The Public Body Procurement Workgroup met on Wednesday, September 4 to finalize recommendations to HB 1355 (Tran). The workgroup’s recommendations significantly reduce the potential impact to local governments compared to the bill in its original form. VACo testified to concerns over the bill at a previous meeting of the workgroup and appreciates the work of the patron and the workgroup to make recommendations with fewer unintended consequences to public bodies.
As previously reported, the bill in its original form would expand the Information Technology Access Act (ITAA) to include information and communication and information technology access for individuals with disabilities at the state and local level, including K-12 school divisions. The bill sought to bring the ITAA into compliance with the overlapping protections for Virginians with disabilities from federal and state laws and regulations. The Senate General Laws and Technology Committee voted unanimously to carry the bill over to 2025 and to send the bill to the Department of General Services Procurement workgroup to study how to modernize the ITAA and to address information technology using the bill as a starting point.
The bill in its original form would likely have imposed significant fiscal impacts to local governments. Though not opposed to the intent of the bill to expand digital access, testimony from VACo and VAcorp estimated that this could have been in the realm of more than tens of millions of dollars statewide, well beyond current provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The workgroup’s draft recommendations instead mainly seek to conform Virginia Code with provisions of the ADA, while also increasing transparency by requiring covered public entities to publish on their websites who should be contacted when an accessibility barrier is identified. The workgroup also suggested several other minor changes to the draft recommendations, which will be drafted and then presented to the workgroup at a subsequent meeting, most likely September 17.
VACo will continue to engage and provide updates as needed on the progress of the workgroup and if these recommendations are turned into legislation for the 2025 General Assembly session.
VACo Contact: Jeremy R. Bennett