Disability Accessibility Part of the 21st Century Vision for National Broadband Communications
The Federal Communications Commission has sent to Congress its call-to-action plan to increase broadband accessibility to Americans nationwide. The plan, “Connecting America: The National Broadband Plan” provides a framework strategy and vision to improve Internet accessibility to all Americans as mandated by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
According to an FCC press release, nearly 100 million Americans lack broadband at home, and other accessibility gaps threaten America’s global competitiveness. The plan includes a series of goals and recommendations to be accomplished by 2020, including ways to improve the low rate of broadband use among people with disabilities. An FCC survey found that 39 percent of Americans without broadband have a disability.
The Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT) a coalition of disability organizations that works to support legislative and regulatory efforts to ensure technology accessibility for people with disabilities has commended the FCC for including disability in its National Broadband Plan.
The plan’s vision is to connect everyone to a “robust, affordable Internet”
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