Maryland Awards Relay Contract to Hamilton Relay

The State of Maryland Department of Information Technology has awarded Hamilton Relay the contract to provide telecommunications relay and captioned telephone services for the state. The new five-year contract between Hamilton Relay and the State of Maryland begins June 1.

Hamilton Relay provides relay and captioned telephone services that make it possible for individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have difficulty speaking to communicate over the telephone with standard telephone users. Traditional relay calls are based primarily on the use of a TTY (also known as a TDD or text telephone). In addition, other types of relay calls include voice carry over, hearing carry over, speech-to-speech, and captioned telephone relay service. All relay services are available in English and Spanish.

"Relay service is essential to the more than half a million individuals in Maryland who rely on Maryland Relay to communicate with friends, family, and businesses," stated Brenda Kelly-Frey, director of the Maryland Department of Information Technology, in a statement. "The State of Maryland appreciates the high-quality relay and outreach services that Hamilton has provided over the past five years."

Hamilton Relay first opened a Relay service call center in Frostburg, Md., after receiving the initial award in 2007. Hamilton then expanded its workforce again in 2012 in Frostburg as it began processing captioned telephone calls out of the Maryland center, adding more than 70 new captioning assistant positions. Today, the Maryland center provides relay services for the State of Maryland, as well as for 15 other states across the nation. The Hamilton Relay center in Frostburg has had a positive economic impact for the state since its inception and continues to provide additional economic benefits. It is estimated that by the end of the new five year contract, the center will have generated more than $228 million in local sales for Allegany County.

"Hamilton is very pleased to have been awarded the opportunity to continue to provide relay services for the State of Maryland," said John Nelson, president of Hamilton Relay, in a statement. "We are grateful for the support we have received from the State of Maryland, the Allegany County commissioners, and the community of Frostburg."