In April 2024 the U.S. Department of Justice published a final rule under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. It sets a technical standard for the websites, mobile apps and online documents of state and local governments: WCAG 2.1 Level AA.
The compliance dates
The dates depend on the total population of the public entity:
- April 26, 2027 for public entities with a total population of 50,000 or more.
- April 26, 2028 for public entities with a total population under 50,000, and for special district governments.
What is covered
The rule covers web content and mobile apps that a public entity provides or makes available, including content provided through contractors. Documents such as PDFs posted online are web content, which is why document remediation is often the largest part of the work. The rule includes limited exceptions, for example for certain archived content and preexisting documents, each with conditions.
A practical plan
Start with an inventory of pages and documents, audit the highest-traffic and most important content first, remediate in that order, and set up a simple check so new content is accessible before it is published.
How we can help
Our Quality & Accessibility department audits websites against WCAG 2.1 and 2.2 AA and remediates PDFs. Our specialist brand ClearLayer Access focuses on this work.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Check the official rule at ADA.gov for the requirements that apply to you.