Deborah Koff Ross: “Today I rise to honor National Court Reporting and Captioning Week, taking place from February 16 to February 22, a week…”

“Today I rise to honor National Court Reporting and Captioning Week, taking place from February 16 to February 22, a week that serves to recognize the value and importance that court reporters and captioners have made in American society. As a lawyer who has spent over 25 years as a litigator, I have a profound respect and appreciation for those who preserve the official record. Court reporters, broadcast captioners, and Communication Access Realtime Translation, or CART, captioners serve an integral role in my home State of Florida and throughout the United States. In fact, Florida has a particularly vibrant court reporting economy. My cousin, Les Renfroe, has been one for over 35 years. They have over 400 small business owners in Florida, 1,300 court reporters and captioners, and three court reporting programs which will help fulfill the needs of an industry, an industry that the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts will grow by 2022. That is why I am happy to join the National Court Reporters Association in commemorating the week from February 16 to February 22 as National Court Reporting and Captioning Week. ____________________”