Welcome to the ACB Maine Newsletter for July 2026.
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President's Message
from Amanda Frost
Happy July everyone! This is your ACB Maine president! I am happy to bring you some great updates! ACB Maine will be putting their final touches on a fantastic brochure that will be distributed throughout the state of Maine. We have planned a few get-togethers and those dates will be included in this newsletter. I want to share my gratitude to all of my board members that are working so hard to pull things together for the convention in November and all these side projects that are going on.
I appreciate everyone’s participation and feel so proud of who I’ve had on my board. You guys are all shining stars keep up the great work!
Convention News
Meet Ups and Reach
Out
For ACB of Maine members who are planning to
participate virtually in the ACB 2026 annual convention, here is some
useful information you will need to prepare to cast your individual votes
or to share your thoughts with our state representative, Julie Welsh.
The 2026 Board of Publications Candidates Forum, which
occurred on July 8, has been posted as a podcast. You may listen to
it directly at - 2026
BOP Candidates Forum
Hear from the
candidates for positions on the ACB Board of Directors and Board of
Publications.
For the 2026 convention, three resolutions have
been proposed. There’s one resolution each about standards for audio
description, the amazon disability access line, and funding to the
Institute for Museums and Library Services.
The reading,
discussion and debate, and rising voting will be held on Tuesday, July
14th.
Record vote will be on Thursday, July 16th. Resolutions can be
identified by numbers between 1 and 5; every number between 1 and 5 is not
represented because this list does not include Resolutions that were
withdrawn.
The full versions of the resolutions are copied
and pasted below. The resolutions are listed in the order in which they
will be introduced during the convention.
Resolution
2026-05
Voluntary Best Practice Guidelines for
Self-Description in Professional and Educational Settings
Whereas, the foundational purpose of Audio Description
(AD) and visual interpretation is to provide essential, objective context
that grants blind and low vision individuals equal access to core data,
narrative, and information; and
Whereas, a
well-intentioned but misguided trend has emerged in professional and
educational settings wherein speakers provide unsolicited, hyper-detailed
self-descriptions of clothing, hair, and non-essential physical traits;
and
Whereas, this practice introduces irrelevant
visual data that violates established professional principles of audio
description, creates information overload, and forces participants to
expend unnecessary cognitive energy filtering out irrelevant details;
and
Whereas, an emphasis on personal
self-description frequently serves as a performative substitute for
substantive access, masking critical failures such as the omission of
descriptions for charts, graphs, on-screen text, and digital handouts;
and
Whereas, the American Council of the Blind (ACB)
and its Audio Description Project (ADP) maintain the premier authority on
visual interpretation and accessibility standards;
Now,
therefore, be it resolved by the American Council of the Blind in
convention assembled virtually this XX day of July, 2026 that this
organization officially recognize that true visual equity is achieved
through concise, context-driven communication of substantive content
rather than the irrelevant cataloging of personal attributes;
and
Be it further resolved that ACB instruct the ADP to
author and publish a definitive white paper and position statement
establishing rigorous standards for live visual description in corporate,
academic, and government settings; and
Be it further
resolved that these standards shall emphasize the prioritization of data
and educational content such as slides, charts, and universal design
elements over non-essential personal characteristics;
and
Be it further resolved that ACB launch a national
advocacy campaign targeting major employment, human resources, and higher
education associations to integrate these standardized guidelines into
national professional development and compliance
curricula.
