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

IV. Description of Reporting, Recordkeeping and Other Compliance Requirements.

Manufacturers of telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment are required by Section 255 to "ensure that the equipment is designed, developed and fabricated to be accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, if readily achievable." And when it is not "readily achievable" to make products accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, the manufacturer shall ensure that the equipment "is compatible with existing peripheral devices or specialized customer premises equipment commonly used by individuals with disabilities to achieve access, if readily achievable". [47 U.S.C. 255 (b)(d)] Section 255 also places requirements on telecommunications service providers. Telecommunications service providers requirements are however under the jurisdiction of the FCC and therefore are not addressed in the Access Board guidelines.

Section 1193.23 Product design, development and evaluation

This section requires that, where readily achievable, manufacturers must evaluate the accessibility, usability, and compatibility of telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment and incorporate such evaluation throughout product design, development, and fabrication, as early and consistently as possible. Manufacturers must develop a process to ensure that products are designed, developed and fabricated to be accessible whenever it is readily achievable. Since what is readily achievable will vary according to the stage of development (i.e., some things will be readily achievable in the design phase which are not in later phases), barriers to accessibility, usability, and compatibility must be identified throughout product design and development, from conceptualization to production. The details of such a process will vary from one company to the next, and this section does not specify the structure or specific content of a process. Instead, this section sets forth a series of factors that a manufacturer must consider in developing such a process. How, and to what extent, each of the factors is incorporated in a specific process is up to the manufacturer. As the capability to evaluate the accessibility, usability, and compatibility of telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment is already available in-house, this provision will not require additional professional skills. Under these guidelines, there are no recordkeeping requirements for this provision.

There are many products for which evaluations can be relatively cursory as long as the company is confident that it is aware of all relevant access issues. At this end of the evaluation spectrum, only one hour of professional time is projected to be required, for an estimated cost of $80. At the other end of this spectrum, if there is a highly complex, convergent, or revolutionary new product this may require as much as 37.5 hours of professional evaluation throughout the product's development cycle, for an estimated cost of $3,000.

Section 1193.33 Accessibility and usability

Section 1193.33 requires that, where readily achievable, manufacturers must (1) provide a description of the accessibility and compatibility features of the product upon request, including, as needed, in alternate formats or alternate modes at no additional charge; (2) provide end-user documentation in alternate format or alternate modes upon request at no additional charge where end-user documentation is provided; (3) ensure usable customer support and technical support in the call centers and service centers which support their products at no additional charge; and (4) include in general product information, the contact method for obtaining the information required in (1) and (2) above.

In addition, where manufacturers provide employee training, they are required to provide training appropriate to an employee's function, where readily achievable. In developing, or incorporating information into existing training programs, consideration must be given to the following factors: accessibility requirements of individuals with disabilities; means of communicating with individuals with disabilities; commonly used adaptive technology used with the manufacturer's products; designing for accessibility; and solutions for accessibility and compatibility.

The greatest cost involved with compliance with this provision is in the production of alternate formats. For persons with a visual impairment, four alternate formats exist: Braille, large print, electronic text, and audio cassette. It is estimated that, where it is readily achievable to do so, the cost of alternate formats for a 10 page user's manual will involve the following:

• Braille: If the production of Braille documents is outsourced, costs range from $.25 to $2 per page, depending on the complexity of material (technical material is more expensive than literature) and the format in which the raw text arrives (print is more expensive than computer files). A reasonable estimate for producing 100 copies of a 10 page user's manual (30 bound pages of Braille) would be $1800. The cost per brailled document is estimated at $18. If Braille is produced in- house, it can be produced by clerical staff, using a standard computer, Braille translation software, and a Braille printer. It is estimated that the cost to produce a ten page document in-house would be $10. Editing a 10 page document will require approximately 15 hours of editorial time by clerical staff.

• Large Print: One hundred copies of a 10 page document would cost approximately $2.50 each to produce. The production of large print documents can be handled with clerical assistance and will involve approximately 15 hours of editorial work for a 10 page document.

• Electronic Text: Providing the information on computer disk will require an average of 15 hours of editorial work per product by clerical staff. The estimated cost of the disk, shipping and handling, is approximately $2.25 each.

• Audio Cassette: Producing the information in an audio cassette format will require approximately 15 hours of editorial work and recording time per product by clerical staff. The estimated cost of the cassette, shipping and handling is approximately $2.90 each.

Section 1193.39 Prohibited reduction of accessibility, usability and ompatibility

Section 1193.39 provides that no change shall be undertaken which decreases or has the effect of decreasing the net accessibility, usability, and compatibility of telecommunications equipment or customer premises equipment. An exception provides that discontinuation of a product is not prohibited.

The costs for this review, would be absorbed in the analysis for the replacement or upgraded product required under 1193.23 and manufacturers should not incur additional costs under this provision.