GSA’s Section 508 program recently created a guidance document, “Guidance on Acquisition for Accessible EIT” (in PDF and doc format). Federal acquisitions of accessible EIT (Electronic and Information Technology) are based on an agency or department having a detailed process for addressing Section 508. While the process can be quite involved for some acquisitions, itRead… Read more »
Last Saturday, June 25, was the 10th anniversary of the date that the FAR requirements for Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act took effect. Ten years ago, that was a really big deal – agencies and companies feared its impact on applications, web sites and, of course, procurements. What do you think has changed sinceRead… Read more »
Robert Baker from SSA was recently a guest blogger on the Accessibility Forum 2.0 blog, talking about the new Accessibility Best Practice Library and encouraging agencies to contribute. You can see his post below. The CIO Council Accessibility Committee has just published the Accessibility Best Practices Library. The library is the first deliverable created byRead… Read more »
As part of my team’s job supporting the BuyAccessible Wizard, we often get questions asking if a specific product complies with Section 508. This is a question we can’t answer. Remember it is the agency itself that must comply with Section 508, not the product or the services. When an agency is determining the requirementsRead… Read more »
GSA’s Section 508 program recently created a guidance document, Guidance on Conducting Market Research. Buyers in federal agencies are required by law and regulation to conduct market research. Market research is a means of ensuring that what we want to purchase is in fact actually available. For ensuring accessibility and compliance with Section 508 whenRead… Read more »
Here are some recent posts on Accessibility Forum 2.0 blog from this Spring. You are welcome to check them out and leave comments with questions or feedback. NPR interview about Section 508 – Terry Weaver’s NPR interview about Technology and Accessibility Accessibility of documents on websites – discusses Section 508 provisions that apply to documentsRead… Read more »
Here is another post from Accessibility Forum 2.0 blog by Terry Weaver. The biggest problem with buying accessible electronic and information technology in the Federal government isn’t bad VPATs (or other 508 conformance documentation); it is the fact that we don’t even ask most of the time! As part of GSA’s sampling of Fed BizRead… Read more »
On Tuesday April 26, 2011, there is a free workshop called, “Section 508 Testing and Remediation: Application and Best Practices.” Presenters include Paul Lloyd, USDA Target Center, and Nicshan Floyd, Office of Accessible Systems and Technologies, DHS. There will be seats in the Library of Congress, Montpelier Room, Madison Building as well as a webcast.Read… Read more »
Recently, GSA gathered a number of people responsible for their agencies Section 508 programs, including contracting officers, to discuss how well government acquisitions were including correct language in their solicitations. The conversation shared some best practices, gave advice on avoiding “worst practices” and provided the attendees with a copy of “Guidance on Creating 508 CompliantRead… Read more »
Last week, Terry Weaver was a guest on the Kojo Nnamdi NPR radio show talking about Technology and Accessibility. They talked talked about the federal government’s efforts to make websites more accessible and Section 508. A recording is now available on-line, as well as a transcript.