Several far-reaching pieces of state and federal legislation form the guiding framework for accessibility compliance in a distance education setting. This body of law applies to California Community Colleges, and it includes real-time and delayed captioning of courses delivered live to students at a distance. Video vendors shall be familiar with and adhere to the following laws and regulations as they apply to caption for California State Colleges.
1973 Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504)
The section mandates that colleges must not discriminate in the recruitment, admission, or treatment of any students with disabilities, and provide equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from any services or programs that are offered. Providing aural information through real-time or live captioning of distance education meets the mandate of Section 504.
1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforcement of the ADA has focused on three areas: timeliness of delivery, accuracy of translation, and provision in a manner and medium appropriate to the significance of the message and the abilities of the individual with the disability. Live captioning of courses meets the ADA‟s mandate for “timeliness of delivery.”
1995 Title 5 California Code of Regulations
Requires post secondary institutions that receive funding from the State of California to provide accessibility for distance education courses.
California Government Code 11135 – Discrimination
California Senate Bill 105 which strengthens compliance regardless of federal funding to “…meet the protections and prohibitions contained in Section 202 of the Americans with "Distance Education Captioning and Transcription RFP # 09-01 Foundation For California Community Colleges 6/29/2009 14."
Disabilities Act of 1990” has been incorporated into California Government Code 11135.
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (amended 1998) provides distinct standards for web accessibility compliance.
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