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Maine
What Are the Laws pertaining to the use of Accessible Instructional Materials?
The laws that pertain to the obligations for local School Administrative Units (SAUs) to provide services to students with disabilities and those related to the protection of copyrights are still in conflict. Issues related to student eligibility for AIM are also still emerging. At this point in time, we provide these resources to provide the best guidance.
Here are the major pieces of legislation:
Information below also provides some guidance to Maine schools in the form of Other Considerations and IDEA Eligibility, as well as support for Students Who Do Not Receive Services under IDEA.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA04) requires the timely delivery of accessible instructional materials to students who are IDEA04 eligible. To assist in implementation of this requirement, IDEA04 established the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) that serves as a repository for electronic files prepared in the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) format. NIMAS is the technical standard to be used by publishers in the preparation of electronic files. A NIMAS source file can converted into specialized formats (Braille, large print, digital audio and electronic text).
IDEA04 specifically requires that each state education agency (SEA):
The National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) is an acquisition system for specialized formats of textbooks and related core instructional materials sold after July 18, 2006. The NIMAC is a national repository of electronic files of textbooks and core instructional materials that are submitted directly by publishers. These files, once downloaded from the NIMAC, are then available to be converted to any of four specialized formats (Braille, digital text, audio, or large print). Although the process of downloading files is limited to authorized individuals, the NIMAC is freely searchable by anyone.
The electronic files that are submitted to the NIMAC by publishers are based on the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS), and are known as NIMAS source files. The NIMAS is a technical standard used by publishers to produce source files of their textbooks and related core instructional materials. A single file based on the NIMAS is built once and then, upon download from the NIMAC, rendered many times in multiple formats. The NIMAS and NIMAC significantly reduce the amount of time it takes to get specialized formats of core instructional materials to the students who need them.
NIMAS and the NIMAC originate from a provision within the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA 04). The law requires that printed textbooks and related core instructional materials be provided to students with print disabilities in specialized formats in a timely manner. In Maine, “timely manner” means, “at the same time as other students receive their core instructional materials in print format.” “Core instructional materials” are textbooks and related core materials published with texts that are primarily for use in elementary and secondary school instruction and required by state or location education agencies for use by students in the classroom.
For those who did not assure coordination with NIMAC, the agency must provide accessible, alternative format instructional materials to students who are blind or have other print disabilities in a timely manner through their own resources and will not have access to the NIMAC repository of files.
Adapted from Missouri Assistive Technology http://www.at.mo.gov/idea.html
Laws in United States and many other countries prevent the copying of copyright materials without the permission of the copyright holder. In many cases the materials can be copied by paying a fee to the copyright holder.
However in 1931, the copyright laws in the United States were amended. According to the National Library Service Fact Sheet: "The free national library program of reading materials for visually handicapped adults administered by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), Library of Congress, was established by an act of Congress in 1931. The program was expanded in 1952 to include blind children, in 1962 to include music materials, and in 1966 to include individuals with physical impairments that prevent the reading of standard print.
From the beginning, this program was dependent upon the cooperation of authors and publishers who granted NLS permission to select and reproduce in special formats copyrighted works without royalty. Although many factors influence the length of time it takes to make a print book accessible in a specialized format, the period required to obtain permission from the copyright holder has sometimes been significant."
From the NLS Fact Sheet: "Under the Legislative Branch Appropriations Bill, H.R. 3754, Congress approved a measure, introduced by Senator John H. Chafee (R-R.I.) on July 29, 1996, that provides for an exemption affecting the NLS program. On September 16, 1996, the bill was signed into law by President Clinton.
The Chafee amendment to chapter 1 of title 17, United States Code, adds section 121, establishing a limitation on the exclusive rights in copyrighted works. The amendment allows authorized entities to reproduce or distribute copies or phonorecords of previously published nondramatic literary works in specialized formats exclusively for use by blind or other persons with disabilities.
