"Avanco has a number of government contracts that can be utilized to support our government clients."
Section 508 Compliance

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires access to the Federal government's electronic and information technology. The law covers all types of electronic and information technology in the Federal sector and is not limited to assistive technologies used by people with disabilities.

States receiving assistance under the Assistive Technology Act State Grant program are required to comply with section 508 and the Board’s standards, according to the Department of Education, which administers the Act. The criteria for web-based technology and information are based on access guidelines developed by the Web Accessibility Initiative of the World Wide Web Consortium.

Avanco will develop web technologies using the following methods to ensure that Section 508 compliance is followed:

  • Provide Text Equivalents: Our analysts will provide a text equivalent to any information presented with graphics, videos, or applets. Text will describe the content and/or function of the graphic.
  • Alternate Navigation controls: Screens will provide a text links on pages where appropriate in addition to image maps for site navigation.
  • Color: Color will not be used as a primary means to impart information. If budget items hit a certain target threshold and they are displayed in red text, they will be grouped together under a text header that says: "Warning, budget exceeded!" in addition to the red highlight.
  • Links: Links will be clearly labeled as links and the destination for the link will be described.
  • Testing: All web pages will be run through the "Web Bobby" compliance software to ensure that compliance is met for all web pages.

Many of these provisions ensure access for people with vision impairments who rely on various assistive products to access computer-based information, such as screen readers, which translate what's on a computer screen into automated audible output, and refreshable Braille displays. Certain conventions, such as verbal tags or identification of graphics and format devices, like frames, are necessary so that these devices can "read" them for the user in a sensible way. The standards do not prohibit the use of web site graphics or animation. Instead, the standards aim to ensure that such information is also available in an accessible format.

For more information about Section 508 compliance see ...www.section508.gov