[NFBV-Announce] 2023 Legislative Priorities from the Blind of Virginia

Fri Jan 13 15:32:45 UTC 2023

2023 LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES FROM THE BLIND OF VIRGINIA

Priority 1: Modernize government procurement of accessible technology.

Action: Co-Sponsor HB2207 (Del. Kathy Tran).

Issue: Technology and its impact on our lives has changed dramatically over
the past 25 years. In response, Virginia and Federal laws have been updated
to reflect expectations that people with disabilities will be able to
participate in community life. However, Virginia law requiring accessibility
to be a factor in technology acquisition has not been modernized.

One important example of this issue is that Virginia school districts are
not consistently using technology that is accessible for students with
disabilities. While there is a robust market for education technology,
accessibility for students with disabilities is not a factor in the product
selection process by Virginia schools. This has led to the Federal
Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) signing resolution
agreements with 17 Commonwealth entities involved in educating Virginians
with disabilities due to inaccessible technology since 2016. See Joint
Commission on Technology and Science 2022 HB
<http://dls.virginia.gov/commissions/jcots/Materials/JCOTS%202022%20HB1246%2
0Study%20Report.pdf> 1246 Accessible Digital Tools and Education Study.
Without providing accessible technology at the front end, schools end up
spending more to have educators create one-off solutions so that students
with disabilities can learn alongside their peers. Moreover, while Virginia
colleges and other Virginia Commonwealth entities are explicitly required to
consider accessibility in their procurement process under the Virginia
Information Technology Accessibility Act (ITAA), that law is woefully
outdated given that it has not been substantively amended since its passage
in 1999. This has led to many Virginia governmental entities' websites,
apps, and other information and communication technology being inaccessible.
This results in, for example, difficulties in voting, obtaining information
about current health and weather crises, and even finding someone in the
government to address accessibility problems.

Solution: HB2207 modernizes the ITAA in a number of ways to provide Virginia
governmental entities the guidance they need to ensure compliance with other
Federal and Virginia laws that require accessible technology. These other
laws include Section 504 of Federal Rehabilitation Act, the Virginia and
Americans with Disabilities Acts, and, with respect to local schools, the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. However, the ITAA has not kept
up with current law or market realities that have changed significantly
since 1999. For example, it currently only applies to those who are blind or
low vision, not all persons with disabilities, despite the fact that
procurement for accessibility is not legally limited or practically
constrained to those who are blind. In addition, it does not cover K-12,
even though 14 of the 17 OCR resolutions since 2016 have involved Virginia
public school systems and technology has permeated the student experience
since 1999. Moreover, it does not make it clear that the usage of the
exception in the ITAA to procure accessible technology does not necessarily
ensure compliance with other Federal and Virginia legal requirements. HB2207
seeks to address these shortcomings, as well as modernize the outdated
technological language found in the current version of the ITAA.  

Priority 2: Enable blind Virginians to become employed and live
independently. 

Action: Support the Governor's budget proposal for the Department for the
Blind and Vision Impaired (DBVI). 

Issue: DBVI provides vocational rehabilitation (VR) training, leading to
employment of Virginians who are blind, deaf/blind, and vision impaired.
DBVI does not have sufficient dedicated funding for the state's share of
Federal-matching VR services. Without additional funding, DBVI anticipates a
wait list for VR services for 40 adults and students in the next 12 months. 

Solution: The Governor's budget request includes $642,000 for such services.
This funding would help ensure the availability of sufficient funds needed
to serve blind Virginians who require VR services because it would reduce
the waiting list and assure a source of matching funds for the federal VR
grant, ultimately saving the state money.  These additional funds would help
to enable blind adults and students to find employment, establish careers
and become taxpayers.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

The National Federation of the Blind is America's largest and most active
organization of blind people. With tens of thousands of members nationwide,
we are not an "agency" claiming to speak for the blind; we are blind people
speaking for ourselves. In Virginia, we are organized into 13 local chapters
throughout the Commonwealth, and into various special interest divisions.

Tracy Soforenko

President, National Federation of the Blind of Virginia

202 285-4595

 <mailto:Tracy.soforenko at gmail.com> Tracy.soforenko at gmail.com

 <http://www.nfb.org> www.nfb.org

 <http://www.nfbv.org> www.nfbv.org

National Federation of the Blind. Live the Life You Want

The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation's blind. Every day we work
together to help blind people live the lives they want.

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