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Section 508 Procurement Training

California State University

Accessible Technology Initiative (ATI) - S508PT

Day One Beginner Track 1:00 – 2:30 Workshop

IT and people with disabilities, Assistive technologies

Section 508 legal framework.

Jon Brundage, presenter

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Topics

• Overview of disabilities (vision, hearing/speech, mobility, cognitive)

• What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• Assistive technologies relationship to Section 508 requirements.

• Section 508 legal background and how the standards are enforced.

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Overview of disabilities (vision, hearing/speech, mobility, cognitive)

• Section 508 addresses various disabilities. There are overlapping areas on concern that affect various requirements in the standards.– For example, keyboard access is a

consideration in both software and web standards.

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Vision• When we think of visual disabilities, what comes to

mind immediately is blindness (usually defined as a condition in which the best corrected visual acuity is 20/200, or less, or the person's visual field is 20 degrees or less).

– While a great deal of accessibility efforts are centered on blindness, there are other vision issues that are considered in the standards.

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Vision

• In addition to blindness, other visual disabilities include:– low vision– color blindness– other conditions such as strabismus, tunnel

vision, glaucoma

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Vision-some concepts

• Linearization– Visual users may scan content in any order

they wish.– Screen reader users have some limitations

to overcome.

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Vision-some concepts

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Vision-some concepts

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Vision-some concepts

• Context and focus– Visual users have an easier time of

maintaining context (via visual association) and understanding the current focus.

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Vision-some concepts

Data table

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Vision-some concepts

Data table- visual intersection

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Vision-some concepts

“straw view”

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Hearing/Speech

• Deaf

• Hard of Hearing

• Difficulty with speech

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Mobility

• Muscle control (Parkinson's, Multiple Sclerosis, injury)

• Paralysis

• Arthritis

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Cognitive

• Also referred to as Developmental Disabilities– Dyslexia (difficulty with written language)– Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)

• Not included in current standards, under consideration for update to 508

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• “Assistive technologies” is a generic term that includes Assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• Screen readers– attempts to identify and interpret what is

being displayed on the screen– output to Braille or sound– sometime used by persons with

developmental disabilities

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• Popular screen readers– JAWS (“Job Access With Speech”) from

Freedom Scientific– Window Eyes from GW Micro– HAL from Dolphin Computer Access

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• Screen Magnifiers– low vision aid

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• TTY (“telephone typewriter” or “teletypewriter”)– used when one of the parties has speech

or hearing difficulties

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• Captioning – Aid for hearing impaired– Also helps those with comprehension problems– “closed” means that the captions are displayed at the

option of the viewer– “open” refers to captions that can’t be turned off or

hidden

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• Browser settings– Ability to control font

appearance.– Custom style sheets– Disable JavaScript

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• Operating system settings and built in accessories– High contrast settings.– Magnifier– On Screen Keyboard

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What Assistive technologies are and how they aid persons with disabilities.

• And.....– the keyboard

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Assistive technologies relationship to Section 508 requirements.

• The requirements are based in part by how Assistive technologies interact with Information technology.

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Assistive technologies relationship to Section 508 requirements.

• Some examples:– Screen readers can help users understand

content in HTML data tables- hence Paragraph G in 1194.22 (Web)

– Hearing aid compatibility (“HAC”) allows for listening to a signal via a magnetic signal- Paragraph H in 1194.23 (Telecommunications)

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Assistive technologies relationship to Section 508 requirements.

• a few more examples:– “Executable from the keyboard” Paragraph

A in 1194.21(Software Applications and Operating Systems)

– Captioning decoder requirements- Paragraph A in 1194.24 (Video and Multimedia Products)

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Legal background• Current laws regarding accessibility have their roots

in laws passed over the years:– Section 504 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of

1973 1. Establishes that disability rights are a form of civil rights and

therefore covered by the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution (Citizens rights).

2. Mandates that institutions receiving federal funds provide equal access to their programs.

3. Uses total institutional budget (not just the computing area's budget) in measuring the "reasonableness" of required accommodations for accessibility.

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Legal background, cont• The Americans with Disabilities

Act of 1990 1. Wide-ranging legislation intended to

make American society more accessible to people with disabilities.

2. Extends the requirements of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to all public and commercial facilities, with few exceptions, not just those that receive federal funding.

3. Requires that every institution receiving federal funds establish and maintain a plan of compliance.

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Legal background, cont.• 1998, Congress amended the U.S. Rehabilitation

Act of 1973 with Section 508– Requires that individuals with disabilities, who are members

of the public seeking information or services from a federal agency, have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. 

– Also is intended to ensure that Federal Employees with disabilities have equal access to information technology (IT) in the workplace.

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Legal background, cont.• The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance

Board (Access Board) published accessibility standards for compliance with Section 508 on Dec. 21, 2000. The enforcement date of the standards was June 21, 2001.

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Enforcement• 508 set 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).

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Enforcement

• Department of Justice has an active role.– http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/

• Publications on ADA• FAQs• How to file complaints

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Enforcement

• Self enforcement.– Section 508 coordinators for each agency.– Training programs.– Self-evaluation.

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Questions/discussion

Thank You!

Jon Brundage

jon@jonbrundageassoc.com

www.jonbrundageassoc.com/CSU08/