,,ii  #aafth ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,s4 #cjie  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of     
,,the ,,united ,,states  ,december #ah1 
#bjai,mr4 ,schumer 7for ,ms4 ,warren    
7for herself1 ,mr4 ,bennet1 ,mr4        
,sullivan1 ,mr4 ,tester1 and ,ms4       
,ernst77 introduced the following bill2 
which was read twice and referred to the
 ,committee on ,health1 ,education1     
,labor1 and ,pensions  ,a ,,bill  ,to   
develop voluntary guidelines for        
accessible postsecondary electronic     
instructional materials and related     
technologies1 and for other purposes4   
#a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited
 as the ,accessible ,instructional      
,materials in ,higher ,education ,act or
 the ,,aim ,,high ,act4  #b4            
,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7        
,annotated list of information          
technology standards ,the term annotated
 list of information technology         
standards means a list of existing      
national and international accessibility
 standards relevant to student use of   

postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials and related technologies1 and 
to other types of information technology
 common to institutions of higher       
education 7such as institutional        
websites and class registration         
systems71 annotated by the commission   
established pursuant to section #c to   
provide information about the           
applicability of such standards in      
higher education settings4 ,the         
annotated list of information technology
 standards is intended to serve solely  
as a reference tool to inform any       
consideration of the relevance of such  
standards in higher education contexts4 
7#b7 ,disability ,the term disability   
has the meaning given such term in      
section #c of the ,americans with       
,disabilities ,act of #aiij 7#db        
,u4,s4,c4 #abajb74  7#c7 ,institution of
 higher education ,the term institution 
of higher education has the meaning     
given such term in section #aja of the  
,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj   

,u4,s4,c4 #ajja74  7#d7 ,nonconforming  
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials or related technologies ,the  
term nonconforming materials or related 
technologies means postsecondary        
electronic instructional materials or   
related technologies that do not conform
 to the voluntary guidelines to be      
developed pursuant to this ,act4  7#e7  
,pilot testing ,the term pilot testing  
means a small-scale study or project to 
determine the efficacy of a             
postsecondary electronic instructional  
material or related technology in a     
postsecondary instructional setting to  
inform an institutional decision about  
whether to implement the material or    
technology more broadly across the      
institution's instructional settings4   
7#f7 ,postsecondary electronic          
instructional materials ,the term       
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials means digital curricular      
content that is required1 provided1 or  
both recommended and provided by an     

institution of higher education for use 
in a postsecondary instructional        
program4  7#g7 ,related technologies    
,the term related technologies refers to
 any software1 applications1 learning   
management or content management        
systems1 and hardware that an           
institution of higher education         
requires1 provides1 or both recommends  
and provides for student access to and  
use of postsecondary electronic         
instructional materials in a            
postsecondary instructional program4    
7#h7 ,technical panel ,the term         
technical panel means a group of experts
 with extensive1 demonstrated technical 
experience in the development and       
implementation of accessibility features
 for postsecondary electronic           
instructional materials and related     
technologies1 established by the        
,commission pursuant to section #d7;d71 
which will assist the commission in the 
development of the voluntary guidelines 
and annotated list of information       

technology standards authorized under   
this ,act4  7#i7 ,voluntary guidelines  
,the term voluntary guidelines means a  
set of technical and functional         
performance criteria to be developed by 
the commission established pursuant to  
section #c that provide specific        
guidance regarding both the             
accessibility and pedagogical           
functionality of postsecondary          
electronic instructional materials and  
related technologies not addressed1 or  
not adequately addressed1 by existing   
accessibility standards4  #c4           
,commission structure  7a7              
,establishment of commission  7#a7 ,in  
general  7,a7 ,purposes ,the ,speaker of
 the ,house of ,representatives1 the    
,president pro tempore of the ,senate1  
and the ,secretary of ,education shall  
establish an independent commission to  
carry out the activities described in   
subparagraph 7,b7 7referred to in this  
,act as the commission7 in order--  7i7 
to ensure students with disabilities are

 afforded the same educational benefits 
provided to nondisabled students through
 the use of electronic instructional    
materials and related technologies2     
7ii7 to inform better the selection and 
use of such materials and technologies  
at institutions of higher education2 and
  7iii7 to encourage entities that      
produce such materials and technologies 
to make accessible versions more readily
 available in the market4  7,b7 ,duties 
,the commission shall-- 7i7 develop     
voluntary guidelines for accessible     
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials and related technologies2     
7ii7 review applicable national and     
international information technology    
accessibility standards1 which the      
commission shall compile and annotate as
 an additional information resource for 
institutions of higher education and    
companies that service the higher       
education market2 and  7iii7 develop a  
model framework for pilot testing       
postsecondary electronic instructional  

