                THE INFORMATION ACCESS PROJECT FOR BLIND INDIVIDUALS
             A Cooperative Effort by the U.S. Department of Justice and
                        the National Federation of the Blind

     The National Federation of the Blind has been awarded a U.S. Department of
Justice Technical Assistance Grant to conduct the Information Access Project for
Blind Individuals (IAP for short). This grant supports our efforts to assist the
Justice Department to educate the various entities (state and local government bodies
as well as private businesses) covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act (thus
referred to in the Act and its regulations as "covered entities") in meeting the
requirements of the ADA which relate to blind persons. Likewise, we will work with
blind individuals to assist them in using the ADA to expand employment, educational,
and avocational opportunities. Specifically, the IAP will serve as a national
resource for understanding and interpreting the provisions of the Act which call for
making print and other visually accessible materials (charts, posters, signs, video
presentations, etc.) available to the blind.

                                 Overview of the ADA

     The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law by President
George Bush on July 26, 1990. The ADA was passed to provide a comprehensive national
mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities.
In addition, the law is designed to establish national standards to prevent
discrimination against persons with disabilities as well as to define the federal
government's role in enforcing these standards.
     The ADA is divided into five sections or titles. Title I deals with employment,
Title II is concerned with services provided by public entities, while Title III
deals with services and accommodations provided by private entities. Title IV is
concerned with telecommunication and captioning services for the deaf and speech
impaired, and Title V covers a variety of miscellaneous subjects including
regulations by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board,
attorney's fees, Federal Wilderness Areas, coverage of Congress and the whole
legislative branch and more. The Title I regulations will become law on July 26,
1992, for companies with twenty-five or more employees and on July 26, 1994, for
companies with fifteen or more employees. Titles II and III went into effect on
January 26, 1992. Title IV of the ADA must be implemented by July 26, 1993, and there
is no overall implementation date for Title V. 
     Accessibility is a major goal of the ADA. Accessibility applies to information
and communications as much as it does to the physical characteristics of buildings
and facilities. It is this aspect of accessibility which is of most interest to blind
persons and, therefore, the reason the National Federation of the Blind is working
with the Justice Department on this project.  Requirements for equal access to
information flow mainly from the ADA'S auxiliary aids and services and reasonable
accommodation provisions in Titles II and III. However, the provision of information
in appropriately accessible forms for blind persons cannot happen merely by means of
a legislated mandate. Without the involvement of organized blind consumers, what in
practice becomes the definition of and standards for "appropriately accessible forms"
may not truly be in the best interests of the blind; thus, the value of the National
Federation of the Blind's serving as a liaison between blind individuals and covered
entities (through the IAP) during the early months of the ADA's implementation. 

                               Purpose and Objectives

   The overall goals of the Information Access Project are to encourage collaborative
efforts between blind individuals and covered entities for the provision of
nonvisually accessible information and to assist blind individuals and covered
entities in efforts to prepare and distribute printed material in nonvisually
accessible media. What is meant by "nonvisually accessible media?" Any one of the
following alternative forms or methods would meet the definition: Braille, sound
recordings, enlarged print, digital text in computer formats, raised line drawings,
and a live reader. However, both blind individuals and covered entities will need to
recognize that the provision of materials in nonvisually accessible media will be
rendered on a case-by-case basis; and that both the requirements and/or preferences
of the blind individual or individuals and the resources of the covered entity should
be considered in determining how accessibility is rendered. The IAP will play a key
role in helping blind individuals and covered entities determine when compliance with
ADA accessibility requirements has been met. 
     Many covered entities will face considerable technical difficulties as they
begin to face up to their new responsibilities under the ADA. For example, most
covered entities are not currently equipped with in-house production capabilities or
with ready access to outside production sources to meet their needs for Braille,
recorded, or large print material. Most covered entities simply have never addressed
the challenge of providing their informational materials in any form other than the
standard print media accessible to the sighted users of their products or services. 
     The IAP has been designed to accomplish the following specific objectives:
     (1) to provide blind individuals with greater access to printed information
produced and distributed by covered entities;     (2) to support cooperative efforts
between blind individuals and covered entities to increase capabilities for covered
entities to provide nonvisually accessible information on a regular basis; and 
     (3) to improve the capability of covered entities to provide nonvisually
accessible material through coordinated information access services provided from a
national source--the Information Access Project. 

                                  Major Activities

     To carry out the activities of the project, we have established the National
Information Access Center at the National Center for the Blind. This Center, which
utilizes the resources of the International Braille and Technology Center for the
Blind, will disseminate information to blind individuals and to covered entities. It
will also answer technical questions regarding production methods and/or equipment.
Further, the Center will embark on some exemplary projects with covered entities that
can serve as models for ongoing information access efforts. Finally, the Center will
perform Brailling and other services for covered entities on a selected basis. Also,
we have established a nationwide corps of Information Access Coordinators (a minimum
of one per state--similar to the Job Opportunities for the Blind Volunteer Network).
These coordinators will contact covered entities--both state and local government
bodies, and private businesses and organizations--to make them aware of their
responsibilities as they relate to the blind. Additionally, the coordinators will
serve as local and state contacts for blind individuals who have questions about
specific applications of the ADA regulations related to information access. 
     Mr. David Andrews, Director of the International Braille and Technology Center,
is serving as Program Manager for the Information Access Project. Mr. Andrews will
handle the day-to-day operations of the project. Write, call, or communicate with him
via NFB NET (our electronic bulletin board service) as follows:

                  Information Access Project for Blind Individuals
                          National Federation of the Blind
                                 1800 Johnson Street
                                 Baltimore, MD 21230
                              Telephone: (410) 659-9314
                                 Fax: (410) 685-5653
                                 BBS: (410) 752-5011

     One of the first efforts of the project was the production of a brochure which
explains in some detail the ADA requirements for the provision of nonvisually
accessible information to blind individuals. If you would like a copy of this
brochure, "Toward Equal Access: Providing Information Access Services to Blind and
Visually Impaired Persons Under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)," contact
the IAP per one of the above methods. Consistent with provisions of the ADA, the
brochure is available in large print, cassette, Braille, computer disk, and via NFB
NET. 
     The Information Access Project is funded by a $99,930 grant from the U.S.
Department of Justice. Currently, the project is scheduled to operate through
September 30, 1992.
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