Effective June 25, 2001, the Federal government implemented
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Amendments
of 1998 (29 U.S.C. § 794(d)). Section 508 requires
that the federal government only acquire electronic
and information technology goods and services that provide
for access by persons with disabilities. For more information,
see www.section508.gov.
Under "Buy Accessible," a partnership between
government and industry, the Information
Technology Industry Council (ITI) is hosting a Voluntary
Product Accessibility Template on their site. It
allows vendors who choose to participate the ability
to copy the template and complete it to describe how
a particular product or service they offer conforms
to Section 508 Access Board standards. This template
should be placed on the vendors accessible web site
and the link to the template provided to the Buy Accessible
database.
Government procurement staff will be able to search
the site by specific product or service type and see
all vendors who have provided links. They can then use
the links to reach the template information and product
or service descriptions necessary to complete their
market research.
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