U.S. General Services Administration

Integrating Accessibility Into Contracts for Services with Vendors

presented by

Jim Kindrick GSA Government-wide Section 508 Accessibility Program

Agenda

•Integrating Accessibility into Contracts•Who Is Responsible?•Contracts for Services

– Services that Deliver EIT– Services that Modify EIT– Services that Support EIT Use– Services that Advise on EIT– Services that Deliver Electronic Information

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Integrating Accessibility Into Contracts

Basic Acquisition Phases and Governing Regulations

Need

FAR 7.103(q)

Include Section 508 requirements in

acquisition planning

Requirement

FAR 11.002 (f); 12.202(d)

Identify Section 508 standards when

describing agency need

Research

FAR 10.001(a)(3)(vii)

Consider Section 508 requirements when

assessing EIT availability

Solicitation

FAR 39.203 (a)

Ensure EIT meets the applicable Section 508 standards

Section 508 is incorporated into Federal Acquisition Regulation!

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Who Is Responsible?

Contracting Officer

508 Contract Language

Require Due Diligence

Requiring Authority (COR, PMO)

508 Due Diligence

Identify Deliverables

EIT Specialist

508 Requirements

Identify Technical Requirements

EIT Vendor

508 Conforming Solutions

Provide Accessibility Information

End User

508 Advocate

Require Equivalent Access

Orchestrate

It takes a village!4

Contracting Officer Responsibilities

• Ensuring that the Requiring Authority:– Identify specific deliverables– Determine applicable accessibility requirements– Conduct market research– Document their Section 508 due diligence

• Making sure the solicitation itself is accessible

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Contracting Officer Coordination

• Contracting Officers must coordinate with:– Requiring Authority/COR to:

• Ensure that requirements, inspection and acceptance criteria are appropriately documented in solicitations

• Determine and document proposal evaluation factors

– Requiring Authority/COR and PMO to participate in proposal evaluation

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Requiring Authority Responsibilities

• Working with EIT/Accessibility Specialists to:– Identify specific deliverables– Identify applicable accessibility requirements,

commercial availability, and acceptance criteria• Obtaining vendor accessibility information• Determining evaluation factors and participate

in proposal evaluation7

Requiring Authority Coordination

• Requiring Authorities must coordinate with:– Contracting Officer to document due diligence– EIT/Accessibility Specialists to:

• Determine EIT deliverables, accessibility requirements, commercial availability, and acceptance criteria

• Conduct deliverable inspection and acceptance

– Program Management to determine evaluation factors and participate in proposal evaluation

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EIT Specialist Responsibilities

• Working with Requiring Authority/PMO to:– Clarify specific deliverables to meet program need– Determine applicable accessibility requirements– Interpret vendor market research information– Determine inspection and acceptance criteria

• Supporting deliverable inspection/acceptance

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EIT Specialist Coordination

• EIT Specialists must coordinate with:– Accessibility Specialists to:

• Identify applicable accessibility requirements• Identify inspection and acceptance criteria • Conduct deliverable inspection and acceptance

– Requiring Authority to understand “best meets” consistent with the agency’s business needs

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Contracts For Services

• What kinds of services require accessibility?– Services that provide EIT-related deliverables.

• Deliverables that are themselves EIT subject to Section 508 requirements, or …

• Deliverables that affect Section 508 compliance of existing or future EIT.

The key is how you specify the contract deliverables!11

Section 508 Definition of EIT

Any equipment or interconnected system or subsystem used in the creation, conversion, or duplication of data or information• Does not include any equipment that contains embedded

information technology that is used as an integral part of the product, but the principal function of which is not the acquisition, storage, manipulation, management, movement, control, display, switching, interchange, transmission, or reception of data or information.

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Services and EIT-Related Deliverables

• Services that Deliver EIT– Development, Integration

• Services that Modify EIT– Maintenance, Enhancements

• Services that Support EIT Use– Operations, Helpdesk, Documentation, Training

• Services that Advise on EIT– Architecture, Consulting, Research

• Services that Deliver Electronic Information– Subscriptions, Databases, Telecommunications Services, Electronic Training

Service contracts often include multiple deliverables!13

Typical Service Contract Examples

• Maintenance• Development• Operations• Integration• COTS Product

and Support and Trainingand Maintenance and Support

and Support and Maintenanceand Development and Maintenance

and Training and Support

This could go on and on!14

Services that Deliver EIT

• Website Development: hosted or delivered• Software Development: apps and platforms• Hardware Development: less common• COTS Products delivered as part of a service

Bundled with maintenance, support, or training?15

How Much You Specify Up Front

Increasing degree of specificity at the time of contracting

Unknown Product Features

Specific technical requirements cannot be documented up front

Known Product Features

Specific technical requirements can be documented up front

More specified features implies more specific requirements!16

Integrating “Known” Accessibility

• Specific accessibility requirements should be determined and documented in contract

• Solicitation should require PAT with proposals• Accessibility requirements should be part of

proposal evaluation criteria and deliverable inspection and acceptance

This is the same as a COTS buy!17

Example Solicitation Language

“Technical standards from 36 CFR part 1194 Subpart B apply to this acquisition– Applicable Standards: 1194.21 Software and

Operating Systems– Applicable Deliverable(s): Xxxxxxx xxxx Software“

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Associate requirements with specific deliverables!18

Another Good Example“All electronic and information technology (EIT) procured through this solicitation … must meet the applicable accessibility standards at 36 CFR 1194.• 36 CFR 1194.21 - Software Applications and Operating Systems• 36 CFR 1194.22 - Web-Based Intranet and Internet Information and Applications• 36 CFR 1194.31 - Functional Performance Criteria• 36 CFR 1194.41 - Information, Documentation and Support

The contractor shall indicate for each line item in the schedule of items whether each product is compliant or noncompliant with the accessibility standards at 36 CFR 1194. Further, the offer must indicate where full details of compliance can be found (e.g., with offer, vendor's website or other location).”

