MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS
OF ALL AGENCIES AND DEPARTMENTS

FROM:

R. Alexander Acosta

Assistant Attorney General

Civil Rights Division

United States Department of Justice

SUBJECT:

Review of Agency Implementation of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires the federal government to ensure that its electronic and information technology is accessible to persons with disabilities (29 U.S.C. § 794d). It also requires the Department of Justice to issue a report every two years to the President and to the Congress on the federal government's compliance with Section 508's requirements. The purpose of this memorandum is to notify agencies that the Department is beginning a survey that will serve as the basis for the next report. The survey will capture information related to agency compliance with Section 508 after June 21, 2001 the effective date of the Section 508 standards.

This year's survey is organized into the following four sections:

1. procurement information
2. general processes for implementing Section 508
3. administrative complaints and civil actions
4. website compliance

Each federal department or agency, including the U.S. Postal Service, is subject to Section 508 and is required to respond to the survey. Each agency is responsible for providing an aggregated, department-wide response that includes information from all component organizations.

The survey will be conducted in close cooperation with the General Services Administration (GSA), which will post instructions and collect your agency's information through a special website (www.section508.gov/508survey2003/). While the focus of this year's survey differs from those of prior years, the Department has worked closely with GSA to streamline this year's effort based on lessons learned from prior surveys. Agencies must submit responses to the survey electronically on this website, and will be able to retain a copy of the information for their records. The GSA website will start receiving electronic submissions on January 7, 2004. We request all agencies to complete their submissions by March 19, 2004.

In order to facilitate reporting, please designate one point of contact for this survey (Designated Agency Official or DAO), and email his or her name, phone number, fax number, and email address to 508Survey2003@gsa.gov by January 7, 2004. GSA will then assign this person a username and password to access the online reporting system. Your agency's Section 508 coordinator should be able to provide assistance to, or act as, the DAO. A list of all agency Section 508 coordinators is available on www.section508.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Content&ID=84.

If you have any questions regarding the content of the survey, please contact the Department of Justice's Section 508 survey team on (202) 305-8304 (TTY number (202) 353-8944) or email questions to sec508.questions@usdoj.gov. Questions regarding the technical operation of the website should be directed to GSA on (202) 501-4906 (TTY (202) 501-6269).

We thank you for your participation in this important survey to ensure that the Federal government's information and data are accessible to all citizens.

district court for violations of Section 508.  The remedies available in court proceedings are defined by sections 505(a)(2) and 505(b) of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 794a(a)(2) and 794a(b), and include injunctive relief and attorneys’ fees, but do not include monetary damages.  See Lane v. Pena, 518 U.S. 187 (1996).