Procurement

The "Procurement" criteria ensures that your agency reviews and validates that contract language in procurement documents addresses accessibility standards compliance and a commitment by the vendor to accessibility for the life of the product. This should be done for both vendor products and vendor development services.

Work to fulfill this criteria launch, integration, and optimization of:

• Creating a plan for engaging vendors in accessibility accountability including asking vendors questions about the accessibility of their products and organizational commitment to accessibility. 

  • This includes training key people on the basics of understanding compliance reports (VPATs). Learn more about Understanding a VPAT (Slides).

• Evaluating your agency's solicitation, evaluation and contract processes for accessibility gaps that includes partnership with OIT

• Providing a standardized method of collaboration with business product roles

Although all technology should go through OIT to be vetted for accessibility, as well as terms and conditions, security, and data privacy, it is important for agencies to also close any gaps on procurement processes and procedures in order to ensure accessibility. A Procurement Policy or Procedural Directive on IT Accessibility should be developed at the agency level to ensure that IT products purchased by or used at the agency are accessible to those with disabilities.

This policy should apply to all solicitations, responses thereto, and contracts for all Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) including websites, web applications, software systems, kiosk applications and interfaces, electronic documents, e-learning, multimedia and programmable user interfaces wherever practicable, excluding content.

To reach this goal, those responsible for making decisions about which products to procure must consider accessibility as one of the criteria for acquisition. This is especially critical for enterprise-level systems and other technologies that affect Coloradans and state employees.

Procedure  

In order to facilitate the procurement of accessible information technology, these things should be considered:  

Soliciting Accessibility Information

Bidders are required to demonstrate to the agency that the technology provided conforms to or addresses each of the WCAG criteria (most recently published version of the WCAG guidelines).

Validate accessibility information received. Wherever practicable, the agency in consultation with procurement and OIT or other qualified staff will attempt to validate information provided by bidders. This includes accessibility assurances in the vendor's commitment to provide a fully accessible product for the life of the product.

As you solicit information on accessibility from the vendor you should also inquire whether the vendor has:

• A team trained and dedicated to digital accessibility for development, testing, remediation of the product

• Accessibility Conformance reports to review and identify where there may be accessibility gaps and if the vendor shows dedication to accessibility

• Roadmap and timeline for remediating any outstanding accessibility issues

• A plan for accommodations or "workarounds" for functionality that may not yet be fully accessible

• A system of reporting accessibility issues to the customer and a way for the customer to reasonably report issues to the vendor

A few tactics to gain some of this information prior to discussing these questions with the vendor include:

• Visiting their website and using the WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool to gauge whether the vendor has put effort into accessibility

• Perform a Google search on the vendor to find accessibility information. You can usually search the vendor's name and "accessibility" to find this information and often find compliance reports as well.

• Ask your Accessibility Consultant and/or IT Director if the product may have already been vetted with accessibility information already available

Use these resources when engaging with vendors for digital products or development services:

• Vendor Accessibility Requirements and Talking Points for Agencies (Doc)

• Accessibility for Procurement

• Vendor Checklist 

• Accessibility RFP Questions

  • Strategies for Procuring Accessible IT Presentation (Slides)

  • Understanding a VPAT (Slides)