Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) is pushing new legislation that would require technology companies, phone manufacturers and Web vendors to adapt their products to deaf or blind customers.

The senator, who chairs a Senate subcommittee on consumer affairs, plans to introduce the "Equal Access to 21st Century Communications Act" on Tuesday. The legislation is Pryor's attempt to address accessibility problems that have long made it difficult for disabled persons to use new media and technology tools.

Among other things, the legislation would mandate that all smartphones -- including the iPhone and BlackBerry -- are compatible with most hearing aids. Pryor's bill would also require DVRs and mp3 players to support closed captioning, as most TVs already do, and would authorize new money for a fund to expand broadband service to low-income, disabled persons.

"The Internet is no longer a luxury; it is a necessity to learn, interact and conduct business," Pryor said Monday during a speech at the School for the Deaf and the School for the Blind in Arkansas, according to local news. 

"That's why my bill helps ensure every individual can have access to today's innovative technologies," Pryor continued. "In the land of opportunity, everyone should be able to fully participate and compete in the 21st Century marketplace."

The agency tasked with spearheading the White House's open-government efforts ranked nearly last in a survey of open-government practices, according to a new report.

In an audit of those plans, which all federal agencies released in April, the group OpentheGovernment.org found that the Office of Management and Budget assembled one of the poorest open-government strategies across the entire Obama administration.

That news is somewhat ironic, given that OMB under the president's orders issued a guidance in December 2009 calling for all agencies to boost transparency and connect more with voters online.

Eight agencies in the new study -- including NASA, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Labor -- ranked among the strongest of all plans, exceeding the highest score possible with the help of bonus points for extra work. Another 16 agencies, including the State Department and Commerce Department, fell in the middle tier. 
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Federal regulators may be readying an anti-trust challenge to Apple's requirement that all iPhone and iPad app authors use only the company's developing tools.

While Apple stipulates that rule as part of its developer agreement, which all app creators must follow, sources told The New York Post on Monday that officials at the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission have honed in on the restriction out of concern that it is anti-competitive.

Both agencies could ultimately decide to take no action and preserve Apple's agreement. But the sources nonetheless told the Post that a review is still pending, with decision on the matter likely in days.

The FTC declined to confirm the reported inquiry to Hillicon Valley on Monday. The DOJ was not immediately available for comment.

Speculation that federal regulators might review Apple's app rules arrives amid increased scrutiny of the company's decision to bar Adobe Flash from its devices.

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Sen. Whitehouse stressed a need to address gaps in cybersecurity that could create confusion over who handles a specific threat.

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A top net neutrality proponent blasted the FCC on Monday for reports it would leave the future of its proposed net neutrality rules to Congress.

A day after three unnamed FCC officials told The Washington Post that Chairman Julius Genachowski would not try to mandate open Internet using his commission's rule-making process, public interest group Free Press hammered the FCC for its decision to "buckle to phone and cable industry pressure."

“We simply cannot believe that Julius Genachowski would consider going down this path. Failing to reclassify broadband means the FCC is abandoning the signature communications and technology issues of the Obama administration," said Josh Silver, the group's executive director.

"Such a decision would destroy Net Neutrality. It would deeply undermine the FCC’s ability to ensure universal Internet access for rural, low-income and disabled Americans. It will undermine the FCC’s ability to protect consumers from price-gouging and invasions of privacy," he continued.

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What we're following on the morning of Monday, May 3...

FCC likely to hire outsider to oversee NBC-Comcast review (Hillicon Valley) -- The FCC may soon hire an outsider to oversee its review of Comcast's bid for NBC, in part to free up the commission's resources so that it may focus primarily on its new broadband agenda. The ink is hardly dry on that contract, and details about who would lead the review, under whose purview the coordinator would fall and how long his or her contract would last still remain unclear. But a source with knowledge of the situation did tell Hillicon Valley on Sunday that both NBC and Comcast had already been informed of the FCC's forthcoming announcement.

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Typically, FCC chiefs task their own staff with such reviews, though they do occasionally outsource their work.

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Lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are prepared to wade into federal regulators' ongoing review.

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FRIDAY BLOG ROUNDUP:
Microsoft echoes Apple's view ona Adobe Flash - Reuters
PowerPoint is making us stupid, or vice versa - Nancy Scola, techPresident
Nelson warns about performance rights bill - Juliana Gruenwald, Tech Daily Dose
AT&T channels -- the devil? -- on net neutrality - Cecilia Kang, Post Tech
Taiwan firm hopeful as U.S. to probe Apple - AFP
RIAA gets AFL-CIO to support performance tax - Mike Masnick, Tech Dirt

OTHER STORIES FROM THE HILL:
Ways and Means the latest committee on Foursquare - The Hill
Online advertisers scale back amid privacy pushback - The Hill