Sec. 2. Commission structure

687 words·~3 min read·/bill/114/hr/6122/ih/section-2

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The Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President pro tempore of the Senate, and the Secretary of Education shall establish an independent commission, comprised of key stakeholders, to develop voluntary guidelines for accessible postsecondary electronic instructional materials and related technologies in order— to ensure students with disabilities are afforded the same educational benefits provided to nondisabled students through the use of electronic instructional materials and related technologies; to inform better the selection and use of such materials and technologies at institutions of higher education; and to encourage entities that produce such materials and technologies to make accessible versions more readily available in the market.

In fulfilling this duty, the commission shall review applicable national and international information technology accessibility standards, which it will compile and annotate as an additional information resource for institutions of higher education and companies that service the higher education market. The commission shall be composed of representatives from the following categories: Communities of persons with disabilities for whom the accessibility of postsecondary electronic instructional materials and related technologies is a significant factor in ensuring equal participation in higher education, and nonprofit organizations that provide accessible electronic materials to these communities.

Higher education leadership, which includes: university presidents, provosts, deans, vice presidents/deans of libraries, chief information officers, and other senior institutional executives. Relevant industry representatives, meaning— developers of postsecondary electronic instructional materials; and manufacturers of related technologies. The commission members shall be appointed as follows: 6 members, 2 from each category described in subparagraph (A), shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, 3 of whom shall be appointed on the recommendation of the majority leader of the House of Representatives and 3 of whom shall be appointed on the recommendation of the minority leader of the House of Representatives, with the Speaker ensuring that 1 developer of postsecondary electronic instructional materials and 1 manufacturer of related technologies are appointed.

The Speaker shall also appoint 2 additional members, 1 student with a disability and 1 faculty member from an institution of higher education. 6 members, 2 from each category described in subparagraph (A), shall be appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate, 3 of whom shall be appointed on the recommendation of the majority leader of the Senate and 3 of whom shall be appointed on the recommendation of the minority leader of the Senate, with the President pro tempore ensuring that 1 developer of postsecondary electronic instructional materials and 1 manufacturer of related technologies are appointed.

The President pro tempore shall also appoint 2 additional members, 1 student with a disability and 1 faculty member from an institution of higher education. 3 members, each of whom must possess extensive, demonstrated technical expertise in the development and implementation of accessible postsecondary electronic instructional materials, shall be appointed by the Secretary of Education. 1 of these members shall represent postsecondary students with disabilities, 1 shall represent higher education leadership, and 1 shall represent developers of postsecondary electronic instructional materials.

Federal employees are ineligible for appointment to the commission. An appointee to a volunteer or advisory position with a Federal agency or related advisory body may be appointed to the commission so long as his or her primary employment is with a non-Federal entity and he or she is not otherwise engaged in financially compensated work on behalf of the Federal Government, exclusive of any standard expense reimbursement or grant-funded activities. The commission’s execution of its duties shall be independent of the Secretary of Education, the Attorney General, and the head of any other agency or department of the Federal Government with regulatory or standard setting authority in the areas addressed by the commission, none of whom shall have any authority to review or revise the voluntary guidelines or annotated list of information technology standards produced by the commission under this Act.

There shall be no permanent staffing for the commission. Commission members shall elect a chairperson from among the 19 appointees to the commission. The Commission shall be provided administrative support, as needed, by the Secretary of Education through the Office of Postsecondary Education of the Department of Education.