ARCHITECTURAL AND TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS COMPLIANCE BOARD [Published in the Federal Register on September 29, 1998] Electronic and Information Technology Access Advisory Committee; Meeting AGENCY: Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board. ACTION: Notice of appointment of advisory committee members and date of first meeting. SUMMARY: The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) has decided to establish an advisory committee to assist it in developing a proposed rule on accessibility standards for electronic and information technology covered by the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998. The Electronic and Information Technology Access Advisory Committee (Committee) includes organizations which represent the interests affected by the accessibility standards for electronic and information technology. This notice also announces the time and place of the first Committee meeting, which will be open to the public. DATES: The first meeting of the Committee is scheduled for Thursday, October 15, 1998 through Friday, October 16, 1998 beginning at 9:30 a.m. each day. Decisions with respect to future meetings will be made at the first meeting and from time to time thereafter. Notices of future meetings will be published in the Federal Register. ADDRESSES: The first meeting of the Committee will be held at 1331 F Street, NW., Washington, DC in the third floor training room. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Doug Wakefield, Office of Technical and Information Services, Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, 1331 F St., NW., Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20004-1111. Telephone number 202/272-5434 extension 39 (Voice); 202/272-5449 (TTY). SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Availability of Copies and Electronic Access Single copies of this publication may be obtained at no cost by calling the Access Board's automated publications order line 202/272-5434, by pressing 1 on the telephone keypad, then 1 again, and requesting publication N-02 (Electronic and Information Technology Access Advisory Committee notice). Persons using a TTY should call 202/272-5449. Please record a name, address, telephone number and request publication N- 02. This document is available in alternate formats upon request. Persons who want a copy in an alternate format should specify the type of format (cassette tape, Braille, large print, or computer disk). This document is also available on the Board's Internet site (http://www.access-board.gov/notices/eitaac.htm). Background On August 24, 1998, the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) published a notice of intent to establish an advisory committee to provide recommendations for a proposed rule addressing accessibility standards for electronic and information technology covered by the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998. 63 FR 45041 (August 24, 1998). The notice identified the interests that are likely to be significantly affected by the accessibility standards: Federal agencies and Federal contractors; the electronic and information technology industry; organizations representing the access needs of individuals with disabilities; and other persons affected by accessibility standards for electronic and information technology. Approximately 50 nominations were submitted. About 10 nominations were received from individual members of the public who have disabilities (or have family members who have disabilities). Nineteen nominations were received from organizations representing persons with disabilities. Three nominations were received from access consultants with experience in accessibility issues. The remaining nominations primarily consisted of organizations representing the electronic and information technology industry which includes some Federal, State, and local government entities. For the reasons stated in the notice of intent, the Access Board has determined that establishing the Electronic and Information Technology Access Advisory Committee (Committee) is necessary and in the public interest. The Access Board has appointed 23 members to the Committee from the following organizations: American Council of the Blind American Foundation for the Blind Arkenstone, Inc. Association of Access Engineering Specialists Association of Tech Act Projects Easter Seals Electronic Industries Alliance FutureForms Georgia Institute of Technology IBM Special Needs Center Meeting the Challenge, Inc. Microsoft Corporation NCR Corporation National Association of the Deaf National Federation of the Blind National Industries for the Blind National Science Foundation Self Help for Hard of Hearing People, Inc. Trace Research and Development Center United Cerebral Palsy Associations WGBH National Center for Accessible Media WebABLE! Solutions World Wide Web Consortium, Web Accessibility Initiative The Board plans to involve other Federal agencies through a less formal, but certainly no less important, ad hoc committee comprised of those Federal agencies identified in section 508 (a)(2)(A) and public members of the Board. This committee will assist the Board's staff in preparing proposed and final standards. The Access Board regrets being unable to accommodate all requests for membership on the Committee. In order to keep the Committee to a size that can be effective, it was necessary to limit membership. It is also desirable to have balance among members of the Committee representing different clusters of interest, such as disability organizations and the electronic and information technology industry. The Committee membership identified above provides representation for each interest affected by issues to be discussed. Committee meetings will be open to the public and interested persons can attend the meetings and communicate their views. Members of the public will have an opportunity to address the Committee on issues of interest to them and the Committee. Members of groups or individuals who are not members of the Committee may also have the opportunity to participate with subcommittees of the Committee. The Access Board believes that participation of this kind can be very valuable for the advisory committee process. Additionally, all interested persons will have the opportunity to comment when the proposed accessibility standards for electronic and information technology are issued in the Federal Register by the Access Board. The meeting site is accessible to individuals with disabilities. Sign language interpreters and real-time captioning will be provided. Decisions with respect to future meetings will be made at the first meeting. Notices of future meetings will be published in the Federal Register. Lawrence W. Roffee, Executive Director, Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board