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adasitecompliance · 7 months ago

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Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)

Latest Regulation And Finale Rule On Web Content And Mobile App Accessibility For State And Local Governments

In a significant advancement for digital inclusivity, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland has enacted a critical update under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This new regulation compels state and local governments to ensure their websites and mobile app accessibility for individuals with disabilities.

Considering the integral role of digital platforms in providing access to services such as emergency responses, healthcare, voting, and public transit, the lack of accessibility could significantly prevent disabled individuals from accessing necessary services.

This rule clarifies governmental bodies’ responsibilities and highlights the imperative for businesses to adjust, even amidst evolving compliance landscapes.

ADA Site Compliance works to help companies comply with regulatory mandates. With a dedicated team that monitors regulation updates, we ensure businesses confidently maintain websites that meet current accessibility standards.

Statements from Justice Department Officials

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland: Emphasized the rule’s role in fulfilling ADA’s promise for equal participation. He stated that by establishing definitive digital accessibility standards for state and local governments, they support the ADA’s mission of ensuring full and equal participation for people with disabilities. He also commended the diligent efforts of the Civil Rights Division in implementing this rule.

Acting Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer highlighted the commitment to making digital platforms usable for everyone to participate fully in society.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke described the rule as groundbreaking, noting that it removes barriers that have historically excluded Americans with disabilities, and ensures equal access to essential online government services like voting and public benefits.

Importance of Web and Mobile App Accessibility

As state and local governments increasingly digitize their services, the accessibility of their web and mobile platforms becomes crucial. Inaccessible websites and applications can exclude individuals with disabilities from accessing vital services.

For example, visually impaired individuals often need screen readers to navigate websites and applications. Governmental sites posting crucial public information in images without alternative text (“alt text”), is inaccessible to blind users.

Such digital barriers can prevent disabled persons from performing essential activities such as securing mail-in ballots, obtaining tax information, or engaging in community events.

The latest regulation aims to guarantee individuals with disabilities have full access to state and local government online services, programs, and activities. This rule also clarifies steps governments take to adhere to ADA standards, ensuring inclusivity and equal access for every community member.

Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Title II of the ADA mandates that all services, programs, and activities provided by state and local governments are accessible to individuals with disabilities.

This extensive requirement encompasses everything from adoption services to zoning regulations and includes both online services and mobile applications managed by state and local authorities.

The rule ensures that individuals with disabilities can fully access and benefit from public services, promoting a more inclusive society with an improved quality of life for disabled individuals nationwide.

This includes:

Making public transportation details accessible to visually impaired users, Enabling the deaf or hard of hearing to participate in online educational courses,

Aiding those with manual dexterity issues in navigating web-based services.

Overview of State and Local Government Functions:

State and local governments are essential providers of numerous public services, including:

Offices administering social benefits like food assistance

Educational facilities

Law enforcement agencies at state and municipal levels.

Judicial systems of local and state courts.

Offices overseeing state and local electoral processes.

Public medical facilities

Community resources like parks, recreational facilities, and public transportation systems.

Accessibility standards under Title II apply to all entities within state and local governments, including their various departments, agencies, special purpose districts, Amtrak, and commuter authorities.

Furthermore, state and local governments contracting with third-party organizations, like non-profits managing drug treatment programs, must ensure these entities adhere to Title II’s accessibility standards.

What Constitutes a Rule or Regulation?

Rules or regulations are formal directives issued by a government agency, from laws enacted by Congress. Following the enactment of the ADA, the Department was authorized to develop regulations to articulate the responsibilities outlined in Title II and Title III of the ADA. Typically, these regulations consist of the regulatory text and an appendix.

The Process of Developing a Rule

The Department formulated this rule through a method known as “notice and comment rulemaking.” The process starts with declaring a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), serving the regulation’s initial draft and proposed requirements, and inviting public feedback.

The Department modified the proposed rule based on the NPRM feedback. Detailed descriptions of the public feedback and rule adjustments are in the rule’s appendix.

What are technical standards?

Technical standards are detailed criteria defining accessibility requirements. For instance, the ADA Standards for Accessible Design include specifications like minimum width for doorways to ensure physical accessibility in buildings and ADA-compliant websites.

Requirement for State and local government websites

This regulation covers all web content handled by state or local governments and must conform to WCAG 2.1, Level AA, including content administered by external contractors.

Example: If a county’s website displays a list of local parks and operating hours, it must adhere to WCAG 2.1, Level AA for accessibility, even if a third-party service provider developed and updated the site.

Web content includes text, images, audio, videos, and documents on the internet.

Requirement for State and Local Government Mobile Apps:

Mobile apps used by state and local governments must conform to WCAG 2.1, Level AA standards. It includes all mobile apps provided or accessible by state or local governments, and external parties.

