Procurement laws: EU Directive and US Section 508

Why it matters

Procurement is one of the most powerful levers for driving accessibility at scale. When governments and large organizations require accessible products as a condition of purchase, vendors have a commercial incentive to build accessibility into their products — even for the broader market. Understanding how procurement law works is essential for practitioners advising on vendor selection and contract terms. (BoK p. 60)

Procurement as an accessibility lever

Governments spend enormous sums purchasing ICT, buildings, transportation systems, and services. By using procurement rules to require accessibility, they create market pressure on vendors. A supplier who cannot demonstrate conformance to accessibility standards may be excluded from tenders worth millions of dollars or euros. This economic logic is a key reason why procurement law is included in Domain Three. (BoK p. 60)

EU Public Procurement Directive (2014/24/EU)

Directive 2014/24/EU governs how public authorities in EU member states procure goods, works, and services. It offers three mechanisms for embedding accessibility into public procurement: (BoK p. 60)

1. Technical specifications: Contracting authorities can write accessibility requirements (such as conformance with EN 301 549) directly into the technical specifications — the definition of what is being purchased. A product that does not meet these specifications cannot be accepted.

2. Award criteria: Authorities can score accessibility as a criterion in the evaluation of bids. A vendor whose product is more accessible can receive a higher score and win a contract that might otherwise go to a cheaper, less accessible competitor.

3. Exclusion: Authorities can establish accessibility conformance as a mandatory threshold: vendors who fail to demonstrate it are excluded from the competition entirely.

US Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and Section 508

In the United States, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) governs how federal agencies procure goods and services. The FAR was updated to incorporate the Section 508 Standards (the ICT accessibility requirements issued under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act). (BoK p. 61)

This means that when a federal agency issues a solicitation for ICT — software, websites, hardware, telecommunications equipment — the FAR requires the agency to specify and evaluate accessibility conformance. Vendors responding to federal contracts must demonstrate that their products meet the Section 508 Standards (which reference WCAG 2.0 for web content). (BoK p. 61)

Real-world example

A European national government issues a tender for a new citizen-facing portal. The technical specifications include a requirement that the portal must conform to EN 301 549 V3.2.1. One bidder submits a product that has not been audited for accessibility and cannot provide a conformance report. The contracting authority exercises the exclusion provision, removing that bidder from further consideration. Two remaining bidders both meet the conformance threshold; the authority uses accessibility usability testing results as an award criterion to differentiate between them, awarding the contract to the vendor with the higher accessibility score.