DOE-OCR gives additional guidance on ADA, Sect 504

Posted on January 27, 2012 by jeb

supreme courtFrom AlphaOne News:

Congress awarded students with disabilities extra protections in recent years. Now, the U.S. Department of Education is stepping up its efforts to ensure that schools are following the new rules.

In a letter sent this week to school districts and state education leaders, officials at the Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights (DOE-OCR) took pains to spell out the obligations schools have under the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADA).

Though the ADA update took effect three years ago, the correspondence suggests that many schools may not be abiding by it. In light of this, federal officials are offering technical guidance and say that they will be upping their enforcement efforts.

Read the rest of the AlphaOne announcement

Read the Dear Colleague Letter from DOE-OCR

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Update on Access Board Public Hearing

Posted on January 13, 2012 by jeb

US Access Board logoFrom Access Board news – January 12, 2012

The U.S. Access Board recently held a public hearing on a revised draft of updated requirements for information and communication technology (ICT) covered by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act.

The Board will hold a second hearing March 1 at the CSUN Conference in San Diego. The hearing will be open to the general public and will not be limited to those registered for the conference.

Full story…

The Board conducted a public hearing January 11 on a revised draft of updated requirements for information and communication technology (ICT) covered by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act. Over a dozen people provided comments at the hearing, including representatives from advocacy groups, industry, and government.

Many speakers expressed support for structural changes made by the Board to streamline the rule and simplify requirements. They also endorsed the incorporation of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG) by direct reference to eliminate redundancy and promote greater harmonization. Some called attention to specific sections of the draft that should be clarified as a result of the rule’s reorganization or the replacement of requirements with the WCAG reference.

Commenters voiced concern over the timeframe to complete this update, particularly in view of the increasing speed of technological change and innovation. They urged the Board to explore options for a more timely process to refresh the ICT requirements on a continuing or rolling basis to keep pace with the ever-changing and newly emerging technologies of a dynamic market. Delays in keeping the requirements regularly updated, it was argued, impede industry compliance and hamper the incorporation of accessibility into new products.

Participants urged the Board to revise the rule to cover certain technologies or barriers to access. These recommendations addressed self-service machines and kiosks, which are becoming more prevalent, the growing market of gesture-based interfaces, such as touch screens, the emerging trend in digital or biometric identification as an alternative to password protection, hand held devices and access for people with limited dexterity, refreshable braille, and access for people with cognitive disabilities. In addition, recommendations were made to improve coverage of products with closed functionality, communication device software, web authoring tools, and technologies involving multiple languages, such as those used in foreign language instruction or translation.

Some speakers called attention to failures in the implementation of section 508 resulting in access issues for members of the public and federal employees with disabilities. Comments pointed to the importance of supplementary technical assistance materials, including answers to frequently asked questions, to improve implementation and compliance. It was also recommended that efforts be made to make the functional performance criteria of the rule testable to help validate compliance.

A transcript of the hearing will be posted to the rulemaking docket on the www.regulations.gov website in coming weeks. The Board will hold a second hearing March 1 at the CSUN Conference in San Diego. The hearing will be open to the general public and will not be limited to those registered for the conference.

Further information on this rulemaking is available on the Board’s website.

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Access Board to Hold Public Hearing on Draft ICT Rule

Posted on January 5, 2012 by jeb

US Access Board logoThe U.S. Access Board will hold a public hearing January 11 from 9:00 – 12:00 on a revised draft of updated accessibility requirements for information and communication technology (ICT).  The event will allow members of the public to comment on the released draftwhich updates requirements for ICT covered by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act.

The hearing will take place at the Board’s meeting space at 1331 F Street, NW, Suite 800, in downtown Washington, D.C.  Registration is not required, but those who wish to provide comments are encouraged to contact Kathy Johnson at johnson@access-board.gov, (202) 272-0041 (voice), or (202) 272-0065 (TTY).  Those unable to attend in person can make arrangements with Ms. Johnson to provide comments by phone.  The Board will also provide a dial-in option (limited capacity) for listening to testimony and online real-time transcription of the proceedings 

Public Hearing on the Draft Update of ICT Requirements
January 11, 9:00 to 12:00
Access Board Meeting Room
1331 F Street, NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20004

Call-in option (listening only):
Dial:  (517) 308-9247 or (888) 469-2078 (toll-free)
Passcode: 4144
Note:  Contact Kathy Johnson in advance if you wish to make comments by phone

Real-time transcription:
http://www.streamtext.net/player?event=ACCESSBOARD01-11-2012

A second hearing will be held March 1 in San Diego at the annual CSUN conference.  The hearing will be open to the general public and will not be limited to those registered for the conference.

