2. Communications Equipment Fund. There is established the Telecommunications Communications Equipment Fund to be used by the Division of Deafness within the Bureau of Rehabilitation Services. The fund is nonlapsing. The Division of Deafness may accept gifts or grants for the purposes of this section. These gifts and grants and authorized appropriations must be deposited in the Telecommunications Communications Equipment Fund and disbursed in accordance with this section. The Telecommunications Communications Equipment Fund may be used for purchase, lease, distribution, upgrading, installation, maintenance and repair of specialized customer telecommunications communications equipment for deaf, hard-of-hearing or speech- impaired persons and persons with disabilities and for training in the use of such equipment. The Division of Deafness may draw on the Telecommunications Communications Equipment Fund in accordance with the telecommunications communications equipment plan required under subsection 3.

3. Communications equipment plan. The Division of Deafness shall develop a plan to make specialized customer telecommunications communications equipment available to deaf, hard-of-hearing or speech-impaired persons and persons with disabilities and to distribute money from the Telecommunications Communications Equipment Fund. The plan must be developed by the Division of Deafness annually, not later than January 1st, in accordance with the rule-making procedures in Title 5, chapter 375. The plan must provide for the expenditure of money from the Telecommunications Communications Equipment Fund for the benefit of deaf, hard-of-hearing or speech-impaired persons and persons with disabilities for the purchase, lease, distribution, upgrading, installation, maintenance and repair of specialized customer telecommunications communications equipment capable of serving their needs and may provide for expenditures for training in the use of such equipment. Persons who are profoundly deaf or speech impaired speech-impaired or who have a disability so that they are unable to use the telephone for expressive or receptive communications, as verified by a written report from an otologist, an audiologist or a physician, are eligible for assistance from the Telecommunications Communications Equipment Fund. The plan must ensure that persons with disabilities have access to appropriate specialized customer telecommunications