The Illinois Information Technology Accessibility Act (Public Act 095-0307) requires that information technology developed, purchased, or provided by the State is accessible to individuals with disabilities. These Standards define the functional performance criteria and technical requirements that must be met to ensure that information technology is accessible.
Each State entity shall ensure that information technology that it, or its contractors, develops, purchases, or provides for use by or on behalf of the State complies with the applicable provisions of these standards to the greatest extent possible, unless one or more of the exceptions identified in the following section apply. These standards apply to all newly developed, purchased, or provided information technology and to substantial modifications made to existing information technology.
Compliance with these standards can be established by (i) demonstration of compliance with the Functional Performance Criteria, and/or (ii) documentation of compliance with the Technical Requirements. If information technology does not comply with the Technical Requirements, it is the responsibility of the State entity developing, purchasing, or providing that information technology to document how compliance with the Functional Performance Criteria has been demonstrated.
These standards do not require (i) the installation of specific accessibility-related software or peripheral devices at a workstation of an individual who is not an individual with a disability or (ii) that equipment be made available for access at a location where that information technology is not customarily available to the public.
These standards do not apply to information technology used for activities related to intelligence, national security, command and control of military forces, weapons system, or systems which are critical to the direct fulfillment of military or intelligence missions. This exception does not apply to information technology that is used for administrative and business purposes (including payroll, finance, logistics, and personnel management applications) or any information technology that is intended for use by the public.
These standards do not apply to information technology that is purchased or used by a contractor if that information technology is not to be provided for use by or on behalf of a State entity.
Specific provisions of these standards do not apply if those provisions would require a fundamental alteration of the information technology that would prevent the information technology from being used for its intended purpose.
These standards do not apply to information technology that is designed to be accessed only for maintenance, repair, or occasional monitoring. These standards do apply to the controls or interfaces of such information technology that can be executed externally or remotely.
These standards do not apply to information technology that is intended for personal/private use by individuals or limited, well-defined groups of users, if a State entity can demonstrate that equivalent information technology that does comply with these standards can be readily provided as needed to meet the needs of individuals with disabilities. This exception does not apply to any information technology that is intended for use by the public.
These standards do not apply if there is no information technology for a given purpose available in the commercial marketplace that complies with these standards. If information technology is commercially available that meets some but not all of these standards, a State entity must procure the product that best meets these standards. This exception does not apply to information technology that is developed or substantially modified by or for a State entity.
Specific provisions of these standards do not apply if a State entity determines that compliance with those provisions would impose an undue burden on the State entity. The decision that compliance would result in such a burden should be made by the head of the State entity or his or her designee. When claiming an undue burden, the State entity must document why, and to what extent, compliance with each such provision creates an undue burden, considering all resources available to the State entity, and must be prepared to provide individuals with disabilities with the information and data involved by an alternative means in a timely manner.
The Technical Requirements of these standards do not apply if a State entity can demonstrate and document that an alternate technical approach results in substantially equivalent or greater access to and use of the information technology for individuals with disabilities.
To be considered accessible, information technology developed, purchased, or provided by or on behalf of the State must be usable in a timely, accurate, complete, and efficient manner by:
The Functional Performance Criteria may be satisfied directly, by features incorporated within the information technology, or through the use of leading assistive technologies. If assistive technology is required to meet the Functional Performance Criteria, it must be widely and readily available and it must be used in a typical manner of operation consistent with its user documentation. If customization of the assistive technology is required, the State entity developing, purchasing, or providing the information technology must ensure that any necessary customizations are provided and supported as part of the information technology.
The following Technical Requirements specify technical characteristics and features that may be used to ensure that information technology satisfies the Functional Performance Criteria. If information technology complies with the Technical Requirements, it is not necessary to explicitly demonstrate compliance with the Functional Performance Criteria; if information technology does not comply with the Technical Requirements, it is the responsibility of the State entity developing, purchasing, or providing that information technology to document how compliance with the Functional Performance Criteria has been demonstrated.
The following Technical Requirements are based on Section 508 Standards and, for Web-based intranet and internet information and applications, World Wide Web Consortium Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0, Priorities 1 and 2. As those standards and guidelines are updated, the State of Illinois will review the new standards and guidelines, and modify these Technical Requirements as appropriate.