PHOENIX - Brand New technology was just unveiled at the State Capitol. Now, the House and Senate will be accessible to thousands who suffer from hearing loss.
The new looping system makes it possible for folks who experience hearing loss to listen to everything that goes on inside the Capitol and hear it even better through their devices.
More than one million Arizonans have hearing loss.
Elizabeth Booth, with the Arizona Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, says she couldn't be more excited about the upgrade.
Arizona is only the second state in the nation to have a loop system in the Legislature. It sends a clear sound to a person’s hearing aid or cochlear implant without background noise.
“It is one of the most clear loop systems I have heard over quite a few years," Booth said. "(I'm) so very excited.”
The assistive technology is a sound system which was installed just in time for the 2017 legislative session. It was celebrated with a ribbon cutting ceremony on the Capitol lawn Wednesday.
If you don’t have a hearing device there are portable loop receivers available in the chief clerk’s office.