The U.S. Department of Energy has once again extended the implementation of an earlier proposed Direct Final Rule (DFR) for an additional 90 days. ACB submitted comments to the Department on the DFR back in July. The DFR wants to dramatically impact the regulations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act; builders would not be held to the same standards to make structures accessible for people with disabilities.

Please follow the link below to reach out to Congress to tell them to fund Bookshare services for students. Current budget proposals will cut Bookshare coverage for students. It is a vital resource to provide blind and low vision students with educational materials.

https://speak4.app/lp/ey01ss2s/?ts=1757949671

Please follow the link below to tell Congress to ensure the rights of jurors with disabilities. Blind and low vision persons who are called to jury duty are constantly discriminated against. Federal law currently prohibits such discrimination on the basis of characteristics such as race and gender but does not include disability. This new law would do so. It would also ensure the court would provide necessary accommodations such as documents in braille. Please follow the link below and reach out to Congress.

It was brought to ACB’s attention that the Department of Defense shared a letter with the Department of Education regarding Randolph-Sheppard venders on defense properties. Based on different resources, it is our understanding that the Department of Defense believes that blind venders cannot provide appropriate services and that the Secretary of Defense is seeking to replace current contracts held by blind vendors. ACB is reaching out to our sources to learn more about such rumors.

In July, the Department of Labor put out a notice of proposed rule-making (NPRM) requesting comments on the 7 percent utilization goal under Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act. The utilization goal, also seen as a benchmark, requires that businesses that receive federal contracts strive to have 7 percent of their employees be people with some kind of disability. Under this NPRM, the Department of Labor is asking to eliminate the 7 percent utilization goal.

The National Coalition on Accessible Voting (NCAV) has officially launched its website. To learn more about the work of NCAV, please visit the link below.

NCAV is a coalition of disability advocacy groups working toward full-access to accessible voting for people with disabilities. ACB has been a member since the beginning of NCAV’s founding.

www.ncavote.org

Please click on the link below to participate in a new campaign to ensure funding for the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS). In many states, NLS services flow through state library programs that receive IMLS funding. Lets make sure library services get the funding they need so we can continue to access written materials.

https://speak4.app/lp/ou01jn56/?ts=1755873072

Posted on August 25th, 2025

The American Council of the Blind is pleased to announce that one of our partners, Waymo LLC, is the first company to ever receive the ADC testing permit from the New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT). This permits Waymo to operate vehicles in parts of Manhattan and downtown Brooklyn while in autonomous mode with a trained autonomous vehicle specialist behind the wheel. This is a first of its kind in NYC and brings accessibility and the future one step closer to New Yorkers.

On this day in 1965, the Voting Rights Act was signed into law, establishing critical protections for voters with disabilities, including the right to receive help from a person of their choosing at the polls. This landmark law also outlawed discriminatory voting practices for all citizens.