Resolution
2026-03
Amazon Disability Access
Line
Whereas, blind, low vision and
Deaf-Blind customers rely on Amazon’s Disability Access Line to obtain
effective assistance with product information, account support, ordering,
returns, accessibility concerns, and other customer service needs;
and
Whereas, the American Council of the Blind,
pursuant to a California Council of the Blind resolution entered into
dialogue with Amazon concerning issues experienced by blind, low vision
and DeafBlind customers using Amazon’s Disability Access Line;
and
Whereas, a disability access line must provide
effective communication, accurate information, disability-aware customer
service, and meaningful assistance in order to serve its intended purpose;
and
Whereas, ACB members have reported that staff
assigned to the Disability Access Line have frequently been unable to
understand the needs of blind, low vision and DeafBlind customers,
accurately describe products, provide reliable information, or effectively
resolve disability-related customer service concerns;
and
Whereas, inaccurate or incomplete information has
caused blind, low vision and DeafBlind customers to purchase incorrect
products, experience unnecessary returns, lose time, and face barriers
that sighted customers may not encounter; and
Whereas,
approximately a year of dialogue between ACB and Amazon regarding these
concerns occurred with no solutions being implemented;
and
Whereas, additionally, Amazon now requires under
certain circumstances users of the Disability Access Line to verify
account status by activating a link sent by text message and finding a
button on a web page; and
Whereas, this verification
process makes it difficult or impossible for many blind, low vision and
DeafBlind customers, especially if they are attempting verification and
talking to the Disability Access line on the same device;
and
Whereas, Amazon could reduce these barriers by
offering multiple accessible verification methods, including but not
limited to one-time verification codes, accessible in-app approval,
email-based verification, and telephone verification, without jeopardizing
security;
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the
American Council of the Blind in convention assembled virtually this XX
day of July, 2026 that this organization calls upon Amazon to ensure that
personnel assigned to its Disability Access Line have the communications
proficiency, disability-access training, and product-support knowledge
necessary to provide effective, accurate, and respectful assistance to
blind, low vision and DeafBlind customers; and
Be it
further resolved that this organization urge Amazon to consistently
provide multiple accessible account-verification options so that blind,
low vision and DeafBlind customers are not only offered 1 method of
verifying account status; and
Be it further resolved
that this organization request that Amazon meet with representatives of
the American Council of the Blind by February 1, 2027 to establish
measurable service-quality expectations, an accessible escalation process,
and an ongoing feedback mechanism for blind, low vision and DeafBlind
customers.
Resolution 2026-04
Funding to Institute of Museums and Library
Services
Whereas, according to the National
Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS), 39 state Talking
Book Libraries are partially funded through the Institute of Museums and
Library Services (IMLS) as of FY-2025; and
Whereas,
Executive Order 14238 proposed elimination of IMLS;
and
Whereas, late in fiscal year 2025 following
litigation,
congressionally allocated funds began to be
dispersed to IMLS; and
Whereas, despite the President's
opposition, over 290 million dollars was included for IMLS in the 2026
Congressional budget; and
Whereas, funding of 291
million dollars is proposed for IMLS in the 2027
budget.
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the American
Council of the Blind in convention assembled virtually this XX day of
July, 2026 that this organization continue to urge members of Congress to
include at least current funding in the 2027 budget for IMLS;
and
Be it further resolved that a copy of this
resolution be shared with NLS and the American Library
Association.
Website, Audio, and Podcast
Recordings
To help everyone prepare for the business meetings
at the 2026 ACB Conference and Convention, the proposed bylaw amendments,
resolutions, and standing rules are now on the ACB site, both in English
and Spanish. You can access them now at - 2026
Proposed Resolutions, Bylaws, and Standing Rules.
Audio
recordings of the proposed resolutions and proposed by-law amendments are
also available both as podcasts and on - ACB Media 9. Please stay tuned for the Spanish translated
versions.
The resolutions are presented in the order in which
they will be introduced during the convention:
• Resolution 2026-05
– Voluntary Best Practice Guidelines for Self-Description in
Professional and Educational Settings
• Resolution 2026-03 – Amazon
Disability Access Line
• Resolution 2026-04 – Funding to Institute
of Museums and Library Services
•
The proposed 2026 ACB
By-Law Amendments are also available in a separate audio recording.
ACB
Media 9 Schedule
• The three resolutions air every hour at the top of
the hour.
• The proposed by-law amendments air every hour at 15
minutes past the hour.
