Electronic and information technology (EIT) vendors play a critical role in the implementation of Section 508. Using the purchasing power of the Federal government as an incentive, it is the EIT vendors that incorporate accessibility features in their product and service offerings that will achieve the competitive advantage in this emerging market place. CITA assists the vendor community through two programs: the Accessibility Forums and the Buy Accessible template.
The Accessibility Forum is an ongoing collaboration among stakeholders affected by Section 508 including users, industry, government, and other communities in order to benefit employees and members of the public with disabilities. The Forum will identify, prioritize, and conduct projects that assist government in making informed decisions about Section 508 related procurements and allow government, industry and users to communicate and highlight areas where further effort is needed.
The second initiative that CITA sponsors is Buy Accessible, a database offering a common format for vendors to describe the accessibility features of their products. Federal procurement and requiring officials use Buy Accessible to conduct market research and support their requirements development and procurement selection processes. Vendors are encouraged to evaluate their products for accessibility and provide a self-representation of the extent to which their products address the Accessibility Standards per section 508. Self-representations provided via the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template should be registered with Buy Accessible, the online source for government market research on accessible products. Buy Accessible is an excellent resource for getting your accessibility information to government requiring officials and procurement officials.