Require accessibility information! 19

Compare With These Examples

• “Vendor must comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 794d).”

• “All products/services must be in compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act.”

Agencies must comply – Vendors need specific requirements!20

Integrating “Unknown” Accessibility

• Functional Performance Criteria should be documented in contract

• Solicitation should require experience/past performance with Section 508 conformance

• Contract should require PAT with ICT delivery and include as inspection/acceptance criteria

Don’t forget documentation and support! 21

Example Solicitation Language

“Contracted vendor support staffs producing EIT deliverables must have a working knowledge of Section 508 and performing Quality Assurance Testing for Section 508; must include this information for the individuals proposed on the contract.”

This was in addition to 1194.31 and 1194.41!22

Services that Modify EIT

• Software Maintenance: license or renewal• Hardware Maintenance: e.g. printer• System Maintenance: e.g. network, telecom• System Integration: interconnected systems

Modifications include patches, replacements, and upgrades!23

Maintenance Services

• Maintenance contracts should require that modifications do not detract from existing accessibility, and take opportunity to improve – Maintain: to keep in an existing state (as of repair,

efficiency, or validity): preserve from failure or decline

Maintenance often includes enhancements: new EIT!24

Example Language for Maintenance

“The contractor shall ensure maintenance upgrades, substitutions, and replacements to equipment and software pursuant to this contract do not reduce the original level of conformance with the applicable Section 508 standards at the time of contract award. The Agency reserves the right to evaluate upgrades, replacements, and substitutions using a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template or requiring test units to perform hands-on Section 508 and accessibility testing before final acceptance.”

Assumes accessibility already ensured in original contract!25

Example Language for Integration

“When the contractor provides installation, configuration or integration services for equipment and software pursuant to this contract, the contractor shall not install, configure or integrate the equipment and software in a way that reduces the level of conformance with the applicable Section 508 standards. XXX reserves the right to perform testing on a contractor’s EIT solution in order to validate the contractor has installed, configured or integrated the EIT solution in a way that does not reduce the level of conformance with the applicable Section 508 standards.”

XX

This was in addition to specific product requirements!26

More Example Language

“Maintenance shall include bug fixes, patches, and technical support.” … “This requirement is for Electronic and Information Technology (EIT) which must meet the accessibility standards established by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 7941). The specific Technical Standards that apply are Technical Standard: 1194.21 - Software Applications and 1194.31 also applies. In responding to the RFQ, vendors must state if the products offered meet the identified Technical Standards.”

Restates requirements, but what about 1194.41?27

Services that Support EIT Use

• Helpdesk: software, apps, telecom• EIT Documentation: most all EIT contracts!• Operations: includes maintenance and support• Training: includes electronic content and UI

Support is 1194.41 – but often includes more!28

36 CFR Part 1194.41

§ 1194.41 Information, documentation, and support. a) Product support documentation provided to end-users shall be

made available in alternate formats upon request, at no additional charge.

b) End-users shall have access to a description of the accessibility and compatibility features of products in alternate formats or alternate methods upon request, at no additional charge.

c) Support services for products shall accommodate the communication needs of end-users with disabilities.

Almost all EIT contracts should include 1194.41!29

Services that Advise on EIT

• Strategic EIT Consulting, Research and Support• Enterprise, System, and Solution Architectures

– Typically produce information content deliverables• Will the delivered information include topics that

address EIT products and EIT-related services?• Will the delivered information be in electronic format?

Advice on EIT accessibility should be in scope!30

EIT Consulting Services

•Solicitation should require knowledge and experience with Section 508 accessibility– Ensure that the expertise, advice and

consultation service provider will address Section 508 and EIT accessibility when making deliverables

Hard to find real life examples!31

Services that Deliver Information

• What kinds of services require accessibility?– Services that provide ICT-related deliverables.

• Deliverables that are themselves ICT subject to Section 508 requirements, or …

• Deliverables that affect Section 508 compliance.

The Authoring Tool is a critical element!

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Services that Deliver Information: intention matters

• What you plan to do with information matters– If you plan to make it public facing, or include it in

official agency communication … – …then you would be smart to require the vendor

to deliver it to you in accessible form

It is your responsibility, why not require vendors to make it easy?

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Example Solicitation Language

• “Contractors are responsible for having updated authoring and testing tools to produce Section 508 output on their own; the Government will not provide these tools.”

The Authoring Tool is a critical element!

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Example Solicitation Language: deliverables

• “All written deliverables (reports, charts, posters, presentations, etc.), regardless of format or intended audience, shall be delivered electronically and conform to the (Department) Technical Standards for written documents that are available at: http://www.xx.gov/xxxxxxxxxxxxx/”

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Being prepared for the future!35

QUESTIONS????

Presenter: Jim Kindrick, GSA BA Team

For more training contact Helen Chamberlain at helen.chamberlain@gsa.gov

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