| Standards
for Electronic and Information Technology:
Overview
The Access Board is an independent
Federal agency devoted to accessibility for people with disabilities.
On December 21, 2000, the Board issued accessibility standards
for electronic and information technology under Section 508
of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended. The Board also develops
and maintains accessibility guidelines for telecommunications
equipment under other laws and enforces design standards for
federally funded facilities. Presented here is an overview of
the new standards for electronic and information technology
and Section 508.
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The Law
In 1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation
Act and strengthened provisions covering access to information
in the Federal sector. As amended, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation
Act requires access to the Federal government's electronic and
information technology. The law covers all types of electronic
and information technology in the Federal sector and is not
limited to assistive technologies
used by people with disabilities. It applies to all Federal
agencies when they develop, procure, maintain, or use such technology.
Federal agencies must ensure that this technology is accessible
to employees and the public to the extent it does not pose an
"undue burden." The law
directs the Access Board to develop access standards for this
technology that will become part of the Federal procurement
regulations.
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The Scope
Section 508 is limited to the Federal sector. It does not apply to the
private sector, nor does it generally impose requirements on
the recipients of Federal funds.
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Access Board
Development of Standards Shortly after the law was enacted, the Access Board
created an advisory committee to develop recommendations on
the standards to be developed. In May 1999, the Electronic and
Information Technology Access Advisory Committee (EITAAC) completed
its work and presented its recommendations to the Board. The
committee consisted of 27 representatives from industry, various
disability organizations, and other groups with an interest
in the issues to be addressed. On March 31, 2000, the Board
published proposed standards based closely on the committee's
report. The proposed standards were available for public comment
for 60 days through publication in the Federal Register. The
Board sought information and comment on various issues through
questions it posed in a discussion provided in the proposed
rule. Over 100 individuals and organizations submitted comments
on the standards. Comments were submitted by Federal agencies,
representatives of the information technology industry, disability
groups, and persons with disabilities. The Board finalized the
standards according to its review of the comments and republished
them in the Federal Register in December, 2000. The final standards,
which became part of the Federal Acquisition Regulations, will
help Federal agencies determine whether or not a technology
product or system is accessible.
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Effective Date
Section 508 uses the Federal procurement process to ensure that technology
acquired by the Federal government is accessible. The law also
sets up an administrative process under which individuals with
disabilities can file a complaint alleging that a Federal agency
has not complied with the standards. This process uses the same
complaint procedures established under Section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act (which covers access to Federally
funded programs and services). Individuals may also file a civil
action against an agency to seek injunctive relief and attorney's
fees (but not compensatory or punitive damages). The enforcement
provisions of Section 508 take effect six months from the date
the Board published its final standards. The Board published
its standards on December 21, 2000. Therefore, the enforcement
provisions of Section 508 are effective as of June 21, 2001.
(Originally, they were to take effect August 7, 2000, but Section
508 was further amended to allow time for compliance after publication
of the standards).
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Enforcement
By statute, the enforcement provisions of Section 508 apply only
to electronic and information technology procured on or after
the effective date. As a result, Section 508 does not authorize
complaints or lawsuits to retrofit technology procured before
this date to meet the Board's standards. However, even though
Section 508's enforcement mechanisms apply only to procurement,
the law does require access to technology developed, used or
maintained by a Federal agency. Further, other sections of the
Rehabilitation Act require access to Federal programs (Section
504) and accommodation of Federal employees with disabilities
(Sections 501 and 504); it is possible
that Federal agencies will use the Board's Section 508 standards
as a yardstick to measure compliance with these other sections
of the law.
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"Undue Burden"
A Federal agency does not have to comply with the technology accessibility
standards if it would impose an undue
burden to do so. This is consistent with language used in
the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA) and other civil rights legislation, where the term `undue
burden' has been defined as "significant difficulty or
expense." However, the agency must explain why meeting
the standards would pose an undue burden for a given procurement
action, and must still provide people with disabilities access
to the information or data that is affected.
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