Senate Bill No. 476
(By Senators Hunter, Unger, Caldwell, Rowe, Burnett, Redd,
Fanning, Helmick, Ross and Sharpe)
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[Introduced March 14, 2001; referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding
thereto a new article, designated article ten-m, relating to
providing access to information technology for individuals who
are blind or visually impaired through the procurement of the
technology through state purchasing; setting forth findings
and a statement of policy; setting forth definitions;
providing for the assurance of nonvisual access to information
technology; providing procurement requirements for the
acquisition of information technology; requiring applicability of nonvisual access requirements in all state contracts for
procurement of information technology; and providing for
injunctive relief for violations of the article.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by adding
thereto a new article, designated article ten-m, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 10M. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ACCESS FOR THE BLIND AND
VISUALLY IMPAIRED.
§18-10M-1. Findings; policy.
(a) The Legislature finds as follows:
(1) The advent of the information age throughout the United
States and around the world has resulted in lasting changes in
information technology;
(2) The use of interactive display terminals by state and
state-assisted organizations is becoming a widespread means of
access for employees and the public to obtain information available
electronically, but nonvisual access, whether by speech, braille,
or other appropriate means has been overlooked in purchasing and
deploying the latest information technology;
(3) Presentation of electronic data solely in a visual format is a barrier to access by individuals who are blind or visually
impaired, preventing them from participating on equal terms in
crucial areas of life, such as education and employment;
(4) Alternatives, including both software and hardware
adaptations, have been created so that interactive control of
computers and use of the information presented is possible by both
visual and nonvisual means; and
(b) It is the policy of this state that all programs and
activities which are supported in whole or in part by public funds
be conducted in accordance with the following principles:
(1) Individuals who are blind or visually impaired have the
right to full participation in the life of the state, including the
use of advanced technology which is provided by the state or
state-assisted organizations for use by employees, program
participants, and members of the general public; and
(2) Technology purchased in whole or in part with public funds
to be used for the creation, storage, retrieval, or dissemination
of information and intended for use by employees, program
participants, and members of the general public shall be accessible
to and usable by individuals who are blind or visually impaired.
§18-10M-2. Definitions.
The following words have the meanings indicated:
(a) "Access" means the ability to receive, use and manipulate
data and operate controls included in information technology;
(b) "Blind or visually impaired individual" means a person
who: (1) Has a visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye
with correcting lenses or has a limited field of vision so that the
widest diameter of the visual field subtends an angle no greater
than twenty degrees; or (2) has a medically indicated expectation
of visual deterioration; or (3) has a medically diagnosed
limitation in visual functioning that restricts the individual's
ability to read and write standard print at levels expected of
individuals of comparable ability;
(c) "Covered entity" means all electronic information
processing hardware and software, including telecommunications;
(d) "Information technology" means all electronic information
processing hardware and software, including telecommunications.
(e) "Nonvisual" means synthesized speech, braille, and other
output methods not requiring sight.
(f) "State" means the state or any of its departments,
agencies, public bodies, or other instrumentalities.
(g) "State-assisted organization" means a college, nonprofit organization, person, political subdivision, school system, or
other entity supported in whole or in part by state funds.
(h) "Telecommunications" means the transmission of
information, images, pictures, voice or data by radio, video or
other electronic or impulse means.
§18-10M-3. Assurance of nonvisual access.
Each covered entity shall ensure that information technology
equipment and software used by employees program participants, or
members of the general public meets the following requirements:
(a) That it provides blind or visually impaired individuals
with access, including interactive use of the equipment and
services, which is equivalent to that provided to individuals who
are not blind or visually impaired;
(b) That it is designed to present information, including
prompts used for interactive communications, in formats intended
for both visual and nonvisual use; and
(c) That it has been purchased under a contract which includes
the technology access clause required pursuant to section four of
this article.
§18-10M-4. Procurement requirements; technology access clause;
nonvisual access standards.
(a) The director of the purchasing division of the department of administration shall propose rules for legislative approval in
accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code, setting forth nonvisual access
standards and defining and enumerating the technology access clause
specified in section three of this article. The proposed rules
shall require compliance with all nonvisual access standards. The
technology access clause must: (1) Be compatible with technology
used for access by nonvisual means and provide for effective,
interactive control and use of operating systems, applications
programs, and the logical organization of the data format
presented; (2) permit use by nonvisual means when integrated into
networks used to share communications among employees, program
participants, and the public; and (3) be obtained without
modification for compatibility with software and hardware used for
nonvisual access whenever technology not requiring the modification
is commercially available.
(b) The nonvisual access standards ultimately adopted by the
state pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall include
specifications necessary to satisfy the requirements of section
three of this article and subsection (a) of this section
§18-10M-5. Applicability.
(a) The technology access clause shall be included in all
contracts for the procurement of information technology by or for
the use of entities covered by this article.
(b) This article may not be construed as requiring the
installation of software or peripheral devices used for nonvisual
access when the information technology is being used by individuals
who are not blind or visually impaired. However, the applications
programs and underlying operating systems, including the format and
the data, used for the manipulation and presentation of information
shall permit the installation and effective use of nonvisual access
software and peripheral devices.
(c) Compliance with the requirements of this article in regard
to information technology purchased prior to the effective date of
this article shall be achieved at the time of procurement of an
upgrade or replacement of the existing equipment or software.
§18-10M-6. Action for injunction.
A person injured by a violation of this article may maintain
an action for injunctive relief to enforce the terms of this
article. Any such action shall be commenced within one year after
the cause of action accrues. For the purposes of this section, a
cause of action for a continuing violation accrues at the time of the latest violation.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require access to
information technology for individuals who are blind or visually
impaired through the procurement of needed technology through state
purchasing. The bill would require all purchases to be made in
accordance with standards for equivalent access of both visual and
nonvisual means. The director of the purchasing division of the
department of administration is responsible for proposing
legislative rules to set standards and to create contractual
language requiring all devices of information technology to be
purchased by the state to meet equal access standards.
This article is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.