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Purpose
It is the policy of the State that persons, including
those with disabilities, have equivalent access to electronic
equipment and information technology. Such access applies to
current and prospective employees with disabilities, as well
as to citizens with disabilities who need to access State offices
and public information services. The purpose of this Technology
Policy is to review the underlying statutory requirements and
to provide guidelines to be followed by State agencies regarding
accessibility to technology for persons with disabilities.
Overview
The goals of this policy are:
- to retain, maintain and/or improve productivity levels of
workplace users of technology; and,
- to improve the ease with which all citizens, including those
with disabilities, can access and benefit from government services
and information.
The keystone to making technology accessible to persons with
disabilities is the concept of "Universal Design."
Universal Design is the process of creating products (devices,
environments, systems and processes) which can be used by people
with the widest possible range of abilities in the widest range
of possible situations (environments, conditions, and circumstances).
It requires designing products that are flexible enough that
they can be used directly (without requiring any assistive technology
or modifications), and yet compatible with assistive technologies
for those persons who cannot use the product directly.
Universal design is the responsibility of the manufacturers
of hardware and software products. State agencies should seek
to incorporate the concept of Universal Design, as a framework,
into all current systems where feasible, and into all new development
initiatives. This policy, and associated attachments, provides
an overview of ways to ensure equal access for persons with disabilities
and some examples of devices and products on the market that
can comprise an agency's Universal Design.
Statutory Requirements
Attachment A provides a description of the Federal and State
legislation and regulations governing an agency's responsibility
to provide access to technology for persons with disabilities.
To summarize, these provisions require that employees and citizens
with disabilities have reasonable access to electronic and information
technology. State agencies must make reasonable accommodations
to such persons to ensure they can adequately perform their jobs
and/or access government services.
Guidelines
As a general guideline, State agencies should strive to ensure
that present and potential employees, and citizens with disabilities,
have access to information and data comparable to that accorded
individuals who do not have disabilities.
For the purpose of this Technology Policy, "electronic
and information technology" means any equipment, software,
interface systems, operating systems, or interconnected system
or subsystem of equipment used in the acquisition, storage, manipulation,
management, movement, control, display, switching, interchange,
transmission, or reception of data or information. "Comparable
access" means that individuals with disabilities must be
able to produce and have access to the same or equivalent information
processing resources, with or without special peripherals, as
individuals without disabilities.
What follows is a general overview of the planning and procurement
considerations an agency should address, and the types of accessibility
accommodations and solutions that are available. In addition,
Attachment B describes some products that an agency may utilize
to secure equivalent access. Attachment B focuses on five principle
areas: Technology Accommodations for Data Entry (Input) and Production
(Output), Telephone Access, the Construction of Web Sites, the
Use of Kiosks, and Related Tools for Agency Use.
Planning and Procurement. State agencies are required
to plan for and be ready to provide equal access to electronic
office technology for persons with disabilities. Agencies should
first, conduct a needs assessment of the types of accommodations/
modifications which may be necessary, and a requirement analysis
to determine the type of modifications and equipment that may
need to be acquired. Agencies should also identify the primary
access points to buildings or services used by the public to
obtain, or provide, information from or to the agency. Agency
personnel familiar with accommodations and procurement should
be involved in this assessment. Whenever possible, employees
with disabilities, supervisors, business/fiscal staff, information
resource management staff, community members with disabilities,
rehabilitation engineers, or other qualified rehabilitation professionals
may also be involved.
As a result of evaluating employee needs and public access,
agencies may find that existing equipment can be adapted to provide
an accommodation should the need arise, and/or a need for new
equipment acquisitions. It should be noted that equipment procured
for public access, must have features to provide equivalent access
for persons with disabilities. The New York State Office of Advocate
for Persons with Disabilities (OAPwD), TRAID Project is available
to assist State agencies in planning for accessibility and helping
to identify technology resources to meet employee and public
access needs. In addition, the Department of Civil Service has
issued the following procedures to assist agencies in this regard:
"Reasonable Accommodation in State Agencies, 1991;"
and "A Supervisor's Guide: Working with People with Disabilities."
All agencies are expected to follow these procedures.
