affiliate company under common ownership or control with a manufacturer or service provider are considered employees of the manufacturer or service provider.
Manufacturers and service providers covered by this paragraph e1ii must also comply with all other requirements of this section.
2 Manufacturers or service providers that offer three handset models in an air interface must offer at least one handset model that is hearing aid-compatible under paragraph b of this section in that air interface. Service providers that obtain handsets only from manufacturers that offer three handset models in an air interface in the United
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