Telecommunications Act of
1996
47 U.S.C.§ 255
Access by Persons with Disabilities.
(a) DEFINITIONS{....}
(b) MANUFACTURING_ A manufacturer of telecommunications
equipment or customer premises equipment shall ensure that the equipment
is designed, developed, and fabricated to be accessible to and usable by
individuals with disabilities, if readily achievable.
(c) TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES_ A provider of
telecommunications service shall ensure that the service is accessible to
and usable by individuals with disabilities, if readily achievable.
(d) COMPATIBILITY_ Whenever the requirements of subsections
(b) and (c) are not readily achievable, such a manufacturer or provider
shall ensure that the equipment or service is compatible with existing
peripheral devices or specialized customer premises equipment commonly
used by individuals with disabilities to achieve access, if readily
achievable.
(e) GUIDELINES_ Within 18 months after the date of enactment
of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Architectural and
Transportation Barriers Compliance Board shall develop guidelines for
accessibility of telecommunications equipment and customer premises
equipment in conjunction with the Commission. The Board shall review and
update the guidelines periodically.
§153. Definitions
Customer Premises Equipment - The term customer premises
equipment means equipment employed on the premises of a person (other than
a carrier) to originate, route, or terminate telecommunications.
Telecommunications - The term telecommunications means the
transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of
information of the user's choosing, without change in the form or content
of the information as sent and received.
Telecommunications Equipment - The term telecommunications
equipment means equipment, other than customer premises equipment, used by
a carrier to provide telecommunications services, and includes software
integral to such equipment (including upgrades).
Since many people with low vision may also have hearing loss,
a means of access for people with low vision must be provided that is not
in audible
form. Strategies for access by people without vision can include
enhanced tactile features, ranging from something as simple as a nib on
the "5" key of standard numeric pads, to distinct shapes for keys and
buttons that can be located and identified by touch.
Strategies for making product output accessible to people
with little or no hearing include visual or tactile signals to indicate a
call, page, or other message.
People who use assistive devices such as amplifiers need a
standard noise-free way to tap into the audio generated by a product.
Telecommunications Act
Accessibility Guidelines
§ 1193.33 Information, documentation, and training.
(a) Manufacturers shall ensure access to information and documentation it
provides to its customers. Such information and documentation includes
user guides, installation guides for end-user installable devices, and
product support communications, regarding both the product in general and
the accessibility features of the product...
Telecommunications Act of
1996
47 U.S.C.§ 255
(f) NO ADDITIONAL PRIVATE RIGHTS AUTHORIZED_ Nothing in this
section shall be construed to authorize any private right of action to
enforce any requirement of this section or any regulation thereunder. The
Commission shall have exclusive jurisdiction with respect to any complaint
under this section.
This technical assistance is intended solely as informal
guidance; it is not a determination of the legal rights or
responsibilities of entities subject to the Telecommunications Act.
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The
landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), enacted on July 26, 1990,
provides comprehensive civil rights protections to individuals with
disabilities in the areas of employment (title I), State and local
government services (title II), public accommodations and commercial
facilities (title III), and telecommunications (title IV). Both the
Department of Justice and the Department of Transportation, in adopting
standards for new construction and alterations of places of public
accommodation and commercial facilities covered by title III and public
transportation facilities covered by title II of the ADA, have issued
implementing rules that incorporate the Americans with Disabilities Act
Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG), developed by the Access Board.
U N I T E D S T A T E S A C C E S S B O A R D
A FEDERAL AGENCY COMMITTED TO ACCESSIBLE DESIGN
TECHNICAL BULLETIN:
ACCESS TO TELECOMMUNICATIONS
The Law
Section 255
As technology
continues to improve our means of telecommunication, it can pose
challenges to accessibility on one hand, while on the other hold the key
to innovative access solutions. Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act
requires telecommunications products and services to be accessible to
people with disabilities. This is required to the extent access is
"readily achievable," meaning easily accomplishable, without much
difficulty or expense. If manufacturers cannot make their products
accessible then they must design products to be compatible with adaptive
equipment used by people with disabilities, where readily achievable. What
is "readily achievable" will be different for each manufacturer based on
the costs of making products accessible or compatible and their resources.