materials and related technologies in   
postsecondary instructional settings to 
facilitate exploration and adoption of  
such materials and technologies4  7#b7  
,membership  7,a7 ,in ,general ,the     
commission shall be composed of #ai     
members4 ,the commission shall include  
members of the stakeholder groups       
described in subparagraph 7,b71 students
 with a disability1 faculty at          
institutions of higher education1 and   
individuals with technical expertise in 
the development and implementation of   
accessible postsecondary electronic     
instructional materials1 each of whom   
shall be appointed in accordance with   
subparagraph 7,c74  7,b7 ,stakeholder   
groups ,the commission shall be composed
 of representatives from the following  
categories3 7i7 ,disability ,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 education1 and nonprofit      
organizations that provide accessible   
electronic materials to these           
communities4  7ii7 ,higher education    
,higher education leadership1 which     
includes an institution of higher       
education's president1 provosts1 deans1 
vice presidents1 deans of libraries1    
chief information officers1 and other   
senior institutional executives4  7iii7 
,industry ,developers of postsecondary  
electronic instructional materials and  
manufacturers of related technologies4  
7,c7 ,appointment of members ,the       
commission members shall be appointed as
 follows3 7i7 ,six members1 #b from each
 category described in subparagraph     
7,b71 shall be appointed by the ,speaker
 of the ,house of ,representatives1 #c  
of whom shall be appointed on the       
recommendation of the majority leader of
 the ,house of ,representatives and #c  
of whom shall be appointed on the       
recommendation of the minority leader of
 the ,house of ,representatives1 with   

the ,speaker ensuring that #a developer 
of postsecondary electronic             
instructional materials and #a          
manufacturer of related technologies are
 appointed4 ,the ,speaker shall also    
appoint #b additional members1 #a       
student with a disability and #a faculty
 member from an institution of higher   
education4  7ii7 ,six members1 #b from  
each category described in subparagraph 
7,b71 shall be appointed by the         
,president pro tempore of the ,senate1  
#c of whom shall be appointed on the    
recommendation of the majority leader of
 the ,senate and #c of whom shall be    
appointed on the recommendation of the  
minority leader of the ,senate1 with the
 ,president pro tempore ensuring that #a
 developer of postsecondary electronic  
instructional materials and #a          
manufacturer of related technologies are
 appointed4 ,the ,president pro tempore 
shall also appoint #b additional        
members1 #a student with a disability   
and #a faculty member from an           

institution of higher education4  7iii7 
,three members1 each of whom must       
possess extensive1 demonstrated         
technical expertise in the development  
and implementation of accessible        
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials1 shall be appointed by the    
,secretary of ,education4 ,one of these 
members shall represent postsecondary   
students with disabilities1 #a shall    
represent higher education leadership1  
and #a shall represent developers of    
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials4  7,d7 ,eligibility to serve  
on the commission ,federal employees are
 ineligible for appointment to the      
commission4 ,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  
the appointee's primary employment is   
with a non-,federal entity and the      
appointee is not otherwise engaged in   
financially compensated work on behalf  
of the ,federal ,government1 exclusive  

of any standard expense reimbursement or
 grant-funded activities4  7b7          
,authority and administration  7#a7     
,authority ,the commission's execution  
of its duties shall be independent of   
the ,secretary of ,education1 the       
,attorney ,general1 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 commission4  7#b7      
,administration  7,a7 ,staffing ,there  
shall be no permanent staffing for the  
commission4  7,b7 ,leadership           
,commission members shall elect a       
chairperson from among the #ai          
appointees to the commission4  7,c7     
,administrative support ,the ,commission
 shall be provided administrative       
support1 as needed1 by the ,secretary of
 ,education through the ,office of      
,postsecondary ,education of the        
,department of ,education4  #d4 ,duties 
of the commission  7a7 ,produce         
voluntary guidelines ,not later than #ah

 months after the date of enactment of  
this ,act1 subject to a #f-month        
extension that the commission may       
exercise at its discretion1 the         
commission established in section #c    
shall--  7#a7 develop and issue         
voluntary guidelines for accessible     
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials and related technologies2 and 
7#b7 in developing the voluntary        
guidelines1 the commission shall-- 7,a7 
establish a technical panel pursuant to 
subsection 7e7 to support the commission
 in developing the voluntary guidelines2
  7,b7 develop criteria for determining 
which materials and technologies        
constitute postsecondary electronic     
instructional materials and related     
technologies as defined in paragraphs   
7#f7 and 7#g7 of section #b2  7,c7      
identify existing national and          
international accessibility standards   
that are relevant to student use of     
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials and related technologies at   

