Policy for Accessible Electronic and Information Technology (EIT) - Essay Example

As defined by law, access by persons with disabilities to such technologies must be a prime consideration in procurement, development, maintenance, and use of such electronic and information technology assets by organizations. Access here is in the context of determining whether persons with disabilities are able to gain access to the information technology and electronic assets in the same degree of effectiveness and ease as those without disabilities (United States Access Board; Department of Defense) 2.

EIT Resources Thar Are Covered by This EIT Policy All future procurements of electronic and information technology assets by the ABC Company shall be covered by this Accessible EIT Policy. This shall include all electronic and information technology assets that are procured on behalf of employees, contractors, and suppliers. Likewise, this Accessible EIT Policy shall apply to supplier-provided electronic and information technology assets that are to be used for all future project engagements, where the users of such assets include internal employees and consultants of the ABC Company(US Department of Commerce).

For electronic and information technology assets prior to the adoption of this Policy, considerations of undue burden shall apply, and where no such undue burdens exist, the policy shall be to retroactively apply the provisions of this policy to such assets, reconfiguring, modifying, and enhancing such older assets as necessary to comply with the legal accessibility mandates for EIT (United States Access Board; US Department of Commerce). 3. Scope of Policy This policy shall cover policy background; legal foundation/basis for the policy formulation and promulgation; the policy details themselves; exceptions to the policies and the definition of policies to determine the nature and extent of undue burdens when they are found; Key officers in the ABC Company touched by the Accessible Policy, their roles and responsibilities; and the reference documents used for this Accessible EIT Policy (Office of Environmental Information) 4.

EIT Policy Background There is a need for the ABC Company, as a surrogate of a federal agency and providing vital services on behalf of several federal agencies, to come up with an accessible EIT policy that complies fully with the law, and that resonates with the internal accessibility of EIT policies of the federal agencies that the ABC Company serves. As such, there is a need to formulate and promulgate an accessible EIT policy, which this draft document aims to accomplish (Office of Environmental Information) 5.

Legal Basis and Authority for the EIT Policy Section 508 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act of the United States stipulates standards for accessible electronic and information technology or EIT. As a provider of crucial services to several federal agencies in the United States, the ABC Company is bound by law to provide a comprehensive policy of accessibility for electronic and information technology (United States Access Board): Section 508 requires that when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, Federal employees with disabilities have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access and use by Federal employees who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would