Access Ready Speaks Out at Maryland Election Officials Conference

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Aug 26, 2021, 16:09 ET

PINELLAS PARK, Fla., Aug. 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Reporter Newsletter is a service of Access Ready Inc. which is a nonprofit cross disability advocacy organization promoting a policy of inclusion and accessibility across information technology through education and best practices. The Board of Directors of Access Ready has deemed inaccessible information technology to be a clear, growing, and present danger to the civic, economic, and social welfare of people with disabilities.

Our message is a simple one, registration, validation, and voting must be a continuum of private and independent accessibility. Yes, under the law this does mean all election technology including pollbooks. We are here representing our community partners: The Image Center for People with Disabilities, The National Association of the Deaf, The National Council on Independent Living, and The National Federation of the Blind, to ask for your help.
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MICROSOFT ACCESSIBILITY BOSS JENNY LAY-FLURRIE REFLECTS ON THREE DECADES OF THE 'LANDMARK' AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT Read More

GOVERNMENT SPOTLIGHT

COLORADO FIRST IN NATION TO REQUIRE WEB ACCESSIBILITY FOR GOVERNMENT
To the state lawmaker who sponsored legislation for people with disabilities, the success of House Bill 21-1110 is the perfect example of why representation matters. After freshman Democratic Rep. David Ortiz of Littleton was elected in 2020, he became the first person who uses a wheelchair to serve in the Colorado General Assembly. This year, Ortiz led efforts to incorporate some federal protections for people with disabilities into state law, making it easier for them to sue the government for discrimination.

ACROSS FEDERAL WORKFORCE, PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES SEE NEED FOR MORE REPRESENTATION Read More

ELECTION ACCESSIBILITY
Sponsored by VOTEC

DISABLED VOTERS SEEK FEDERAL BULWARK AS STATES CHIP AWAY ACCESS

Disabilities advocates watching states chip away at voting opportunities are leaning on the Biden administration to make tangible strides to make voting more accessible. The federal government can do more to ensure that basic amenities like wheelchair accessible ramps are provided at polling stations or that vital election materials are translated into American Sign Language. Disabilities advocates, who recently met with Vice President Kamala Harris, are rallying in advance of draft recommendations from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on making voting more accessible
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MARYLAND VOTERS SUE TO PROTECT SECRET BALLOTS- NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND AND ITS MARYLAND AFFILIATE ALSO PARTIES TO LITIGATION Read More

WHY SHERRI TURPIN IS ASKING THE FCC TO MAKE TELECOMMUNICATIONS 'ACCESSIBLE AND INCLUSIVE FOR ALL' Read More

SWIMMER BECCA MEYERS' ORDEAL SHOWS EVEN THE PARALYMPICS DOESN'T LISTEN TO DISABLED PEOPLE Read More

CURRENT LEGAL ACTIONS

DOJ SETTLES WITH FLORIDA'S VOLUSIA COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT TO PROTECT STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES FROM CLASSROOM REMOVALS AND OTHER DISCRIMINATION Read More

BUSINESS ACCESSIBILITY

CREATING A MORE ACCESSIBLE AND INCLUSIVE WORKPLACE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Read More

WALMART FIRED AN EMPLOYEE WITH DOWN SYNDROME WHO WORKED THERE FOR 16 YEARS. A JURY SAID IT SHOULD PAY HER $125 MILLION. Read More

ACCESSIBLE HEALTHCARE

BIDEN EXTENDS AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT PROTECTIONS TO COVID LONG-HAULERS Read More

ACCESSIBLE TECHNOLOGY

WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT ACCESSIBILITY BY SCANNING MORE THAN 2 MILLION FEDERAL .GOV WEB PAGES

The Innovation Technology Innovation Foundation recently published an accessibility analysis of federal .gov websites, but this just scratches the surface of the need for a holistic, scalable approach to digital government accessibility. ITIF scanned 72 federal websites -- plus their second- and third-most popular pages -- for issues that violated WCAG 2.0 Level A or Level AA standards. The assessment tool used was the axe DevTools browser extension, a single-page automated scan.
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