Archived 508 Coordinators Reference Manual - Section 2
Section 2: The Federal Acquisition Regulation Final Rule
The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council revised the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and published the final rule in the Federal Register on April 25, 2001. The FAR rule became effective June 25, 2001 and applies as follows:
- For contracts other than indefinite-quantity contracts, it applies to contracts awarded on or after June 25th.
- For indefinite-quantity contracts, it applies to delivery or task orders issued on or after June 25th.
Indefinite quantity contracts may include Federal Supply Schedule contracts, government-wide acquisition contracts (GWACs), multi-agency contracts (MACs), and other interagency acquisitions. Indefinite-quantity contracts may include noncompliant items, provided that any task or delivery order issued for noncompliant EIT meets an applicable exception. The Access Board's EIT provisions do not apply to:
- Taking delivery for items ordered prior to the effective date of this rule;
- Within-scope modifications of contracts awarded before the effective date of this rule;
- Exercising unilateral options for contracts awarded before the effective date of this rule; or
- Multiyear contracts awarded before the effective date of this rule.
As a matter of policy, purchases from the Committee for Purchase from People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled, and Federal Prison Industries (UNICOR) are to be treated as procurements in the same way as items from commercial sources.
The rule makes an exception for micro-purchases until January 1, 2003, although compliance is encouraged. GSA recommends that agencies modify cardholder training to remind purchase cardholders of EIT accessibility requirements. However, this exception does not exempt all products that cost less than $2,500. The exception is for a one-time purchase under $2,500 made on the open market. Orders under $2,500 against existing contracts are not considered micro-purchases and must meet the provisions or an approved exception. Further, a specific product is not exempt just because its cost is less than $2,500. If the low-dollar item is included in an order that is over the threshold, the provisions apply.
2.2 Availability of Products that Meet the Applicable Technical Provisions
When acquiring commercial items, an agency looks at supplies and services, which are available in the commercial marketplace (in time to meet the agency's delivery requirements), to determine which of the applicable technical provisions can be met. The requiring official must document individual provisions that cannot be met due to non-availability, with a copy to the contract file. If products are available that meet some, but not all applicable provisions, agencies cannot claim a product as a whole is non-available just because it does not meet all of the provisions.
Each Agency needs to establish an "undue burden" process for documenting, tracking, and approving instances where the "undue burden" exception is invoked.
To determine whether acquisition of EIT that meets the applicable technical provisions would impose an undue burden, agencies must consider the difficulty or expense of compliance relative to all agency resources available to the program or component for which the product is being acquired. If an undue burden is justified, agencies must provide an alternative means of access that allow the individual to use the information and data.
Documentation of an undue burden determination is required. If an agency invokes the undue burden exception, it must document in writing the basis for the decision and provide documentation for inclusion in the contract file. In addition, the statue requires the information and data to be provided to disabled individuals by an alternative means of access. Agencies have additional responsibilities under sections 501 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
Section 508 applies to Federal departments and agencies and is designed to be implemented through the Federal procurement process. It does not generally apply to recipients of Federal funds, and does not regulate the private sector. The technical provisions cover technology procured by Federal agencies directly and under contract with private entities, but apply only to those products directly relevant to the contract and its deliverables. States that receive Federal funds under the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 are required to comply with Section 508 and the provisions as published by the Access Board. For additional information contact Carol Cohen at the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) by telephone at (202) 205-5666 or by email at Carol.Cohen@ed.gov.
While Section 508 does not apply directly to the private sector, EIT vendors selling to Federal agencies should document that their hardware and software meet all applicable Section 508 technical provisions, either directly or through equivalent facilitation. (See Section 3.4.2.1 below.) Manufacturers and providers of EIT products need to be able to make design choices and R&D investments with a clear understanding of the criteria Federal procurement officials will use. Federal procurement officials in turn need to acquire EIT based on verifiable accessibility. The Department of Justice must be able to measure agencies' compliance with Section 508, in order to issue its biennial report to the President and Congress, as required by law.
