[Cccnfbw] New ATM rules aim to aid visually impaired

[merribeth.manning at comcast.net]

New ATM rules aim to aid visually impaired 

By Steve Jordon, WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER 

Banks, credit unions and independent ATM operators are hustling to meet a 
March 2012 deadline to make their machines - more than 400,000 nationally, 
3,400 in Nebraska and about 2,000 in Iowa - accessible to people who are 
blind or have low vision. 

New rules, six years in the making under the Americans with Disabilities 
Act, mean millions of dollars spent on new or upgraded machines. They also 
mean the ubiquitous automated teller machines that spit out cash will be 
accessible to thousands more people who have problems seeing the buttons and 
screens. 
NEW ATM STANDARDS 
SPEECH 
Braille instructions for starting speech mode. Speech available for 
instructions, verification, error messages, balance inquiries, date and time 
of transactions and other information. Earphone jack or telephone handset. 
Recorded or digitized human voice or synthesized voice. Advertisements not 
required to be audible. Audible signals for noncash functions such as 
dispensing coupons, selling tickets or giving monthly statements, if 
provided. Customer can repeat or interrupt spoken messages and control 
volume. 
TACTILE SIGNALS 
Tactilely discernible input controls required for each function. Key 
surfaces raised above surrounding surfaces. Numeric keys arranged in 
ascending or descending layout, with distinct tactile element on No. 5. 
Function keys contrast with background surfaces. Characters and symbols 
contrast with key surfaces. Symbols on function keys: enter or proceed, 
raised circle; clear or correct, raised left arrow; cancel key, raised 
letter "X"; add value key, raised plus sign; decrease value key, raised 
minus sign. 
DISPLAY SCREENS 
Visible from 40 inches above floor, except for drive-up ATMs. Sans-serif 
fonts with the letter "I" at least 3/16 of an inch tall, contrasting with 
background. Optional blank screen for privacy. 

Source: Americans with Disabilities Act 

"It allows the blind to visually impaired person to be able to enter all 
their card numbers and information without having the assistance of somebody 
else," said Robert Spangler of Vinton, Iowa, president of the Iowa Council 
of the United Blind. "It's a privacy issue. How would you like to drive up 
to an ATM and give somebody the information to do it for you? What's good 
for one is good for all of us." 

Those with partial sight may be able to see parts of an ATM, he said, "but 
your field of vision may be reduced or it takes you a lot longer to read the 
stuff that's on the screen." 

Arguments over the need for the federal accessibility standards are long 
over, although until February of this year some banks thought the new rules 
might not apply to their existing machines. 

But they do, and now banks and others that offer the automated cash 
dispensers are buying conversion kits, costing $1,000 to $4,000 each, or new 
machines, which range from $2,000 for a stripped-down, cash-only model to 
nearly $60,000 for one that scans checks, dispenses stamps and performs 
other functions. 

"We're replacing a lot of machines," said Mark Hesser, president of Pinnacle 
Bank of Omaha. His budget for upgrading or replacing the bank's 120 ATMs 
approaches $1 million. "It's a significant outlay, but it also allows us to 
upgrade many of our locations with the newest in ATM technologies." 

Hesser said he doesn't know how many customers will benefit from the 
improved machines, but at least one downtown Lincoln ATM has a high number 
of visually impaired users. Many of those machines have met the new 
standards for some time, he said, and many of the old machines would have 
been replaced in a year or so anyway. 

Among those who welcome the new machines is Amy Buresh of Lincoln, president 
of the Nebraska chapter of the National Federation of the Blind. She's a 
Pinnacle Bank customer, and when she needs cash, she requires assistance to 
use an ATM or has to go to a teller during banking hours. 

"We're all busy, and we want to have the same access as everybody else," she 
said. 

She estimated that 25,000 Nebraskans are legally blind and could benefit 
from the accessible machines. She has tried out demonstration models, she 
said, and "those machines do work very well. It's liberating." 

First National Bank of Omaha is on track to have its 300 ATMs in compliance 
with the rule, although the audio function so far is activated on "only a 
handful," said Senior Vice President Rolland Johannsen. 

It's been a dozen years since Wells Fargo & Co. installed what were believed 
to be the first "talking ATMs" in California. Costs of the voice-capable 
machine have declined steadily, making them more affordable. 

"I appreciate any functionality that is tactilely friendly," said Omahan 
Mark Bulger, whose "residual vision" lets him operate ATM machines, but not 
easily. "It's not just a few blind people anymore. There's a generation of 
seniors with age-related vision problems." 

Nationally, some bankers argued that they shouldn't have to replace machines 
that met earlier requirements for wheelchair access and other standards 
under the federal law. The new standards cover a wide range of public 
accessibility issues, from amusement parks to zoos. 

During the proposed rules' discussion period, banking groups asked to 
include existing ATMs under the act's "safe harbor" provision. That applies 
mostly to building requirements, such as the height of light switches or 
plumbing specifications. 

If a business remodeled its building in, say, 1998, and followed the 
standards in place at the time, it wouldn't be required to meet the 2012 
standards until it remodels again. 

Eventually, the bankers argued, nearly all ATMs would be replaced with 
machines that would meet the new standards. 

But the Justice Department didn't allow the safe harbor rule for ATMs. The 
department gave the force of law to the new rules in July 2010 and said it 
would begin enforcing them on March 15, 2012. 

Virginia O'Neill, senior counsel for the American Bankers Association in 
Washington, D.C., said some smaller banks were taken by surprise, but large 
banks have been upgrading ATM networks for years. 

She said she understands the government's reasoning: Access to financial 
services is important, and replacing all old-style ATMs voluntarily would 
take more than a decade. 

If a bank is in financial trouble and its spending is so restricted that it 
couldn't afford any extra expenses, it could try that argument, O'Neill 
said, but there's a risk of litigation. 

She said banks that won't meet the compliance deadline should make a plan 
and talk to their visually impaired customers. Maybe one fully equipped ATM 
would be enough for the short term. 

"The blind feel like it's been a long time, and I completely get that," 
O'Neill said. "It's the right thing. It's important to service your whole 
customer base." 

Some ATM manufacturers are offering trade-ins to reduce the cost of meeting 
the standards, said Aimee Leeper, marketing manager for Triton in 
Louisville, Ky., the parent company of ATM Gurus. There's been a recent 
spike in the sale of conversion kits to add voice capability and other 
requirements, she said. 

Small, nonbank ATM companies may have problems because they have a slim 
profit margin, Leepers said. "But it's the standard. Now it's sort of a race 
to the finish for everyone to get things in line to be able to comply in 
time. I think it'll be a valiant effort." 

Contact the writer: 402-444-1080, 
steve.jordon at owh.com < mailto:steve.jordon at owh.com >, 
twitter.com/buffettOWH< http://twitter.com/buffettOWH > 
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