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Accessibility - Communication Access Realtime Translation - Laws

From Pete Wacht, Senior Director, Communications and Public Affairs, NCRA

Updated June 04, 2009

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The team works to determine such things as the student’s current level of academic performance, measurable annual goals, what services will be provided for the student, what activities the student can and cannot participate in with the regular class, the date which the services will be provided along with frequency, location, and duration of the services, the progress of the disabled child and how the parent(s) will be informed of the child’s progress.

If the team has determined that the child will receive CART, the IEP should include the following specifics regarding the provision of this service: CART will be provided by a realtime court reporter who can write at a minimum speed of 225 words per minute, an electronic copy of the notes will be given to the student immediately after each class so the student can make his or her own notes at home, same-day substitutes will be provided when needed, and the student will be allowed to follow the CART feed on a laptop computer on his or her desk.

  • Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 508)
    In 1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation Act to require Federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. Inaccessible technology interferes with an individual's ability to obtain and use information quickly and easily.

    Section 508 was enacted to eliminate barriers in information technology, to make available new opportunities for people with disabilities and to encourage development of technologies that will help achieve these goals. Under Section 508, Federal agencies must give disabled employees and members of the public access to information that is comparable to the access available to others. For example, a recorded or live transmission sent from an agency over its Internet site would require a text version for those with hearing impairments.

CART would be considered a reasonable accommodation to receive communication access under all these laws. In most cases, either the school or other institution subsidizes costs incurred to the consumer to ensure that full access is available. There is sure to be future legislation incorporating the use of CART for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community in daily activities. For more information on the above laws, please visit:

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