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Accessible Social Networking

Posted on December 30, 2011 by jeb

Accessible TwitterRecently a colleague asked me to comment on the accessibility of Facebook and Twitter. The concern was whether state government should be embracing social networking as a means of outreach to the citizenry. My response was well thought out but rather concise. I basically responded that accessing Twitter and Facebook through their native web portals was generally not possible for people who use screen reader assistive technology (AT). I further commented that some of the free apps and some API driven interfaces for Twitter were indeed accessible and I mentioned specifically the Easy Chirp application (formerly Accessible Twitter) developed by Dennis Lembree as an example of an accessible API for Twitter. I also noted that there was no similar accessible application for Facebook which made it accessible.

In the correspondence that followed, my colleague noted that the mobile version of Facebook was “usable” with screen readers but we both agreed that there were a number of things that you could not do on Facebook using the mobile interface or even the iPad/iPod Facebook app.

I wish I had read a December 8th posting from Marco’s Accessibility Blog because he had done all of the work for me, detailing extensively the issues related to the two big social networking sites as well as several more – some of which I’d never heard of before. Marco’s “Social Networking and Accessibility: A rather sad picture” blog does give a pretty comprehensive, sad and up-to-date (he revised the blog several days later with new information) picture of the topic so I highly recommend reading it in its entirety. I like the fact they he did not stop with screen reader AT but also mentioned issues for folks with mobility issues and the requirement to use a mouse/pointing device to access content and perform functions with many of these services.

So, if you are looking here for a good, reliable and accurate review of the major social networking services and their lack of accessibility, head on over to Marco’s and check it out. I will be adding him to my blogroll.

Happy New Year – Let’s hope there are new and good things in store for accessible web design in 2012.

 

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Board Releases New Draft of ICT Rule for Public Comment

Posted on December 12, 2011 by jeb

access board sealThe U.S. Access Board has released for public comment a second Advance Notice  of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) that includes a revised draft of updated accessibility requirements for information and communication technology (ICT) covered by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.  This latest version includes changes made in response to public feedback received on an earlier draft issued last year.

The draft rule jointly refreshes the Board’s Section 508 standards and its Section 255 guidelines which address access to computer hardware and software, websites, media players, electronic documents, telephones and cell phones, PDAs and other ICT products.  The Board is updating these requirements according to recommendations from an advisory body it chartered, the Telecommunications and Electronic and Information Technology Advisory Committee.

The Board released a previous draft of the rule in March 2010 and received almost 400 comments from the public, including industry, disability groups, consumers, government entities, research and trade organizations, accessibility consultants, and others.  In response to this input, the Board has simplified and streamlined the document for greater usability.  The revised draft further harmonizes the rule with other guidelines and standards and eliminates redundancy by referencing the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG).  In addition, revisions have been made to clarify the relationship between performance and technical criteria, coverage of electronic content, and clearer requirements for ICT with closed functionality.

The released draft includes a discussion that explains these and other changes and highlights other topics where public comment is sought.  The deadline for comments is March 7.  During the comment period, the Board will hold public hearings in Washington, D.C. on January 11 and at the annual CSUN Conference in San Diego on March 1.  The Board will follow-up with a proposed rule based on the input received that will provide an additional round of comment before the rule is finalized.

The draft rule and related information are available on the Board’s website. This information is also posted on the www.regulations.gov website which allows visitors to submit or view comments.  For further information, contact Tim Creagan at creagan@access-board.gov, (202) 272-0016 (v), or (202) 272-0074 (TTY).

Public Hearings on the Draft ICT Rule January 11, 9:00 – Noon
Access Board Conference Center
1331 F Street, NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC

March 1, 1:00 – 3:00
27th Annual CSUN conference
Manchester Grand Hyatt
One Market Place
San Diego, CA

 

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