What are Section 508 standards?

Section 508 requires that the federal government procure, create, use and maintain ICT that is accessible to people with disabilities, regardless of whether or not they work for the federal government.

What does Section 508 apply to?

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. § 794d) requires federal agencies to develop, procure, maintain or use Information and Communications Technology (ICT) that is accessible to people with disabilities – regardless of whether or not they work for the federal government.

What is Section 508 and why is it important?

What is Section 508? Section 508 is part of a 1998 amendment to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. It requires all Federal electronic content to be accessible. The U.S. Access Board is an independent Federal agency which develops and maintains standards that must be met to achieve 508 compliance.

When did Section 508 become law?

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 In 1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to require Federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology (EIT) accessible to people with disabilities.

What is 508 compliance checklist?

The accessibility checklists provide the evaluation criteria that must be met to ensure content is accessible to all users. Section 508 requires that all external public facing content and non-public facing official agency communications be accessible.

What is ADA and 508 compliance?

Brief Overview. The Americans with Disability Act (ADA) and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act both ensure that all people have equal access to goods, services, and communication. Section 508 is specific to Information Communication Technology for federal government agencies and services.

Why do we need 508 compliance?

That’s why Section 508 is so important. It holds all federal agencies and those receiving federal funding accountable while also offering guidance on how to provide digital accessibility properly. That way, all Americans are included in important communications.

How do you become 508 compliant?

The best way to ensure you meet the standards is to design your content to follow the standards, have the content audited for accessibility by a third-party vendor, and verify that is accessible to people with disabilities by having users with disabilities perform testing using assistive technology.

What are the differences between WCAG and Section 508?

– Content must be perceivable. – Interface elements in the content must be operable. – Content and controls must be understandable. – Content must be robust enough to work with current and future technologies.

What are 508 compliance standards?

The most common include WCAG, 508, and ADA. While each standard aims to make all information (whether digital or print) accessible to people with disabilities, they are all different. WCAG, for example, is a set of website accessibility guidelines while 508 compliance refers to a federal law and ADA a civil rights law.

What is Section 508 and who needs to be compliant?

Section 508 requires that the federal government procure, create, use and maintain ICT that is accessible to people with disabilities, regardless of whether or not they work for the federal government.

What do you need to know about Section 508?

– Keeping up with changing requirements and technology – Time constraints on staff – Large amount of information to learn, understand and apply