Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act - Frequently Asked Questions

E.6.iii. - Are vendors required to post information regarding whether their products meet the Access Board standards on a web site? Couldn't this result in a compromise of intellectual property?

Vendors are not required to post information regarding whether or not their products meet the Access Board's standards on a web site (unless they choose to respond to a solicitation, or are awarded a contract, that says otherwise). As a general matter, vendors may disseminate information addressing whether their products meet the Access Board standards in any manner and level of detail they choose. Vendors are encouraged to use the BuyAccessible website to facilitate the market research efforts of the government in identifying conforming products. However, they are not required to use this means of providing information to the government. The purpose of the website is to improve buyer awareness of those EIT offerings that meet all or some of the Board's standards, not to force the revelation of particular technical solutions. Generally, information the government has about a winning offer may be obtained by the public under the Freedom of Information Act unless the information falls under the exemption in 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4) for business "trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person that is privileged or confidential."