Buy Accessible - Government Purchasers

Welcome Government Purchasers! Buy Accessible is designed specifically for you to assist in meeting Section 508 requirements, specifically, performing market research on the accessibility of electronic and information technology products. There is no need for you to register, just follow the steps below to get started.

Under the FAR provision implementing Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, you as a requiring official, are required to perform the following tasks:

• Identify which section(s) of the standards apply to the procurement per the Accessibility Standard (your procurement may fall in more than one category).
• Perform market research to determine the availability of accessible products and services.
• Document the results of your market research.

Buy Accessible is designed to be a one-stop shop for all these things.

How to use Buy Accessible to perform market research

• To search for SPECIFIC products or services, enter the product name/service description in the search field (upper left hand side of each page on this site).
• Select either “Buy Accessible Products” or the “Buy Accessible Services” option and click on the ‘Search’ button. For more hints on searching, go to: Search for Products and Service Providers.
• Locate the product or service in the list of search returns.
• Select the icon representing ‘View 508 Template’ in the header bar for the item you are interested in.
• Once you have accessed the VPAT for the products you are interested in, review the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template Best Practices for E & IT Vendors. This guidance was developed by the IT Industry Council to facilitate VPAT comparisons by standardizing the language vendors use when completing the template. This Best Practices document will be very helpful in evaluating VPATs for market research.
• Print and evaluate the product accessibility template for the items you are considering purchasing.

NOTE: All information provided and obtained via Buy Accessible is based upon vendor self-representations. Buy Accessible does not warrant the accuracy of the information. Unless expressly affirmed by the vendors in your procurement, information provided via Buy Accessible is not contractually binding. This information is provided to facilitate market research on the accessibility of products.