Mobile apps are software applications specifically designed for use on smartphones and tablets. Developed by the World Wide Web Consortium, WCAG standards make web content universally accessible.

Example: Consider a mobile app developed by a city facilitating public parking payments. The app must comply with the WCAG 2.1, Level AA accessibility standards, no matter if the city or a private company manages it.

Going Beyond Standard Compliance with WCAG 2.1, Level AA

State and local governments have the leeway to adopt web content and mobile apps extending beyond the minimum requirements of WCAG 2.1, Level AA.

This provision for “equivalent facilitation” allows using alternative designs, methods, or technologies, if they offer accessibility and usability equal to or greater than mentioned by the standard.

This flexibility is intended to accommodate the adoption of future, potentially more stringent standards while ensuring continued accessibility for individuals with disabilities.

Example: For instance, a state parks department might implement WCAG Version 3.0 for its new mobile app for booking campsite reservations, if it offers better or equivalent accessibility compared to WCAG 2.1, Level AA.

Specific Exceptions to the Rule Explained

There are various situations where there are exceptions to digital content conforming with the rule. They include:

Archived Web Content:

This applies to outdated or unused content stored in archives, such as old reports or documents, that remain unchanged since archiving. However city council minutes and documents created after the compliance deadline must adhere to accessibility standards.

Even PDFs with up-to-date data on county park maps must conform, regardless of archival status.

Pre-existing Conventional Electronic Documents:

This applies to documents like PDFs or Word files on government digital platforms created before the compliance date and not updated or essential for current use.

However, documents posted or updated after the established compliance deadline do not qualify for exemptions. Active-use documents for accessing government services, irrespective of publication date do not qualify either.

Third-Party Content:

Content posted by third parties without a contractual or official arrangement with the government, which the government cannot modify is exempt. However, content directly posted or managed by the government like calendars developed by external companies, updates made by a government vendor, and message boards must meet WCAG 2.1, Level AA standards.

Individualized Documents:

Applies to personal documents like water bills and documents about specific individuals or accounts available in a secure, password-protected format. They can be challenging for immediate accessibility, especially for recipients without specific disability requirements.

Preexisting Social Media Posts:

This includes all social media posts made before the compliance date. However, if a visually impaired person requests information about a social media image from 2023, the government must provide an accessible description for effective communication.

Conclusion

The new regulation marks a significant step forward in ensuring that all individuals, regardless of disability, have equal access to digital resources provided by state and local governments.

This move aligns with the ADA’s long-standing commitment to inclusivity and modernizes public services to be more accessible, enhancing civic engagement and participation across the community.

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autisticadvocacy · 3 months ago

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"Until just a few months ago, the ADA did not specifically and explicitly apply to the web at all. The [DOJ] in March came in and they basically said, yes, the ADA applies, and the standard you have to follow is the [WCAG] version 2.1."

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mabelskins · 6 months ago

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How to: Accessibility [EN]

Part 01 - Visual design

It’s been a while since my last how to and felt like putting something together! First of all, HAPPY PRIDE MONTH! To everyone out there! Being in the queer community, i know the struggles we go through everyday and am wishing a very proud month to all of us <3

Moving on to the actual topic here: accessibility. It’s been shown here and there when discussing coding and skinning but WHAT DOES IT ACTUALLY MEAN!

Let’s go back a bit. For years people have been trying to achieve the impossible: an universal design. A design that is universal and usable for ALL people a one-size-fits-all design that will be usable and perfect for everyone. Now, there’s only one ‘little’ problem with this: people are different. I’ve always been overweight and whenever I’ve seen clothes that say ‘one size fit all’, I look at it very suspiciously. Bottom line is: every person is different, pain points and needs will also be different.

So what do we do? One different design for every person who is using our product?

Well, let’s make it equitable, let’s provide flexibility to cater for a broader audience, and let this audience choose what’s best for them. But! That’s doesn't take the responsibility from us, the designers (and coders) to make sure that we are making what we can to enable this flexibility.

------------- I've started a list which I then realised would be way bigger than expected, so decided to make each item into its own post. We'll start with VISUAL DESIGN!

Part 01 - Visual design

Colour

I’ve mentioned before about the importance of contrast and contrast ratio briefly. If you want to go into more details, you may have a look at W3 Guidelines. In short:

Don't rely on colour alone to convey meaning, information and actions;

Make sure there's enough contrast between foreground and background

Provide an option for light/dark mode

Light/Dark Modes

There’s a myth that dark mode is good for accessibility, because it improves text readability. (Personally, I’m a big fan of dark mode, as white/bright screens may trigger migraines). However, as everything in ux, the answer to ‘is it black or white’ is that it depends. As mentioned before, a good rule of thumb is not to generalise and provide flexibility.