You can listen to ACB Media 9 in several
ways:
• On an Alexa device, say: "Alexa, ask ACB Media to play 9."
• Through the embedded audio player at: [
https://4eqo4f5ab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001gi_AQ34yOsY7C8HtrXj6FH8fTzANsyzjgwM7muyHj9Rh1Fkw01wq2zrhDBZ0brDnaVLDnzySidUyMUz03FYFJz5tNTqfZxolYADhEqKPOA4lOxjVe4h95w_JiQhe61kALS4IN7n2xRtxr1mLAnRM3-OIMMTEsAONrU4_UMYpSBo=&c=eZ_ki0WVX-VjA8S1SF_ENEmD1sqxoo
RabXTGiPznlsmhCmzY6qrJ_w==&ch=A43d3nDeUibFlzW80hUbGxxQ8V3idCUwSN1cM1DHMcDg-JC7-J4S8A==
]Direct Access to ACB Media 9
• The iOS app “ACB Link” available
free via the App Store
•
Podcasts
Resolutions
2026-05, 2026-03, and 2026-04:
[
https://4eqo4f5ab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001gi_AQ34yOsY7C8HtrXj6FH8fTzANsyzjgwM7muyHj9Rh1Fkw01wq2z_IHlWDSkU8M5oqJi7QK5vSX0wmTZptSpovLShUbyPPU375Xj6SE2EYNDWiMJHyui29GSE4niiLd8sY9fYO2Jdwr1gkS0gOu13VJIPI2WOsbIF0cFm5baQ1PZGFj3EbhKZMg-s4GcmfhtTL75e93p9qp69BZ
mqVZd0omy6wGxI_BZlSAUdMipHK31PBkhR2mdziaeP4l1zq&c=eZ_ki0WVX-VjA8S1SF_ENEmD1sqxooRabXTGiPznlsmhCmzY6qrJ_w==&ch=A43d3nDeUibFlzW80hUbGxxQ8V3idCUwSN1cM1DHMcDg-JC7-J4S8A==
]Resolutions 2026-05, 2026-03, and 2026-04 Podcast
2026 Proposed ACB
By-Law Amendments:
[
https://4eqo4f5ab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001gi_AQ34yOsY7C8HtrXj6FH8fTzANsyzjgwM7muyHj9Rh1Fkw01wq2z_IHlWDSkU87quIYt_pGEZCymtfOq0nxtFAnt4cxR01Qyz5wJ4IphO8eweAbmlQNVZVrhcYnie_n9RznjELussjxHf3IlIQKr6lsaAfk8lrHgUcrEWzEhrek3Epye8B1sPeUV5FzTPGAj8ydXJpdEO9cdiMF
HesMzcTBqFp1g-6&c=eZ_ki0WVX-VjA8S1SF_ENEmD1sqxooRabXTGiPznlsmhCmzY6qrJ_w==&ch=A43d3nDeUibFlzW80hUbGxxQ8V3idCUwSN1cM1DHMcDg-JC7-J4S8A==
]2026 Proposed ACB By-Law Amendments Podcast
The podcasts were
published to the “ACB Business” podcast feed
RSS: [
https://4eqo4f5ab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001gi_AQ34yOsY7C8HtrXj6FH8fTzANsyzjgwM7muyHj9Rh1Fkw01wq20-LRp75FnJ-uwdk_h9vuA-qoXZ0h53eybmOh-hs--t6MdGmenUlXe__0MO_evVzS9tMl2bw_UNKiHcL3bUlbD6I-UQfQzPzZnd3U5A_Zl6qZln4RCDXGTc=&c=eZ_ki0WVX-VjA8S1SF_ENEmD1sqxoo
RabXTGiPznlsmhCmzY6qrJ_w==&ch=A43d3nDeUibFlzW80hUbGxxQ8V3idCUwSN1cM1DHMcDg-JC7-J4S8A==
]https://pinecast.com/feed/acb-business
