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Thread: NFB files complaint re US Small Bus Admin website inaccessibility

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Number of posts in this thread: 4 (In chronological order)

From: Jennison Mark Asuncion
Date: Sat, Jul 25 2009 7:30AM
Subject: NFB files complaint re US Small Bus Admin website inaccessibility
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Hello,

Haven't seen this passed along here.

Jennison


Jennison Asuncion
Co-Director, Adaptech Research Network http://www.adaptech.org
LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jennison

---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: Freeh, Jessica = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:
Chris Danielsen
Director of Public Relations
National Federation of the Blind
(410) 659-9314, extension 2330
(410) 262-1281 (Cell)
= EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =

National Federation of the Blind and Blind Business Owner
File Complaint with Small Business Administration

SBA's Inaccessible Web Site Discriminates Against the Blind

Baltimore, Maryland (July 22, 2009): The National Federation of the
Blind, the nation's oldest and largest organization of blind people
and the leading advocate for equal access by the blind to information
technology, and Virgil Stinnett, a blind business owner from
Honolulu, Hawaii, filed an administrative complaint today with the
Small Business Administration (SBA). The complaint asserts that the
SBA's Web site violates Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act because
it is inaccessible to blind people who use text-to-speech screen
access technology or Braille displays to access information on the
Internet. Because of the inaccessibility of the SBA Web site, blind
people cannot fill out forms on the site or take online courses
offered by the SBA. Mr. Stinnett was unable to apply for
certification under Section 8(a) of the Small Business Act because of
the inaccessibility of the Web site. Section 8(a) certification
would provide Mr. Stinnett's business with access to federal and
private procurement markets.

Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind,
said: "Blind Americans have the same dreams, the same goals, and the
same entrepreneurial spirit as all other Americans. If we are to
have equal access to the tools and techniques needed to be effective
business owners and to compete on terms of equality with our sighted
peers, we must have equal access to the resources offered on the SBA
Web site and other government sites. The National Federation of the
Blind demands equality for blind business owners and will tolerate
nothing less."

Virgil Stinnett, owner of Good News HI, a business providing military
dining services, said: "As a blind entrepreneur, access to the SBA
Web site is critical in order for me to use its programs and services
and expand my business. The fact that I could not access the Web
site has cost me time and resources that I would not have needed to
expend if I had been able to use the site like everyone else. I hope
the action we are taking today will prompt the SBA to take immediate
steps so that all Americans, blind and sighted, have equal access to
the programs, training, and resources that it provides."

Complainants are represented by attorneys Daniel F. Goldstein and
Allison L. Harper of Brown, Goldstein & Levy, LLP, <?xml:namespace
prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />120
E. Baltimore Street, Suite 1700, Baltimore, MD 21202, (410) 962-1030,
fax: (410) 385-0869, = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =
= EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =
http://www.browngold.com

From: Jared Smith
Date: Sat, Jul 25 2009 7:45AM
Subject: Re: NFB files complaint re US Small Bus Admin website inaccessibility
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On Sat, Jul 25, 2009 at 7:26 AM, Jennison Mark Asuncion wrote:

> filed an administrative complaint today with the
> Small Business Administration (SBA).  The complaint asserts that the
> SBA's Web site violates Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act

This will be very interesting to follow. There is no path for remedies
in Section 508 or even a real administrative body that enforces
Section 508. In other words, I you can't as a consumer really sue
somebody because a government web site is not Section 508 compliant.
So this really is just a very formal complaint and hopefully it will
get the SBA to do what's right. But if they do not act, I wonder what
the next step would be - it certainly wouldn't involve Section 508.

Jared Smith
WebAIM

From: Cynthia Waddell
Date: Sun, Jul 26 2009 12:40AM
Subject: Re: NFB files complaint re US Small Bus Admin websiteinaccessibility
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Everyone,
It is not true that there is no path for remedies under Section 508.

An individual with a disability can file an administrative complaint against
a federal agency - such as the one filed against the US Small Business
Administration, or the individual can file a civil case in Federal Court
against the federal agency for noncompliance with Section 508.

