Legal reasons for building accessible web sites.

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act mandates that organizations must provide the necessary aids and services to allow effective communication to people with disabilities. (See 28 CFR §36.303; 28 CFR §35.160).

Note: Both CFR references were retrieved from the CFR database at the Government Printing Office's Code of Federal Regulations site.

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act

On August 7, 1998 President Clinton signed The Workforce Investment Act, including the Rehabilitation Act Amendments with an expanded and strengthened Section 508. Section 508 focuses on the Federal Government and its vendors. Enforcement of Section 508 began on June 21, 2001.

The standards are codified at 36 CFR Part 1194 and may be accessed through the Access Board’s web site at http://www.access-board.gov/.

From the Section 508 Frequently Asked Questions page

Section 508 requirements are separate from, but complementary to, requirements in sections 501 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act that require, among other things, that agencies provide reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities, provide program access to members of the public with disabilities, and take other actions necessary to prevent discrimination on the basis of disability in their programs.