Timely Manner: The Maine Department of Education adopted NIMAS as the technical standard for Maine through the Local Entitlement Application - 
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The Maine Department of Education, with input from the Maine AIM Communities of Practice, has defined “timely manner” to read as follows:
School Administrative Units (SAUs) will provide print instructional materials in accessible specialized formats (i.e. Braille, audio, digital, large print) to children who are blind or have other print disabilities in a timely manner.
Timely manner means that SAUs will ensure that children with print disabilities have access to specialized instructional materials at the same time as students without print disabilities.
In cases when a student with a print disability is newly identified or transfers schools, temporary accommodations must be provided while accessible specialized formats are being acquired.
To deliver accessible print materials in a timely manner, each SAU must either assure they will coordinate with NIMAC or assure they will provide accessible, alternative format instructional materials to students who are blind or have other print disabilities in a timely manner through their own resources. Each Maine SAU must provide this assurance in their Local Entitlement Application - -[requires plugin] annually.
NIMAC Coordination – For those who did assure coordination with NIMAC, any print instructional material adoption process, procurement contract, or other purchase of print instructional materials must include a written requirement that the publisher:
The print instructional materials covered by such contract or purchase agreement language include print textbooks and related print core materials that are written and published primarily for use in elementary and secondary school instruction and are required by a state or local education agency for use by students in the classroom.
As noted above, for those SAUs who did not assure coordination with NIMAC, the agency must provide accessible, alternative format instructional materials to students who are blind or have other print disabilities in a timely manner through their own resources and will not have access to the NIMAC repository of files.
FROM the IDEA Regs: Establishes SEA rights and responsibilities.
Nothing in 34 CFR 300.172 shall be construed to require any SEA to coordinate with the NIMAC. If an SEA chooses not to coordinate with the NIMAC, the SEA must provide an assurance to the Secretary that it will provide instructional materials to blind persons or other persons with print disabilities in a timely manner.
Nothing in this section relieves an SEA of its responsibility to ensure that children with disabilities who need instructional materials in accessible formats, but are not included under the definition of blind or other persons with print disabilities in 34 CFR 300.172(e)(1)(i) or who need materials that cannot be produced from NIMAS files, receive those instructional materials in a timely manner.
Establishes responsibilities of LEAs for purchase of instructional materials.
Not later than December 3, 2006, an LEA that chooses to coordinate with the NIMAC, when purchasing print instructional materials, must acquire those instructional materials in the same manner, and subject to the same conditions as an SEA under 34 CFR 300.172.Nothing in this section shall be construed to require an LEA to coordinate with the NIMAC. If an LEA chooses not to coordinate with the NIMAC, the LEA must provide an assurance to the SEA that the LEA will provide instructional materials to blind persons or other persons with print disabilities in a timely manner.
Nothing in this section relieves an LEA of its responsibility to ensure that children with disabilities who need instructional materials in accessible formats but are not included under the definition of blind or other persons with print disabilities in 34 CFR 300.172(e)(1)(i) or who need materials that cannot be produced from NIMAS files, receive those instructional materials in a timely manner. [34 CFR 300.210] [20 U.S.C. 1413(a)(6)(E)]
Here are the major issues:
1. Getting Materials to Students in a Timely Manner: Schools are required to provide students with disabilities with instructional materials within a "timely manner." In most cases (as it is in Maine) this means at the same time as non-disabled students. However some alternative formats require an extensive amount of time to produce. Please see Timely Manner discussion above.
The NIMAC program was designed to attempt to provide some clarity on this issue, but some confusion remains.
CAST has provided a good description of the issues in a section of a document entitled the Copyright Conundrum.
2. How to Determine Eligibility for IDEA Students:
| IDEA Disability Diagnosis | NLS Category |
|---|---|
| Visual Impairment including Blindness | Blind or Vision Disability |
| Deaf-Blindness | Blind or Vision Disability |
| Autism | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Deafness | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Emotional Disturbance | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Hearing Impairment | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Mental Retardation | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Orthopedic Impairment | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Other Health Impairment | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Specific Learning Disability | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Speech or Language Impairment | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Traumatic Brain Injury | Physical Limitation or Reading Disability |
| Multiple Disabilities | Any/all |