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United States
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act specifies that agencies must identify which standards apply to the
procurement of ICT, perform market research to determine the availability of accessible products and
services, and document the results of their market research. The following resources provide assistance in
meeting Section 508 requirements:
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The U.S. Access Board is currently updating the Section 508 standards. This effort will address new
technologies and other areas where the standards need to be modified. For more information, go to
.
Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act requires telecommunications products and services to be
accessible to people with disabilities. FCC rules cover all hardware and software telephone network
equipment and telecommunications equipment used in the home or office. Such equipment includes
telephones, wireless handsets, fax machines, answering machines, and pagers. FCC rules also cover basic and
special telecommunications services, including regular telephone calls, call waiting, speed dialing, call
forwarding, computer-provided directory assistance, call monitoring, caller identification, call tracing, and
repeat dialing, as well as voice mail and interactive voice response systems that provide callers with menus of
choices. For more information, go to
Federal Communication Commission Section 255 information
.
21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA)
The CVAA updates federal communications law to increase the access of persons with disabilities to modern
communications, updating accessibility laws enacted in the 1980s and 1990s to include new digital,
broadband, and mobile innovations. Regulations are enforced by the FCC and documented as 47 CFR Part 14
and Part 79.
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Other U.S. legislation and initiatives
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Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Telecommunications Act, the Rehabilitation Act and others
Canada
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act was established to develop and implement accessibility
standards to make goods, services, and facilities accessible to Ontarians with disabilities and to provide for
the involvement of persons with disabilities in the development of the accessibility standards. The first
standard of the AODA is the customer service standard; however, standards for transportation, employment,
and information and communication are also being developed. The AODA applies to the Government of
Ontario, the Legislative Assembly, every designated public sector organization, and to every other person or
organization that provides goods, services, or facilities to the public or other third parties and that has at
least one employee in Ontario; and accessibility measures must be implemented on or before January 1,
2025. For more information, go to
Accessibility for Ontarians with Disability Act (AODA)
.
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Chapter 14 Accessibility