When using light and dark mode, make sure the colour contrast ratio passes on both modes. Here’s a few tips for designing for dark mode (according to atmos article attached at the end of this):

Use tints (less saturated colours). Saturated colours can cause eye strain and will be hard to pass accessibility standards.

Image from Atmos website

Avoid pure black. Please. Pure black and pure white when used together might be the default instinct, but the contrast when used together is so strong it becomes hard to look at. Choose dark greys and off-whites/light grey when possible.

Be patient with your colour palette, inverting colours won’t make it necessarily good. Take your time to build a palette that will be suitable for both.

Target Sizes

First, what is this? This refers to the dimensions of interactive elements such as links, buttons, icons or touch targets. Basically, anything you can interact/click.

WCAG 2.2 established a minimum for pointer inputs to be 24x24. This is the space that should be provided for a clickable area.

Image from W3 website

There's a number of exceptions and guidelines which I won't get into too much detail. It's important to think about the area which people are clicking into these elements. Also remember that this may be quite useful for users that are using the forum in their mobiles - so this is quite important (don't you hate when you can't click somewhere because you haven't clicked the EXACT area needed?)

In short:

Make sure target sizes are at least 24px

Make sure buttons look like buttons, anything that is clickable and interactive LOOKS like they are interactive

Make sure links are underlined (again, as an extra visual sign that they are clickable)

THAT'S IT!!

For part 01 at least. This is just the tip of the iceberg though. If you'd like to dive deeper into this, I highly recommend Stephanie Walter's content, as well as the Extra Bold book read. I'm attaching a few more articles and resources here too! If you've read all of this, you are a champ, I know this is longer than usual. Please like and share this content, let's get it out there!

Articles:

Designers Guide to Documenting Accessibility

Dark mode ui best practices

Dark mode best practices

Accessibility annotation examples

Colour accessibility tools

Inclusive components design

Accessible design in 60s

Target size minimum

Resources

Accessible colours

Accessible colour palette builder

#resources #jcink codes #jcink forum #jcink skin #ux design

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doberbutts · 1 year ago

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The real tragedy of lateral violence is we’re each other’s best advocates. Like I’m only mildly disabled but having to fight for basic accommodations has made me positively rabid about accessibility. Most people in my field don’t even use color blind safe palettes and meanwhile I’ve spent literal hours researching headings, alt text, ARIA tags, keyboard navigation, etc etc. Like I’m still learning to code and haven’t reached full WCAG compliance but at least I’m trying.

No that's it exactly.

It's only recently that my father has mobility needs- he's 70 so it was bound to happen eventually but he's also been deaf since he was 6. He can get in the door just fine but actually being able to use the services is another thing entirely. Then of course you add the intersection of him being a tall, broad black man with a big booming voice, no volume control, slurring and mispronouncing words, and unable/"unwilling" to follow commands and this goes from being inaccessible to outright hostile if he's mistaken for being drunk or high in public as a result of simply being deaf.

Now that he is getting older he also has had a double hip replacement and fell and broke the part of his pelvis that's still bone so he has a lot more trouble getting around. So take that description I just wrote and add "stumbling, halting, unnatural gait" and "sways in place when standing still".

We need to advocate for each other because at a moment's notice we can be in each other's shoes. We need to advocate for each other because for some of us this is life or death. We need to advocate for each other because we are always, always stronger together.

It's funny you should mention your field- I assume web/interface design/programming? That was my original career path before I switched tracks due to hating my clientele. Back in 2009 when I was still going to school for it, my professer was very strict about accessibility standards, requiring every single one of our projects to be up to the level suggested by W3C at the time. So in 2018 when the figurative whip was cracked and websites *had* to change, and all these companies whined and moaned about it, I had zero sympathy. Sorry but this had been suggested standard for nearly a decade so you can't say you didn't know your websites weren't accessible. There were even free engines you could run your source code through to make sure it would pass. Your website needs a complete overhaul and you're a company that's been around since at least 2009? Sounds like a you problem.

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wip · 1 year ago

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Hi could tumblr change the way alt text is displayed on PC? It's too low-contrast (4.3, which isn't even up to WCAG's AA standard for normal text, far from their AAA). One solution that seems good to me is to do like on mobile where it matches the regular theme.

Answer: Hello, @the-love-songs-are-wrong!

Good news! We can certainly take this and it should be pretty quick. Purple is one of those funny colors for which the contrast is never as good as it looks...

We'll get to work on this, and keep you up to speed! Thanks for taking the time to get in touch.