Perhaps it would be helpful to refer everyone to the Speak Out! Tool
published under a federal grant by ITTATC at
http://www.ittatc.org/technical/speakout/508.php. This publication explains
how to file complaints about inaccessible information and telecommunication
technology.

In some cases, a Section 501, 504 and/or Section 508 case may need to be
filed to seek remedies. The complaint process for Section 508 follows the
Section 504 procedures.

Anyone interested in basic guidelines for speaking out might want to check
out this tool. It contains decision paths for filing complaints under the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended (Sections 501, 504 and 508), the
Communications Act of 1934 (Sections 255 and 713), The Americans with
Disabilities Act, and other legislation such as the Hearing Aid
Compatibility Act, the Television Decoder Circuitry Act and the Televised
Emergency Programming Rules.

Best regards,
Cynthia Waddell

--------------------------------------------------
Cynthia D. Waddell, JD
Executive Director and
Law, Policy and Technology Consultant
International Center for Disability Resources
on the Internet (ICDRI) Phone: (408) 691-6921

ICT Accessibility & Government Services Expert
United Nations Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs
www.g3ict.com

ICDRI is based in
Raleigh, North Carolina USA
http://www.icdri.org/CynthiaW/cynthia_d.htm

See My Books!
Web Accessibility: Web Standards and
Regulatory Compliance by Apress 2006
at www.icdri.org/WSR_Book.htm
See also Constructing Accessible Web Sites
www.icdri.org/constructing_accessible_web_site.htm

Is your Web Site Accessible?
Find out now with Cynthia Says! www.cynthiasays.com
Endorsed by the American Council of the Blind,
the CynthiaSaysTM portal is a joint Education
and Outreach project of ICDRI, The Internet
Society Disability and Special Needs Chapter,
and HiSoftware.
-----Original Message-----
From: Jared Smith [mailto: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = ]
Sent: Saturday, July 25, 2009 6:45 AM
To: WebAIM Discussion List
Subject: Re: [WebAIM] NFB files complaint re US Small Bus Admin
websiteinaccessibility

On Sat, Jul 25, 2009 at 7:26 AM, Jennison Mark Asuncion wrote:

> filed an administrative complaint today with the
> Small Business Administration (SBA).  The complaint asserts that the
> SBA's Web site violates Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act

This will be very interesting to follow. There is no path for remedies
in Section 508 or even a real administrative body that enforces
Section 508. In other words, I you can't as a consumer really sue
somebody because a government web site is not Section 508 compliant.
So this really is just a very formal complaint and hopefully it will
get the SBA to do what's right. But if they do not act, I wonder what
the next step would be - it certainly wouldn't involve Section 508.

Jared Smith
WebAIM

From: Jared Smith
Date: Sun, Jul 26 2009 5:40AM
Subject: Re: NFB files complaint re US Small Bus Admin websiteinaccessibility
← Previous message | No next message

On Sun, Jul 26, 2009 at 12:37 AM, Cynthia
Waddell< = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = > wrote:
> Everyone,
> It is not true that there is no path for remedies under Section 508.

Thank you for the clarification. Maybe you could provide a bit more.
It's my understanding that while you can file a complaint with the
agency, there's no requirement that the agency actually do anything
about it. In other words, Section 508 doesn't say, "If someone
complains, you have to do what they ask for." Now the agency should
have internal procedures for handling the complaint, but there's no
requirement to do so in Section 508. As such, it's quite possible that
an agency can ignore you or tell you "sorry", right?

There is no "508 police" that enforces Section 508 accessibility for citizens.

So then the only option is to file a civil suit, but because the scope
of Section 508 is really federal procurement, it isn't really the best
option to bring such action - at least I'm not aware of a citizen
successfully suing under Section 508. Section 501 or Section 504 would
be better, but they often don't have scope over citizens. The ADA is
another option, though that one is even questionable when it comes to
the web and non-employees.

Thank you for pointing out the Speak Out! Tool. It's a great resource.

Jared Smith
WebAIM