36 CFR Part 1193 Telecommunications Act (Section 255) Accessibility Guidelines - Preamble

Accessibility Engineering Specialists

Comment. The NPRM referred to the establishment of an Association of Accessibility Engineering Specialists under the National Association of Radio and Telecommunications Engineers. In its comments, USTA suggested that groups such as this should more appropriately be structured under an organization such as the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Response. As stated in the NPRM, the TAAC "report also recommends the creation of a technical subgroup of a professional society which could train and eventually certify ?accessibility specialists' or engineers. As a result of work by several Committee members, such a group has already been created. The National Association of Radio and Telecommunications Engineers (NARTE), a private professional association, recently formed the Association of Accessibility Engineering Specialists. This association is expected to sponsor conferences and workshops, disseminate information, and suggest course curricula for future training and certification." The Board appreciates the fact that NARTE established the Association of Accessibility Engineering Specialists and believes that this group will contribute to advances in the field of accessible telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment and assist in maintaining a cooperative dialogue among manufacturers, product developers, engineers, academicians, individuals with disabilities, and others involved in the telecommunications equipment design and development process. Commenters who wish to have an association created under the auspices of ANSI, or any similar organization, should approach that organization. The Board encourages any efforts to move accessibility design into the mainstream of telecommunications and will work cooperatively with any established group to further those ends.