Board Names Advisory Committee for 508 Standards Update July 6, 2006
The Board has organized a new advisory committee to assist in updating its access standards for electronic and information technologies procured by the Federal government. Issued under section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act in 2000, the standards cover computer hardware and software, websites, phone systems, fax machines, copiers, and other technologies. The Telecommunications and Electronic and Information Technology Advisory Committee will review these standards and recommend how they should be updated. The committee will also review Board guidelines for telecommunications products issued under section 255 of the Telecommunications Act. The Board plans to update these guidelines jointly with its 508 standards to ensure consistency in their coverage of telecommunications technologies.
The committee’s membership includes representatives from industry, disability groups, standard-setting bodies in the U.S. and abroad, and government agencies, among others. Members were selected from applications received in response to a Board notice published in April. The Board has structured the committee to represent a balanced cross section of interested parties and stakeholders and to help promote international coordination. The Board published a notice in the Federal Register on the new committee.
The committee will provide a forum for establishing consensus on updating the 508 standards and telecommunication guidelines. Topics the committee will explore include coverage of products and technologies, including new or convergent types, solutions to identified access barriers, the content of new or revised specifications and criteria, and their harmonization with comparable international efforts in this area. The Board will officially propose changes to the standards and guidelines for public comment based on the committee’s recommendations. The committee’s first meeting is scheduled for September 27 - 29 at the National Science Foundation, Room II-555, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Virginia. Committee meetings are open to the public.
For further information, contact Tim Creagan at creagan@access-board.gov (e-mail), (202) 272-0016 (v), or (202) 272-0081 (TTY).
The Telecommunications and Electronic and Information Technology Advisory Committee
- Adobe Systems, Inc.
- American Association of People with Disabilities
- American Council of the Blind
- American Foundation for the Blind
- Apple Computer, Inc.
- Association of Technology Act Programs
- Assistive Technology Industry Association
- AT&T
- Avaya, Inc.
- Canon USA, Inc.
- Cingular Wireless
- Communication Service for the Deaf
- CTIA - The Wireless Association
- Dell, Inc.
- Easter Seals
- European Commission
- Hearing Loss Association of America
- Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (Australia)
- IBM
- Inclusive Technologies
- Industry Canada
- Information Technology Association of America
- Information Technology Industry Council
- Microsoft Corporation
- National Association of State Chief Information Officers
- National Center on Disability and Access to Education
- National Federation of the Blind
- National Network of Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers
- Panasonic Corporation of North America
- Paralyzed Veterans of America
- SRA International, Inc.
- Sun Microsystems, Inc.
- Telecommunications Industry Association
- The Paciello Group, LLP
- Trace Research and Development Center
- Usability Professionals’ Association
- U.S. Department of Homeland Security
- U.S. Social Security Administration
- WGBH National Center for Accessible Media
- World Wide Web Consortium – Web Accessibility Initiative
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