institutions of higher education2  7,d7 
identify and address any unique         
pedagogical and accessibility           
requirements of postsecondary electronic
 instructional materials and related    
technologies that are not addressed1 or 
not adequately addressed1 by the        
identified1 relevant existing           
accessibility standards2  7,e7 identify 
those aspects of accessibility1 and     
types of postsecondary instructional    
materials and related technologies1 for 
which the commission cannot produce     
guidelines or which cannot be addressed 
by existing accessibility standards due 
to--  7i7 inherent limitations of       
commercially available technologies2 or 
7ii7 the challenges posed by a specific 
category of disability that covers a    
wide spectrum of impairments and        
capabilities which makes it difficult to
 assess the benefits from particular    
guidelines on a categorical basis2  7,f7
 ensure that the voluntary guidelines   
are consistent with the requirements of 

section #ejd of the ,rehabilitation ,act
 of #aigc 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gid7 and      
titles ,,ii and ,,iii of the ,americans 
with ,disabilities ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4  
#abaca et seq42 #db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaha et 
seq472  7,g7 ensure that the voluntary  
guidelines are consistent1 to the extent
 feasible and appropriate1 with the     
technical and functional performance    
criteria included in the national and   
international accessibility standards   
identified by the commission as relevant
 to student use of postsecondary        
electronic instructional materials and  
related technologies2  7,h7 allow for   
the use of an alternative design or     
technology that results in substantially
 equivalent or greater accessibility and
 usability by individuals with          
disabilities than would be provided by  
compliance with the voluntary           
guidelines2 and  7,i7 provide that where
 electronic instructional materials or  
related technologies that comply fully  
with the voluntary guidelines are not   

commercially available1 or where such   
compliance is not technically feasible1 
the institution may select the product  
that best meets the voluntary guidelines
 consistent with the institution's      
business and pedagogical needs4  7b7    
,produce annotated list of information  
technology standards ,not later than #ah
 months after the date of the enactment 
of this ,act1 subject to a #f-month     
extension that the commission may       
exercise at its discretion1 the         
commission established in section #c    
shall1 with the assistance of the       
technical panel established under       
subsection 7e71 develop and issue an    
annotated list of information technology
 standards4  7c7 ,develop model         
framework for pilot testing             
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials and related technologies ,not 
later than #ah months after the date of 
enactment of this ,act1 subject to a    
#f-month extension that the commission  
may exercise at its discretion1 the     

commission shall develop a model        
framework that institutions of higher   
education may utilize on a voluntary    
basis1 consistent with their obligations
 under the ,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc
 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gja et seq47 and the   
,americans with ,disabilities ,act of   
#aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaja et seq471   
for pilot testing the use of            
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials and related technologies in   
postsecondary instructional settings to 
facilitate exploration and adoption of  
such materials and technologies4  7d7   
,requirement for supermajority approval 
,issuance of the voluntary guidelines1  
annotated list of information technology
 standards1 and model framework for     
pilot testing postsecondary             
instructional materials and related     
technologies shall require approval of  
not less than #ae of the #ai members of 
the commission4  7e7 ,establish         
technical panel ,not later than #a month
 after the commission's first meeting1  

the commission shall appoint and convene
 a panel of #ab technical experts1 each 
of whom shall have extensive1           
demonstrated technical experience in    
developing1 researching1 or implementing
 accessible postsecondary electronic    
instructional materials or related      
technologies4 ,the commission has       
discretion to determine a process for   
nominating1 vetting1 and confirming a   
panel of experts that fairly represents 
the stakeholder communities on the      
commission4 ,the technical panel shall  
include a representative from the       
,united ,states ,access ,board4  #e4    
,periodic review and revision of        
voluntary guidelines  7a7 ,in ,general  
,not later than #e years after issuance 
of the voluntary guidelines1 annotated  
list of information technology          
standards1 and pilot testing framework  
described in this ,act1 and every #e    
years thereafter1 the ,secretary of     
,education shall publish a notice in the
 ,federal ,register requesting public   

comment about whether there is a need to
 reconstitute the commission to update  
the voluntary guidelines1 annotated list
 of information technology standards1 or
 pilot testing framework to reflect     
technological advances1 changes in      
postsecondary electronic instructional  
materials and related technologies1 or  
updated national and international      
accessibility standards4  7b7 ,report   
,following the request for public       
comment described in subsection 7a71 the
 ,secretary of ,education shall submit a
 report to ,congress summarizing the    
public comments and presenting the      
,secretary's decision about whether to  
reconstitute the commission based on    
those comments4  7c7 ,reconstituted     
commission ,if the ,secretary of        
,education decides to reconstitute the  
commission1 the ,secretary may implement
 that decision #cj days after the date  
on which the report was submitted to    
,congress by requesting the appointment 
of commission members as described in   

