from Government Computer News www.gcn.com



Ruling doesn't affect Section 508 Web requirements, board says
10/23/02
By Dipka Bhambhani,
GCN Staff
Government Web sites must still be accessible to the disabled, despite a
recent court ruling and the ongoing debate over accessibility for commercial
sites,

according to the Access Board.

Earlier this month, a U.S. District judge in south Florida said the
Americans with Disabilities Act, signed into law in 1990, applied only to
physical spaces such as ticket counters, not cyberspace. The judge ruled
against a blind plaintiff who had sued Southwest Airlines, claiming the
company's Web site was inaccessible.

"I don't think it [the ruling] has any impact at all on Section 508," said
David Capozzi, director of technical and information services for the Access
Board.

Section 508, included in the 1998 amendments to the Rehabilitation Act of
1973, makes it clear that federal Web sites are mandated to be accessible,
he said. "That shouldn't be open to interpretation."

The Justice Department has fielded its own share of complaints against
private enterprises that have not made their Web sites accessible, Capozzi
said.

Nearly two years ago, a mentally disabled plaintiff filed a complaint with
Justice, which eventually filed a brief that said public sites, including
the
Internet, are required to adhere to the ADA regulations.

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