What's the law?

In 1998, Congress amended the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of 1973 with Section 508, which requires that individuals with disabilities, who are members of the public seeking information or services from a federal agency, have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. 

The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) published Web accessibility standards for compliance with Section 508 on Dec. 21, 2000. The enforcement date of the standards was June 21, 2001. Anyone with a disability who does not have "comparable access to and use of information and data" on a federal agency website may file a complaint or civil action against the federal department or agency that has not complied.

Section 504 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of 1973 mandates that institutions receiving federal funds provide equal access to their programs. Many state-funded public universities receive Assistive Technology grants, which the Department of Education claims makes them accountable to the web accessibility standards set forth in Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

Already lawsuits have been filed against various non-federal agencies using the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In a 1996 statement, the Department of Justice stated that the ADA will cover government entities on the Internet as well as those providers whose services are deemed to be "public accommodations." 
 

More information on the laws

Section 504 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of 1973

• Establishes that disability rights are a form of civil rights and therefore covered by the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
• Mandates that institutions receiving federal funds provide equal access to their programs.
• Uses total institutional budget (not just the computing area's budget) in measuring the "reasonableness" of required accommodations for accessibility.

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

• Wide-ranging legislation intended to make American society more accessible to people with disabilities.
• Extends the requirements of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to all public and commercial facilities, with few exceptions, not just those that receive federal funding.
• Requires that every institution receiving federal funds establish and maintain a plan of compliance.
   

Lawsuits

Florida State University

On June 29, 2011, two students from Florida State University (FSU) filed a suit against the university and its board of trustees. Mr. Toth and Ms. Principato, both blind, alleged that FSU’s Department of Mathematics did not provide necessary accommodations for them to complete required coursework. The suit claimed that because FSU did not provide alternative ways to complete assignments, they were unable to continue their degree programs. In March 2012, the lawsuit was resolved without an admission of liability or wrongdoing. FSU agreed to evaluate the accessibility of instructional materials. Each student received $75,000 from the settlement. 

Pennsylvania State University

In November 2010, the National Federation for the Blind (NFB) filed a complained against Pennsylvania State University with the US Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights. The NFB requested an investigation on behalf of Penn State students and faculty members because of accessibility problems they faced. The complaint cited that the library catalog was “not fully accessible to blind students due to improper coding that prevents screen access software used by the blind from properly interpreting the site.” Other issues included a lack of talking Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs). Penn State and NFB reached an agreement in October 2011 without an admission of wrongdoing. The university agreed to remain committed to making its campuses fully accessible.

Connecticut Attorney General's Office

In April 2000, the National Federation for the Blind (NFB) filed an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) lawsuit against the Connecticut Attorney General's Office, which provided links to four inaccessible online tax filing services on its Internal Revenue Service's official website.

The four tax filing services (Intuit, HDVest, H&R Block and CioCia) voluntarily agreed to begin making their websites accessible to the sight-impaired in time for the next tax season.

Bank of America 

In March 2000, an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) agreement was reached between the California Council for the Blind and Bank of America to install 2,500 talking Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) in Florida and California and to ensure its websites and online banking services are accessible to people using screen-readers.

America Online 

In November 1999, the National Federation for the Blind (NFB) filed an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) lawsuit against America Online (AOL) after AOL failed to alter its inaccessible software to allow compatibility with screen readers.

According to an agreement on July 26, 2000, between the NFB and AOL, AOL will continue its existing efforts to ensure that new versions of AOL's software are compatible with screen reader assistive technology, which makes websites accessible to blind users. 

NFB has the right to renew their ADA action against AOL and may do so as early as July 26, 2001. Therefore, the agreement should not be regarded as a settlement.