section #c4  #f4 ,rules of construction 
7a7 ,nonconforming postsecondary        
electronic instructional materials or   
related technologies ,nothing in this   
,act shall be construed to require an   
institution of higher education to      
require1 provide1 or both recommend and 
provide1 postsecondary electronic       
instructional materials or related      
technologies that conform to the        
voluntary guidelines4 ,however1 an      
institution that selects or uses        
nonconforming postsecondary electronic  
instructional materials or related      
technologies shall otherwise comply with
 obligations under section #ejd of the  
,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 7#bi      
,u4,s4,c4 #gid7 and titles ,,ii and     
,,iii of the ,americans with            
,disabilities ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaca
 et seq42 #db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaha et seq47 
to provide access to the educational    
benefit afforded by such materials and  
technologies through provision of       
appropriate and reasonable modification1

 accommodation1 and auxiliary aids or   
services4  7b7 ,relationship to existing
 laws and regulations ,with respect to  
the ,americans with ,disabilities ,act  
of #aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaja et seq47 
and the ,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc   
7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gja et seq471 nothing in
 this ,act may be construed--  7#a7 to  
authorize or require conduct prohibited 
under the ,americans with ,disabilities 
,act of #aiij and the ,rehabilitation   
,act of #aigc1 including the regulations
 issued pursuant to those laws2  7#b7 to
 expand1 limit1 or alter the remedies or
 defenses under the ,americans with     
,disabilities ,act of #aiij and the     
,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc2  7#c7 to 
supersede1 restrict1 or limit the       
application of the ,americans with      
,disabilities ,act of #aiij and the     
,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc2 or  7#d7 
to limit the authority of ,federal      
agencies to issue regulations pursuant  
to the ,americans with ,disabilities    
,act of #aiij and the ,rehabilitation   

,act of #aigc4  7c7 ,voluntary nature of
 the products of the commission  7#a7   
,voluntary guidelines  7,a7 ,in ,general
 ,it is the sense of ,congress that use 
of the voluntary guidelines developed   
pursuant to this ,act is and should     
remain voluntary4 ,the voluntary        
guidelines shall not confer any rights  
or impose any obligations on commission 
participants1 institutions of higher    
education1 or other persons4 ,thus1 no  
department or agency of the ,federal    
,government may incorporate the         
voluntary guidelines1 whether produced  
as a discrete document or electronic    
resource1 into regulations promulgated  
under the ,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 
7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gja et seq471 the       
,americans with ,disabilities ,act of   
#aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaja et seq471 or
 any other ,federal law4  7,b7          
,standards and resources ,the           
restriction under subparagraph 7,a7     
applies only to the voluntary guidelines
 as a discrete document or resource1 and

 does not impose a limitation on        
,federal use of standards or resources  
to which the voluntary guidelines may   
refer4  7#b7 ,annotated list  7,a7 ,in  
,general ,it is the sense of ,congress  
that use of the annotated list of       
information technology standards        
developed pursuant to this ,act is and  
should remain voluntary4 ,the annotated 
list shall not confer any rights or     
impose any obligations on commission    
participants1 institutions of higher    
education1 or other persons4 ,thus1 no  
department or agency of the ,federal    
,government may incorporate the         
annotated list1 whether produced as a   
discrete document or electronic resource
 into regulations promulgated under the 
,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 7#bi      
,u4,s4,c4 #gja et seq471 the ,americans 
with ,disabilities ,act of #aiij 7#db   
,u4,s4,c4 #abaja et seq471 or any other 
,federal law4  7,b7 ,standards and      
resources ,the restriction under        
subparagraph 7,a7 applies only to the   

annotated list of information technology
 standards as a discrete document or    
resource1 and does not impose a         
limitation on ,federal use of standards 
or resources to which the annotated list
 may refer4  7#c7 ,pilot testing        
framework  7,a7 ,in ,general ,it is the 
sense of ,congress that use of the model
 framework for pilot testing            
postsecondary instructional materials   
and related technologies developed      
pursuant to this ,act is and should     
remain voluntary4 ,the pilot testing    
framework shall not confer any rights or
 impose any obligations on commission   
participants1 institutions of higher    
education1 or other persons4 ,thus1 no  
department or agency of the ,federal    
,government may incorporate the pilot   
testing framework1 whether produced as a
 discrete document or electronic        
resource into regulations promulgated   
under the ,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 
7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gja et seq471 the       
,americans with ,disabilities ,act of   

#aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaja et seq471 or
 any other ,federal law4  7,b7          
,standards and resources ,the           
restriction under subparagraph 7,a7     
applies only to the pilot testing       
framework as a discrete document or     
resource1 and does not impose a         
limitation on ,federal use of standards 
or resources to which the pilot testing 
framework may refer4