Accessibility Regulations

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Helpful Information on Accessibility Regulations

Most businesses, government agencies, educational institutions and organizations today are held to a higher standard to be inclusive and accessible to as many individuals as possible. However, those that work with the government are subject to compliance with accessibility regulations and laws that support the rights of access to information for people with disabilities. In the US, the Federal Communications Commission enforces broadcast captioning laws. That law ensures that most prime-time and network-delivered shows must contain captions. The majority of US and International Web accessibility laws and guidelines rely on the World Wide Web (W3C) organization’s Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), which specifies guidelines for making media accessible. US accessibility mandates in Section 504 and Section 508 of The Rehabilitation Act require accessible media for government agencies, public educational institutions and organizations that do business with or receive funding from the government. Civil litigation is usually the pathway impacted parties take for non-compliance with accessibility laws, which most want to avoid at all costs.

The information below provides a summary of relevant legislation to be aware of. Do note that the items on this list do not constitute a legal opinion.

U.S. Federal Laws

21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2008 and 2009An Act designed to ensure that individuals with disabilities have access to emerging Internet Protocol-based communication and video programming technologies. This bill applies to broadcasters who have online video content.

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990Sections of this act prohibit discrimination against those with disabilities. This law applies to both state and local governments.

Rehabilitation Act of 1973: Section 508Section 508 requires captioning and transcription of any video content made public by federal agencies or organizations receiving federal funds, including higher education institutions.

Section 504 and Title II of the ADADesigned to prevent discrimination, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 require all elementary and secondary schools to make accommodations for students with disabilities.

Television Decoder Circuitry Act of 1990This act requires new televisions to have built-in closed caption decoder circuitry

Assistive Technology Act of 1998: By virtue of this act (29 U.S.C. 3002), the Rehabilitation Act’s Section 508 regulations are applicable to the states. For instance, the law applies to state colleges, universities and contractors and grantees.

Telecommunications Act of 1996The Telecommunications Act of 1996 requires virtually broadcast and cable programs to be captioned.

Cable Television Captioning Requirements under 47 C.F.R. 76.606Cable Television Captioning Requirements under 47 C.F.R. 76.606 protect captioning data and quality for all cable television systems.

U.S. State Laws

The following states (not comprehensive) have enacted policies regarding the accessibility of media and Web sites: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Oklahoma. Most of these states have adopted laws similar to the Federal Laws. Several states have enacted or have pending specific laws addressing issues such as captioning and publishers’ obligations to provide captioned materials or to provide copyright clearance to enable non-captioned materials to be captioned. Missouri Law (Icon for a PDF file RSMo 170.135) requires publishers or manufacturers of electronic video instructional materials to supply the videos with open or closed captions to make the materials more accessible for students with hearing impairment as of January 1, 2008. Failure to comply will include financial penalties. California Assembly Bill 386, introduced in February 2009, would require that publishers caption upon request or provide a license to caption to California schools that need captioned material. The law would impose tight deadlines for actions and provide options to allow schools the ability to caption materials on their own with no copyright constraints if the publisher is not able to comply.

Learn more about captioning copyright.

Canadian Laws

Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA): This act has phase-in requirements for accessibility in key areas such as education in the province of Ontario. While the phase-in period to become compliant is rather lengthy, institutions are required to submit plans to demonstrate how they will comply.

Public Notice CRTC 1995-48: This notice directs major English-language television networks to caption at least 90% of all programming during the broadcast day as well as all local news, including live segments. Individual stations and specialty networks also have requirements as specified in their license.

United Kingdom Laws

The United Kingdom had representatives working on the World Wide Web’s (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative and has adopted priority one guidelines similar to legislation in the United States.

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995: Part III Access to Goods and Services

Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995, Part IV: Education

Additional Resources