CIS Media provides Section 508 Compliance web site and development solutions for government, government contractors, businesses and non-profit entities. Our web developmoent team approach provides a cost effective solution in ensuring 508 compliance.

Click on the links below to see how Sectin 508 affects your organization:

• Who does Section 508 affect?
• How is compliance being implemented?
• What impact will this have on industry and local governments?
• What are the penalties for noncompliance?
• The best way to avoid/minimize damage from such a suit is to take a multi-pronged approach

Since last June, Federal agencies and industry suppliers have scrambled to find out how current procurements will be affected by the law, and struggled with what they can do to avoid legal penalties and comply with new regulations.
In reality, Section 508 is only the latest in a series of Federal guidelines and regulations dating back to the mid-1980s, designed to aid people with disabilities in gaining access to Federal government information.

What sets Section 508 apart is that it's the first piece of legislation that's enforceable, with legal ramifications possible for those Federal agencies that fail to comply.
However, what GSA and other Federal officials at the September 10 event stressed to everyone-from procurement officers to Federal web site designers to requiring officials and technology industry suppliers-is the law is not about suffering through the addition of new regulations to avoid being sued.

Who does Section 508 affect?
As of June 25, 2001, the final standards issued by the Access Board will apply to all Federal departments and agencies including the U.S. Postal Service. There are some exemptions for departments with national security responsibilities. Also, the deliverables of contractors that provide services or products to Federal agencies must be Section 508 compliant.

How is compliance being implemented?
The federal procurement process will drive the implementation of Section 508. The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) was revised after lengthy public input, and issued in April 2001. After June 25, 2001, Section 508 requirements will apply to all federal procurements. According to the final ruling "Since the statute imposes private enforcement, where individuals with disabilities can file civil rights lawsuits, the Government has little flexibility for alternatives in writing this regulation. To meet the requirements of the law, we cannot exempt small businesses from any part of the rule.

What impact will this have on industry and local governments?
Although the exact impact cannot, of course, be known, we expect far-ranging implications. Clearly, this is a powerful incentive for businesses that have or wish to obtain federal contracts. Also, the Department of Education and other agencies that dispense grant funds are expected to require compliance from funded entities. The Federal Information Technology Accessibility Initiative is a Federal government interagency effort to offer information and technical assistance to support the successful implementation of Section 508.

What are the penalties for noncompliance?
Federal employees or members of the public may file a complaint or lawsuit claiming an agency's procurement is not in compliance. The process for handling that complaint will follow already established procedures that exist under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

http://www.aircalifornia.org/508.html

Section 508(a)(2)(A) required the Board to publish final standards for accessible electronic and information technology by February 7, 2000. Section 508(a)(3) provides that within six months after the Board publishes its standards, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council is required to revise the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), and each Federal agency is required to revise the Federal procurement policies and directives under its control to incorporate the Board's standards. (3)

Because of the delay in publishing the standards, the proposed rule sought comment on making the standards effective six months after publication in the Federal Register to provide Federal agencies an opportunity to more fully understand the new standards and allow manufacturers of electronic and information technology time to ensure that their products comply with the standards before enforcement actions could be initiated. The NPRM noted that postponing the effective date of the Board's standards could not affect the right of individuals with disabilities to file complaints for electronic and information technology procured after August 7, 2000 since that right was established by the statute.

On July 13, 2000, President Clinton signed into law the Military Construction Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2001 (Public Law 106-246) which included an amendment to section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. Under the amendment, the effective date for the enforcement of section 508 was delayed to allow for additional time for compliance with the Board's final standards. As originally written, the enforcement provisions of section 508 would have taken effect on August 7, 2000. The amendment in Public Law 106-246 revises the enforcement date to 6 months from publication of the Board's final standards, consistent with the law's intent. As a result of the amendment, there is no need to delay the effective date of the standards. The effective date for the standards is largely an administrative provision and does not affect the date by which complaints may be filed under section 508. Complaints and lawsuits may be filed 6 months from the date of publication of these standards in the Federal Register
http://www.access-board.gov/sec508/508standards.htm

On 5/9/2001, several presenters from Crunchy Technologies came to demo their testing and compliance tool, PageScreamer 2.0, to a group of Air Force webmasters. In the course of the demonstration, a number of the legal consequences were discussed. One of the presenters was Colin Mitchell, their director of commercial sales and an attorney. He made the following points about 508 law:

· 508 is a brand-new law. The standards for 508 compliance, as well as the technologies supportive of 508 guidelines, are a moving target. Therefore, litigation to establish what is and is not compliant will be a necessary and unavoidable consequence. In other words, some of you out there are going to get sued, no matter what you do.

The best way to avoid/minimize damage from such a suit is to take a multi-pronged approach:

1. Do not even think about falling back on the "undue burden" clause, as the standard for what is "undue burden" in the context of section 504 and other segments of the Americans With Disabilities Act has already been established. The burden of proof will not only fall on your shoulders, but you will write a guidepath for the plaintiff in such a case as to exactly how to prove their case when you attempt to demonstrate undue burden.
   
2. If you do not already have an established set of procedures for providing alternative content for disabled users, develop it NOW, before the June 21 deadline. Having an established set of processes and procedures will be very helpful in proving that you at least are attempting to comply with the letter and the spirit of the law.
   
3. Double and triple-check your work when testing pages for compliance. Do NOT let pages slip through the cracks when you are posting new content, because 508 is not a one-day law. Once it takes effect, it becomes a continuous responsibility for content owners, managers, and webmasters to maintain their accessibility. All it takes is one page out of 100,000 for someone to be able to sue.