GSA 508 Agency Roles & Responsibilities
Office of the Chief Information Officer
On May 10, 2000, the Chief Information Officers of all agencies were instructed to issue a memorandum for the Chief Information Officers of all federal agencies to establish an Electronic Information Technology (EIT) Accessibility Coordinator and Team to ensure successful implementation of Section 508 within their agencies.
The GSA Chief Information Officer (CIO) has primary responsibility for policy management, coordination and oversight of GSA's design, acquisition, maintenance, use and dissemination of information technology (IT). The CIO further monitors the impact, need and performance of GSA's 508 IT programs and activities, and assures that GSA's information management of these activities is consistent with Section 508 law.
CIO Section 508 Coordinators
The GSA CIO 508 Coordinator office is located at 1275 First Street, NE, Washington, DC. The primary responsibilities of the Coordinator include:
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Oversight and enforcement of Section 508 with the GSA infrastructure
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Development and implementation of the GSA agencywide Section 508 program
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Educating GSA employees and Regional Section 508 Coordinators on Section 508 policy and procedures
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Development and update of the Section 508 policy and handbook
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Partnering with other GSA offices to assist in meeting their Section 508 goals and objectives
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Providing progress assessments and ad hoc reports to senior officials in the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) on the state of Section 508 in the agency
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Review of Business Cases and Capital Asset Plans
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Making decisions and providing expert technical advice and guidance on Section 508
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Contributing Section 508 information in response to the Department of Justice annual survey
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Assessment, monitoring and reporting on GSA Headquarters and Regional office conformance to Section 508 regarding operational activities
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Conducting periodic surveys to assess agency awareness and knowledge on Section 508
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Identifying current needs for agency access to accessible, assistive and adaptive technology (hardware/software) and identifying EIT deficiencies impacting the performance of persons with disabilities in both current and prospective EIT systems
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Establishing a 508 testing protocol which supports assessment, testing and reporting of Section 508 violations and processes for remediation
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Recommending Section 508 compliant software for testing of agency documents and websites
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Providing online and classroom training and technical support to agency employees on Section 508
Agency Designated Regional Section 508 Coordinators
The efforts of the Regional Section 508 Coordinators will assist in establishing a strong and diverse Section 508 program foundation across GSA. The Coordinators will be instrumental in educating GSA employees on the importance of Section 508 as it applies to creating accessible content and documents, maintaining Section 508 compliant websites, testing and remediation practices, acquisition language and market research, Section 508 agency best practices and more!
Contracting Officer, Contracting Officer's Technical Representative and Requiring Officials
The responsibility of the procurement team is to:
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Review and comply with the acquisition regulations of FAR 11.002(f) and 39.2, and GSA's Acquisition Alert 2005-04
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Make use of the Buy Accessible Wizard as one resource to locate Section 508-compliant products and services; to obtain vendor voluntary product accessibility templates for the contract file; to obtain necessary Section 508 language for acquisitions; and ensure due diligence is applied as part of the market research requirements
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Ensure necessary Section 508 language is incorporated in all EIT acquisitions
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Have a working knowledge of Section 508 and how it applies to procuring EIT
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Complete at least 2 hours of Section 508 awareness and/or technical training every 2 years
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Obtain certification from the incumbent or prospective vendor or maintenance provider that no maintenance or warranty agreements will be voided by adding accommodation devices to existing or newly acquired EIT resources
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Ensure contracts contains relevant Section 508 language to ensure vendors' electronic documents and IT deliverables conform to Section 508 and accessibility requirements
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Ensure all electronic documents pertaining to the procurement are Section 508 accessible
GSA CIO Section 508 Task Force
The GSA CIO Section 508 Task Force consists of members from FAS, PBS, OCFO, CAO, OCHCO, OCSC, OGP and OCIO. The Task Force serves as an advisory council to the CIO Section 508 Coordinators and may be convened as needed to engage in several contributions that define areas for improvement in the Section 508 business process, to identify problem areas in the agency where Section 508 may be improved, to share ideas, needs and concerns of offices and to help improve and enhance the implementation and quality of the Section 508 program.
The Task Force will assist in determining the usefulness, effectiveness and agencywide impact of Section 508 program directives, and work to resolve seen or unforeseen issues and problems.
Program Managers (PM) and Developers of Intranet and Internet Information Systems
Software and web application developers shall ensure that Section 508 and accessibility requirements are built into the early phases of lifecycle development to avoid the time and cost of retrofitting for Section 508 conformance after the fact.
