Accessibility
Policy
In response to the need to insure equal access to electronic and information
technologies, Iowa Interactive on behalf of IowaAudiors.org has developed
a set of standards for Web page design. In recognition of those individuals
with visual, physical or developmental disabilities IowaAudiors.org
has taken steps to make government information accessible to all.
Design Standards
IowaAudiors.org has adopted the Design of HTML Pages to increase
accessibility to users with disabilities as the primary guideline
to meet the objectives
of Section 508 compliance.
- Every
graphic image will have an "alt" tag
and a short description that is intuitive to the user. If a graphic
image is
used as a navigation
element, it will contain text description and direction that is intuitive
to the user.
- Every
graphic image that uses an image map, alternative text of
the hyperlink will be provided.
- The
Site will have descriptive, intuitive text links and avoid
the use of vague references such as "click," "here," "link," or "this."
- An
alternative form of access will be made available for online
forms, such as an email address or phone number.
- The
use of frames will be avoided since they cannot be read intelligently
by screen readers, create navigation
problems
and are not supported
by all browsers. IowaAudiors.org cannot be held responsible
for sites outside the network that utilize frames.
- Tables
will include textual information displayed in a linear form
across the table, as well as cells will
be
named to
aid as reference.
- Multiple
browser testing will be conducted on the various versions of
Netscape Navigator, Internet Explorer.
Resources
THE LAW
The Section 508 Web Site is an excellent source for
general information, standards, evaluation, events,
and resources
surrounding Section
508, which will impact electronic and information
technology on the Web.
http://www.section508.gov/
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended
for the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. The content
of
this document
directly relates
to the Federal government and any public or private
industry contracting with the Federal government.
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/508/508law.html
Enforcing ADA compliance - The Department of Justice
handles complaints and enforcement.
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/enforce.htm
Title II, Section 508 speaks directly to state,
local governments and all other public entities.
This highlights
page provides
a concise
overview, abbreviated information on specific chapters
that must comply with ADA standards and information
about the
complaint and
enforcement
process.
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/t2hlt95.htm
SOFTWARE UTILITIES
Sun's Java Accessibility Utilities - an excellent
source of utility classes designed to help assistive
technologies
interact with Web
development components.
http://java.sun.com/products/jfc/jaccess-1.2/doc/
Adobe's PDF Converter allows you to convert regular
PDF files to html. One of the required standards
is providing
and HTML
alternative
to
PDF files.
http://access.adobe.com/simple_form.html
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