Accommodations/Modifications. "Reasonable accommodations"
or "reasonable modifications" can include a logical
adjustment made to a job and/or work environment which enables
a qualified person with a disability to perform the duties of
that position. For example, an employee with a visual disability
may be provided with a computer with a voice output or a refreshable
Braille device. It may also mean acquiring, modifying or enhancing
equipment, and/or restructuring jobs.
When a State agency provides services and/or information to
the public, it must also ensure that citizens with disabilities
can produce, use and access information necessary to provide
the service to, and interact with, the consumer. Equipment such
as computers, information kiosks, telephones and other office
equipment can be modified or enhanced to permit access.
Access to information such as agency brochures, training films,
public service announcements, documentation for computer technology,
etc., should be provided in a usable format for State agency
employees with disabilities and upon request by citizens with
disabilities. Braille, large print, or disks in ASCII format,
audio tape, and captioned videos are options that can be considered.
Accessibility Alternatives. There are numerous accessibility
solutions available to address the needs of persons with disabilities.
Accessibility solutions range from hardware and software add-ons,
or so-called "layered" or "compatible" solutions,
to hardware "built-ins" and operating system enhancements.
"Built in" accessibility solutions (e.g., ability
to enlarge characters on the computer screen) are preferable
to "layered" solutions. Layering solutions involve
adding software and/or hardware between the end-user and the
operating system or application software. While this solution
may have advantages, it can also increase costs, increase difficulty
for maintaining software updates and add costs to train employees
to utilize dissimilar equipment at sites across the State. For
these reasons, layering should be selected only after careful
analysis of its merits (functional operation, purchase cost and
costs related to technical assistance and support) relative to
those of "built-in" solutions.
Training and Support. Agencies should make arrangements
to ensure that technical training and follow-up support is provided
in a timely manner to ensure that assistive equipment purchased
by the agency, is used for its intended use and to its fullest
potential.
Resources/Support. Agencies interested in obtaining
additional information or assistance for accommodating employees
and/or public access, may contact:
- New York State Office of Advocate for Persons with Disabilities
One Empire State Plaza, Suite 1001
Albany, NY 12223-1150
(800) 522-4369 (voice/TTY/Spanish)
(518) 474-2825 (voice only) (518) 473-4231 (TTY only)
(518) 473-6005 (fax)
The New York State Office of Advocate for Persons with Disabilities
(OAPwD) operates a computerized Bulletin Board Service (BBS)
where users can access database programs with a wealth of information
such as SATIRN II: an information and referral database that
contains information on programs, services and technology suppliers;
TRAID-IN: an equipment exchange service for individuals looking
to buy, sell, or donate used equipment; and ABLEDATA: a national
database of assistive technology devices for persons with disabilities.
The OAPwD, TRAID Project is also available. OAPwD and TRAID staff
can assist in identifying professionals and organizations qualified
to conduct evaluations of an individual's technology needs and/or
technology suppliers. TRAID supports Regional TRAID Centers (RTC)
located throughout New York. Many of the Regional TRAID Centers
maintain product demonstration centers to enable agency staff
to independently research and test devices. Centers should be
contacted in advance to determine what is available on site or
to discuss arrangements for possible try-outs or demonstrations.
- New York State Department of Civil Service
Reasonable Accommodation Unit
Division of Diversity Planning and Management
Harriman State Office Building Campus, Building #1
Albany, NY 12239
(518) 457-8023 (voice)
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- Managing Information Resources for Accessibility is
a handbook, published by the U.S. General Services Administration,
which addresses Section 508 responsibility. The handbook is available
from:
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- GSA Clearinghouse on Computer Accommodation (COCA)
Room 2022 KGDO
18th & F Streets, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20405
(202) 501-4906 (voice)
(202) 501-2010 (TTY)
Internet Access to COCA via the World Wide Web:
Center on Information Technology Accommodation, IT for persons
with disabilities
http://www.gsa.gov/coca
All technology policies are available in alternative formats
(large print, disk and braille). Requests should be made to:
- The Governor's Task Force on Information Resource Management
Executive Chamber
State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224 or
(518) 473-5622, (518) 473-3389 fax
e-mail nyoft@oft.state.ny.us
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