>From the web page
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0301/032201td.htm

GOVEXEC.COM TODAY
March 22, 2001
Headline:  House chair concerned about IT accessibility rules
House chair may overhaul IT accessibility rule
By William New, National Journal's Technology Daily

A House lawmaker who oversees government procurement of
technology products on Wednesday praised new rules designed to
make the government's information technology more accessible to
the disabled but found fault with several specific items in those
rules.

"I do have concerns about particular sections of the regulations
that appear to be overly prescriptive in defining the type of
standard and technology to be utilized," Virginia Republican Tom
Davis, chairman of
the House Government Reform Technology and Procurement Policy
Subcommittee, said at an Adobe Systems event on IT accessibility.
Davis said the rules should give industry more flexibility to
implement
market-driven solutions.

At issue is Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which
requires that all federal agencies make their electronic and
information technology accessible to the disabled. The rules to
implement Section 508, which were drafted by the U.S. Access
Board, took effect Dec. 20 and must be implemented by June 20.
The Bush administration has signaled support for the rules.

While Davis praised the rules as significant progress, he
expressed concern that industry faces two sets of standards in
some cases. He further said the specific criteria in certain
instances are "contrary to what Congress and government have been
asking procurement officials to do in recent years"--to focus on
outcome, not just process.

David Capozzi of the Access Board defended the rules as striking
a balance between specificity and flexibility. But he
acknowledged that "there is always room for improvement."

Bartlett Cleland, vice president and counsel for the software
division of the Information Technology Association of America
(ITAA), said ITAA has backed Section 508 despite some industry
complaints. The association is working to educate companies on
what they need to know by the June deadline. To get industry on
board, he said, "it's helpful to have a whip in one hand and a
carrot in the other."

Cleland noted that although Section 508 does not  impose any
direct requirements on the private sector, it does set
technological standards for the high-tech industry's biggest
customer, the federal government,
and that effectively changes the entire industry. "Industry's not
going to make two products," he said.


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