What’s Covered
Telecommunications products covered include:
-
wired and wireless telecommunication devices, such as
telephones (including pay phones and cellular phones), pagers, and fax
machines
-
other products that have a telecommunication service
capability, such as computers with modems
-
equipment that carriers use to provide services, such as
a phone company’s switching equipment.
The possible functions
of a product are key in determining coverage. If a product can provide
telecommunication services, then that portion is covered. For example,
televisions generally are not covered by section 255, except where a
set-top-box enables e-mail communication or Internet access, and then only
that device is covered.
Section 255's
Likely Effect
Because
section 255 applies only to products designed, developed and fabricated
after the law took effect on February 8, 1996, and does not require
changes to existing products, its overall impact likely will not be
immediate. It certainly stands to improve access and the number and range
of accessible products. Still, not every new product or service will be
accessible to all persons with disabilities. Manufacturers and service
providers, however, are finding that as they make products easier to use
by people with disabilities, they often make them easier to use by
everyone; some access features, such as vibrating alerts on pagers and
talking caller ID, have benefits for all users.
The Guidelines
What makes
telecommunications products accessible?
Manufacturers
must ensure that products are "designed, developed, and fabricated to be
accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities" when it is
readily achievable to do so. The Access Board was given the job of
developing guidelines that spell out what makes telecommunications
products accessible.
What is the Access
Board?
The Access
Board is an independent Federal agency that develops and maintains
accessibility guidelines and standards. This includes not only the
guidelines issued under the Telecommunications Act, but guidelines for the
built environment and transit vehicles developed under other laws such as
the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as standards for electronic
and information technology. The Board provides technical assistance and
training on its guidelines and standards, but does not have any
enforcement authority under the Telecommunications Act.
Telecommunications
Act Accessibility Guidelines
The Board’s final
guidelines, published in February 1998, were developed with help from an
advisory committee the Board created for this purpose. The
Telecommunications Access Advisory Committee included product
manufacturers, service providers, disability groups, and experts in
communication access. The final guidelines were developed closely based
upon this committee’s recommendations. The guidelines were published in
proposed form and made available for public comment in April 1997.
Performance
Criteria
The guidelines
focus on establishing what equipment must be able to do, as opposed to
specifying exactly how access is achieved, which will likely vary among
different types of products. Structured as performance requirements, the
guidelines detail the operating characteristics and product capabilities
necessary for access. This approach is used because the products covered
are varied and ever changing through technological innovations. The
guidelines address products and equipment, including input, output,
operating controls and mechanisms, and product information and
documentation. Access is covered for people with disabilities affecting
hearing, vision, movement, manipulation, speech, and interpretation of
information.
Advisory
"Strategies"
The guidelines
also provide guidance material on how certain performance requirements can
be met. These "strategies" provide examples on the means for achieving
access. This information, contained in the appendix to the guidelines, is
advisory rather than mandatory.
Input, Control, and
Mechanical Functions
The guidelines
require that input, control, and mechanical functions be accessible so
that they can be used by people with:
-
no vision, low vision, or limited color perception
-
limited or no hearing
-
limited manual dexterity, reach or strength
-
limited or no speech ability
-
limited cognitive skills
For example, the
guidelines require that a product be operable without vision by providing
at least one mode that does not require user vision. Another example from
the guidelines requires that a product be operable without hearing by
providing at least one mode that does not require user auditory
perception.
A product must meet
each requirement when it is "readily achievable" to do so. Determining
what is readily achievable for each product is to be "assessed
independently" for each specified type of access. For example, making a
product operable without vision is to be explored separately from the
ability to make it operable without hearing.
