[Blindtlk] [Nfb-announce] Fwd: Federal Government Not Complying with Web SiteAccessibility Requirements, Study Indicates

[Âris Nusbaum]

Here we go! Government not complying with their own laws, this 
time with accessibility.

 Chris

"A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities motto)

--- Sent from my BrailleNote

---- Original Message ------
From: David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com
Subject: [Nfb-announce] Fwd: Federal Government Not Complying 
with Web SiteAccessibility Requirements, Study Indicates
Date sent: Thu, 19 May 2011 19:22:40 -0500



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



CONTACT:
Chris Danielsen
Director of Public Relations
National Federation of the Blind
(410) 659-9314, extension 2330
(410) 262-1281 (Cell)
<mailto:cdanielsen at nfb.org>cdanielsen at nfb.org

Federal Government Not Complying with Web Site
  Accessibility Requirements, Study Indicates

National Federation of the Blind Expresses Outrage, Demands Swift 
Action

Baltimore, Maryland (May 19, 2011): A study that has just been
published online in the journal
<http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/0740624X>Government
Information Quarterly has found that of one-hundred Web sites
operated by federal government agencies, over 90 percent do not
comply with government accessibility guidelines and likely cannot 
be
used by people who are blind or have other perceptual or motor
disabilities.  The study, entitled "Accessibility of U.S.  
federal
government home pages: Section 508 compliance and site 
accessibility
statements" and coauthored by Doctoral Student Abiodun Olalere 
and
Professor Jonathan Lazar of Towson University, found that the 
home
pages of over 90 percent of the Web sites they evaluated 
contained
violations of the government's own guidelines for compliance with
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.  That law requires
that government electronic and information technology be 
accessible
to people with disabilities.

Dr.  Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the 
Blind,
said: "Blind Americans are outraged that the government is 
failing
to comply with its own guidelines to make government information 
and
services available to citizens with disabilities.  Given the 
clear
legal requirements of Section 508 and the fact that use of the
Internet is critical to education, employment, access to 
government
benefits and services, and all other aspects of modern life, 
there
is no excuse for failure to follow and rigorously enforce these
guidelines.  We demand that officials in all branches of 
government
take immediate steps to bring all federal Web sites into 
compliance
with the law, and we pledge to continue to hold the federal
government accountable if it continues to treat the blind and 
others
with disabilities as second-class citizens."

The study evaluated the home pages of one-hundred government Web
sites across all three branches of the federal government, 
including
executive agencies, independent agencies, government corporations
(e.g.  Amtrak), the United States Congress, the United States 
Supreme
Court, United States federal courts, and "open government" Web 
sites
like <http://www.usajobs.gov>www.usajobs.gov and
<http://www.ready.gov>www.ready.gov.  The authors utilized both
automated-software tools and human-expert inspections on each 
home
page, and determined that over 90 percent of the home pages were 
not
in compliance with the Section 508 regulations.

Most of the accessibility problems were common ones that are 
easily
resolved, such as unlabeled images, mislabeled forms or tables,
videos without captioning, flash without any textual equivalents,
and lack of keyboard equivalents for mouse-over actions.  The 
authors
noted that this is not a problem unique to one agency.  Similar
problems occur on multiple agency Web sites, and the core problem 
is
the lack of consistent compliance activities and enforcement
throughout the federal government.

The study makes several recommendations to increase compliance,
including improved resources on complying with the guidelines;
better documentation of best practices; publishing of information
about which agencies are compliant and noncompliant with
accessibility guidelines as part of the open government 
dashboard;
and better enforcement and monitoring procedures within 
government
agencies, such as the loss of Web-posting privileges for 
repeatedly
posting inaccessible content.


###


About the National Federation of the Blind

With more than 50,000 members, the National Federation of the 
Blind
is the largest and most influential membership organization of 
blind
people in the United States.  The NFB improves blind people's 
lives
through advocacy, education, research, technology, and programs
encouraging independence and self-confidence.  It is the leading
force in the blindness field today and the voice of the nation's
blind.  In January 2004 the NFB opened the National Federation of
the Blind Jernigan Institute, the first research and training 
center
in the United States for the blind led by the blind.


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