—Ben

#feature #alt text #desktop #your suggestions

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accessibleaesthetics · 1 year ago

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This is a little late, but for those who are really interested in digital accessibility: WCAG 2.2 is live as of October 5, 2023!

Intopia has a nice overview of these new standards, which includes a wonderful WCAG 2.2 Map that helps conceptualize the various criteria. The latter is 100% screen reader accessible, by the way, they don't just talk the talk.

If you'd like a slightly more in-depth discussion, The Web Accessibility Initiative's What's New in WCAG 2.2 article is what you want (this one has the benefit of having easily accessible links to details on specific criteria too).

#wcag 2.2 #digital accessibility

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indiatgc · 2 months ago

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Color Blindness Considerations: Designing for diverse audiences.

In today's increasingly visual world, color is more than just an aesthetic choice—it’s a critical element of communication and design. However, for people with color blindness, this reliance on color can pose significant challenges. As we strive to create inclusive experiences, understanding color blindness and integrating inclusive design principles becomes essential. This blog delves into color blindness considerations

Understanding Color Blindness

Color blindness, or color vision deficiency, affects approximately 8% of men and 0.5% of women globally. It manifests in several types, each affecting color perception differently:

Red-Green Color Blindness: The most common form, affecting the ability to distinguish between red and green hues. This includes Protanopia (difficulty seeing red) and Deuteranopia (difficulty seeing green).

Blue-Yellow Color Blindness: Less common, this type impairs the ability to distinguish between blue and yellow hues. It includes Tritanopia (difficulty seeing blue) and Tritanomaly (difficulty distinguishing blue and yellow).

Complete Color Blindness: A rare condition where individuals see only shades of gray. This is known as Achromatopsia.

Designing with Color Blindness in Mind

1. Use Color Combinations Thoughtfully

Avoid relying solely on color to convey information. For instance, in graphs and charts, don’t use color alone to differentiate between data points. Pair colors with patterns, textures, or labels to ensure clarity. For example, a bar graph should include varying textures or patterns in addition to different colors to differentiate the bars.

2. Implement High Contrast

High contrast between text and background improves readability for everyone, including those with color blindness. Use tools like the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) contrast checker to ensure that text and background combinations meet accessibility standards. For instance, black text on a white background provides high contrast and is generally readable by most individuals.

3. Avoid Problematic Color Combinations

Some color combinations are particularly challenging for those with color blindness. For instance, red-green combinations can be problematic. Instead, use color pairs like blue and orange, which are distinguishable for most colorblind individuals.

4. Incorporate Text and Icons

Enhance color-based information with text labels, icons, or shapes. For instance, if you use color coding to indicate different statuses in a dashboard, include text labels or symbols next to the colored elements. This ensures that information is accessible even if the color distinction is not perceptible.

5. Use Color Blindness Simulators

Leverage tools and simulators to view your design as someone with color blindness might see it. Tools like Coblis (Color Blindness Simulator) or the Color Oracle can help you identify potential issues and adjust your design accordingly.

6. Test with Real Users

If possible, test your designs with individuals who have color blindness. Their feedback can provide valuable insights into how effectively your design communicates the intended message. Usability testing with diverse participants helps in refining designs to be more inclusive.

7. Follow Accessibility Standards

Adhere to established accessibility standards and guidelines, such as the WCAG. These guidelines offer recommendations for designing content that is accessible to people with various disabilities, including those with color blindness.

8. Educate Your Team

Fostering an understanding of color blindness within your team is crucial. Conduct workshops or training sessions to raise awareness about color vision deficiencies and their impact on design. Equip your team with the knowledge and tools to create inclusive designs.

9. Use Descriptive Language

When designing content, incorporate descriptive language that complements visual elements. For instance, instead of saying “Click the red button,” say “Click the button labeled ‘Submit.’” This approach ensures that the message is clear regardless of color perception.

10. Stay Updated with Accessibility Trends

Accessibility standards and best practices evolve over time. Stay informed about the latest developments in accessibility and inclusivity. Engaging with industry updates helps in keeping your designs relevant and accessible.

Join the design revolution with TGC India. Our Graphic Design course equips you with the latest techniques and industry knowledge to fuel your creative journey.

Conclusion

Designing for diverse audiences, including those with color blindness, is not just about compliance—it’s about creating a more inclusive world. By understanding the nuances of color blindness and implementing thoughtful design practices, we can ensure that our visual communications are effective and accessible to everyone.

Inclusive design is a journey, not a destination. As we continue to learn and grow in our understanding of accessibility, let’s remain committed to creating experiences that resonate with all users, regardless of their color vision capabilities.

From idea to icon, TGC India’s Graphic Design course will guide you through every step of creating unforgettable visuals.

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