Introduction of S. 3211 - Senator Harkin's Digital Divide Initiative Bill Summary Technology for All Americans Act The Technology for All Americans Act is being introduced in recognition of the central role that technology will play in all Americans' lives, and particularly those of people with disabilities, in the new millennium. Although people with disabilities are nearly twice as likely as people without disabilities to say that the Internet has improved their lives significantly, they are barely one-quarter as likely to use the Internet and less than half as likely to have access to a computer at home. The Act will help close the Digital Divide by establishing incentives for public and private researchers to develop technology that is independently usable by people with disabilities, promoting public access to the Internet and other technology through libraries and academic and professional training, and ensuring that technology is integrated into children with disabilities' education and transition from school to work. The bill provides for four grant programs (through the Department of Education -- the bill authorizes "such sums" for fiscal years 2001-2005): To increase research and development on accessible and assistive technologies, the bill will establish: Competitive grants for public and private research and development of assistive technology and other accessible technology, including universal design technology; To increase public access to technology, the bill will establish: Grants to States to make technology used by public libraries, including those in public elementary and secondary schools, accessible. Grants to colleges and universities to incorporate concepts of the design and use of assistive technology and other accessible technology into academic and professional programs. To ensure children with disabilities full access to technology, the bill will establish: Grants to state education agencies for demonstration projects with other agencies and local schools to develop model programs for integration of technology into all aspects of children with disabilities' lives, including transition from school to work. _____ Statements on Introduced Bills aand Joint Resolutions (Senate - October 17, 2000) The Technology for All Americans Act Mr. HARKIN: Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Technology for All Americans Act. This Act will maximize our country's potential by helping to close the Digital Divide for people with disabilities. In doing so, it will increase their independence and self-sufficiency and further strengthen our economy and society by enabling the greatest possible number of us to contribute our abilities. As we celebrate the Americans with Disabilities Act's 10th Anniversary, we are entering a new millennium; one that will be defined by technology. But technology can be a double-edged sword for people with disabilities, who continue to fight for the freedom to live independently. If the Internet and other technologies are accessible, they will offer people with disabilities unprecedented opportunities for independence and self-sufficiency. But if they are not accessible, they simply will create new barriers to full participation of people with disabilities in our society and our economy. Although new technologies have improved the lives of many Americans with disabilities, there remains a significant `Digital Divide' between Americans with and without disabilities. Although people with disabilities are nearly twice as likely as people without disabilities to say that the Internet has improved their lives significantly, they are barely one-quarter as likely to use the Internet and less than half as likely to have access to a computer at home. The Technology for All Americans Act will begin to bridge this gap. The Act provides incentives for public and private researchers to use universal design and accessibility principles in new technologies, and to develop technologies to eliminate functional barriers to full independence for people with disabilities. It will increase public access to technology by providing grants to States to make public libraries, including those in elementary and secondary schools, technology accessible. It will increase the development and use of accessible technology by providing grants to colleges and universities to establish model curricula incorporating the design and use of accessible technology into academic and professional programs. And it will help children with disabilities maximize their potential in school and after graduation by ensuring their access to technology. In a nutshell, this Act will help ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to participate in society. But, this act is not just for people with disabilities. It is, as it's name says, for all Americans . When people with disabilities succeed in school, join the workforce, and participate in day-to-day life, we all benefit from their abilities. History also demonstrates that research on accessible technology benefits everyone. How many people know that the typewriter was invented for an Italian countess who was blind? In 1990, the Television Decoder Circuitry Act, which I introduced, required closed captioning for most television sets so that people who are deaf could watch TV. But today millions of people who are not deaf use closed captioning at home, at work, at gyms, and at sports bars, to name a few. And, millions of people use voice-activated technology at work or in car phones and cell phones. That technology also was intended primarily for people with disabilities. This trend will accelerate as the Technology Revolution moves forward. The technologies that make things accessible for people with disabilities have applications for all of us. More and more each day, every American's ability to participate in society is determined by how well they are able to use technology. This Act will help us take the greatest advantage of technology for the benefit of the greatest number of Americans. This must be one of our priorities as we move into the new millennium. So I ask my colleagues, people with disabilities, educators, technology experts, and others who are interested to share their ideas with me about this bill and about the issue of making technology accessible to every American, so that next Congress we can ensure that every American has access to the tools that will shape our future.