The U.S. Department of Justice on Monday issued final accessibility rules for state and local web content and mobile applications aimed at ensuring all digital services are fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. did.
The new regulations aim to fill in the gaps in the ADA. While the landmark Accessibility Act of 1990 sets out requirements related to physical sites, there are no explicit mandates for the accessibility of digital resources such as websites. While some states are working ahead of federal regulations and implementing accessible solutions for websites and apps, the Department of Justice's regulations add a new subpart to the Title II ADA regulations to improve the Outlines the technical requirements for ADA compliance.
This technical standard was published in 2018 by the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Accessibility Initiative and relies on the Web Content Accessibility guideline (WCAG) guidelines, the leading standard for web accessibility.
Entities affected by the new rules include all state and local governments (including any agency or division of a state or local government), as well as special purpose districts such as schools, water districts, and transportation agencies. Agencies contracted by state and local governments to provide public services, such as nonprofit organizations that administer programs on behalf of government agencies, are also required to follow digital accessibility rules.
The Department of Justice says it's great that states and local governments are increasingly providing digital pathways to access programs and services, but people with disabilities may be left behind.
“In many cases, however, state and local government web and mobile app-based services are not designed or built to be accessible and, as a result, are not equally available to individuals with disabilities. “Just as people who use wheelchairs can become inaccessible to government buildings, inaccessible web content and mobile apps can prevent people with a variety of disabilities from accessing government services.” The final rule states:
One of the new rules includes ensuring local authority apps and websites allow people who are blind or have low vision to access information about public transport. Another rule allows people who are deaf or hard of hearing to attend college lectures online, while it allows individuals with hand disabilities that may affect their ability to use a computer mouse to register to vote. Requires access to web information. region.
The new rules come as attempts to legislate web accessibility have stalled in recent years. In 2022, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) introduced a bill called the Website and Software Application Accessibility Act. This bill would require employers, public entities, and public accommodations that provide goods and services to have an accessible website, even if it is just an accessible website. online. The bill is expected to be reintroduced in 2023, but no action has been taken this season.
Once this rule is published in the Federal Register, municipalities with populations greater than 50,000 will have a two-year grace period to ensure their websites and digital products are compliant; Areas with less than 300 people will have a three-year grace period.