Output, Display,
and Control Functions
All information
necessary for operating and using products must:
-
be available in audible form and, where appropriate,
tactile form (for people with no vision)
-
be available in a form other than audible that is
accessible to people with low vision and little or no hearing
-
be available in visual form (for people with no hearing)
-
be available in enhanced audible form, such as increased
amplification, increased signal-to-noise ratio, or a combination (for
people who are hard of hearing)
-
allow moving text, where used, to be presented in a
static form at the user’s option (for people with limited cognitive
skills or vision)
-
have minimum visual flicker (to help prevent seizures in
persons with photosensitive epilepsy)
-
allow audio cutoff where external speakers are used
through standard connectors for headphones or personal listening devices
-
minimize interference with hearing aids and other
hearing technologies
-
allow wireless coupling to hearing aids where audio
tranducers normally held up to the ear are used
For example, the
guidelines require that visual information be provided in at least one
audible mode and auditory information in visual form (and, where
appropriate, in tactile form). As with the criteria for input, the ability
for a product to meet these requirements is to be "assessed
independently," meaning on a requirement-by-requirement basis.
Product
Compatibility with Adaptive Equipment
The guidelines
also cover compatibility between products and adaptive equipment people
with disabilities commonly use for access to telecommunications. This is
required where it is not readily achievable to make the product directly
accessible to the user. Requirements for compatibility include:
-
providing all information for operating products in a
standard electronic text format since people with significant or
multiple disabilities may not be able to use the built-in displays and
control mechanisms of a product
-
a connection point on products with auditory output so
that people with hearing impairments can plug in devices, such as
hearing aids and amplifying headphones, that isolate and enhance the
output
-
compatibility with prosthetics so that touch screens and
touch controls can be operated by head sticks and other prosthetics
instead of by body contact
-
connections for TTYs on products allowing voice
communication and compatibility with TTY signals
Design Planning and
Product Information
Manufacturers are
required to develop a process for ensuring that access and usability are
considered in the earliest design phases for a product. The guidelines
also require access to user guides, installation guides, and product
support. This includes information on the product in general and on its
accessibility features. Access requires provision of information through
alternate formats or modes of communication, such as:
• Braille • cassette recordings • large print
• electronic text • Internet postings • TTY access
• captioning and audio description for video materials
The guidelines provide
advisory information on these formats and communication methods, including
how they serve people with disabilities and recommendations for good
practice.
Enforcement
The Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) has sole jurisdiction over enforcement of
section 255, and the law does not provide any "private right of action"
which means that anyone concerned about access as required under the law
can file a complaint with the FCC, but not a suit in court. Regulations
issued by the FCC will explain the enforcement process and compliance with
the law, including the role of the Board’s guidelines.
Further Information
For technical
assistance on, or copies of, the accessibility guidelines contact:
The Access Board
1331 F Street, NW, Suite 1000
Washington, DC
20004-1111
(800) 872-2253
(voice) (800) 993-2822 (TTY) Fax: (202) 272-5447
www.access-board.gov
e-mail: ta@access-board.gov
For information on
enforcement contact:
The Federal
Communications Commission
445 12th Street, SW
Washington, DC 20554
(888) 225-5322 (voice) (888) 835-5322 (TTY)
Fax: (888)
418-0232
www.fcc.gov
e-mail: fccinfo@fcc.gov
For information and
research on accessible telecommunications contact:
Technology Access
Program
101 Kendall Hall
Gallaudet University
800
Florida Avenue, NE
Washington, DC 20002
(202) 651-5257 (voice or TTY)
Fax: (202) 651-5476
http://tap.gallaudet.edu/
e-mail: TAPInfo@gallaudet.edu
The Trace
Research and Development Center
University of Wisconsin - Madison
2107 Engineering Centers Bldg.
1550 Engineering Dr.
Madison, WI 53706
(608) 262-6966 (voice) (608) 263-5408 (TTY)
Fax: (608) 262-8848
www.trace.wisc.edu
e-mail: info@trace.wisc.edu
August
2003
U
N I T E D S T A T E S A C C E S S B O A R D
1331 F Street, N.W. Suite 1000 Washington, DC 20004-1111
800 872-2253 (v)
■
800 993-2822 (TTY)
■
fax: 202 272-0081
www.access-board.gov
■
e-mail: info@access-board.gov
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