What is Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS)?
Telecommunications Relay Services, or TRS, enables telephone conversations between people with and without hearing or speech disabilities. TRS relies on communications assistants (CA) to relay the content of calls between users of text telephones (TTYs) and users of traditional handsets (voice users). For example, a TTY user may telephone a voice user by calling a TRS provider (or “relay center”), where a CA will place the call to the voice user and relay the conversation by transcribing spoken content for the TTY user and reading text aloud for the voice user.
Telecommunications Relay Services, or TRS, enables telephone conversations between people with and without hearing or speech disabilities. TRS relies on communications assistants (CAs) to relay the content of calls between users of text telephones (TTYs) and users of traditional handsets (voice users). For example, a TTY user may telephone a voice user by calling a TRS provider (or “relay center”), where a CA will place the call to the voice user and relay the conversation by transcribing spoken content for the TTY user and reading text aloud for the voice user. TRS is required by Title IV of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and, to the extent possible, must be “functionally equivalent” to standard telephone services. Interstate and intrastate relay services are available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you have a question on TRS, E-mail fccinfo@fcc.gov.
