ADA Accessibility
The DOJ now requires all state and local government websites to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA. CivicCA is built to conform — so your meeting content is compliant from the moment you publish it.
What the DOJ Title II Rule Requires
On April 24, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice published a final rule under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (28 CFR Part 35) requiring state and local governments to make their web content and mobile applications accessible to people with disabilities.
The standard is WCAG 2.1 Level AA — the same guidelines used internationally for web accessibility. This applies to all public-facing web content, including meeting agendas, minutes, legislation, and documents published online.
State and local governments with populations of 50,000 or more
State and local governments with populations under 50,000 and special district governments
WCAG 2.1 Level AA conformance across the full platform
What Content Is Covered?
The rule applies to all web content and services a government entity makes available to the public online. For municipal clerks and meeting administrators, that includes:
- Published meeting agendas and agenda packets
- Meeting minutes, action summaries, and resolutions
- Staff reports, exhibits, and other attachments
- Legislation and ordinance tracking pages
- Meeting video recordings and live streams
- Public comment and speaker registration forms
- Notification subscription forms
If your agenda management vendor’s platform doesn’t meet WCAG 2.1 AA, your city bears the compliance risk — not the vendor.
Limited Exceptions
The rule provides narrow exceptions for:
- Archived content created before the compliance date, if it is not actively used for current government services
- Third-party content posted without agency control (e.g., public comments on social media)
- Undue burden — when compliance would result in fundamental alteration or undue financial burden (requires documentation)
- Preexisting conventional documents created before the compliance date (Word, PDF) that are not updated afterward
These exceptions are narrow and fact-specific. Most meeting content published through an agenda management platform does not qualify for any exception.
How CivicCA Meets the Standard
CivicCA was built from the ground up with accessibility as a core requirement — not a retrofit. Here’s what that means in practice:
Accessible PDFs by Default
Agendas, minutes, and reports generated by CivicCA use real text with proper heading structure. No need to run them through Adobe Acrobat or third-party remediation tools before publishing.
HTML-First Portal
Meeting agendas, items, votes, and legislation are rendered as semantic HTML on your public portal — not as downloadable PDFs that require separate remediation. The accessible version is the default.
Full Keyboard Navigation
Every feature — from the agenda builder to live dais controls to the public portal — works with keyboard-only navigation. Skip links, focus trapping, arrow key menus, and Escape-to-close on every dialog.
Screen Reader Ready
Semantic landmarks, ARIA roles on every interactive component, live regions for dynamic content, descriptive alt text on all images, and data tables with proper scope and captions.
High Contrast & Low Vision
Dark and light themes with verified WCAG AA contrast ratios. All text resizable to 200%. Responsive design works at 320px. Respects prefers-reduced-motion for users sensitive to animation.
Compliant Today, Not “Targeting”
CivicCA conforms to WCAG 2.1 AA now. No remediation roadmap needed, no critical issues pending resolution. Accessibility is validated during development, not in semi-annual audits after the fact.
Shared Responsibility
Title II compliance is a shared obligation between the platform vendor and the government agency. CivicCA handles the platform; your agency handles the content you create outside of it.
| CivicCA Handles | Your Agency Handles |
|---|---|
| Platform accessibility — admin, staff portal, public portal, all interactive features | Documents authored outside CivicCA (Word, PDF, Excel) uploaded as attachments |
| PDFs generated by CivicCA — agendas, minutes, reports use real text and proper structure | Ensuring uploaded staff reports and exhibits meet accessibility standards |
| HTML rendering of all meeting content on the public portal | Writing clear, descriptive agenda item titles and descriptions |
| Video player accessibility (keyboard, ARIA, iframe titles) | Enabling captions on YouTube/Zoom meeting recordings |
| Ongoing WCAG 2.1 AA conformance for every platform update | Reporting accessibility issues so we can address them |
Documentation
- VPAT (Accessibility Conformance Report) — Full WCAG 2.1 Level A and AA conformance report with Section 508 functional performance criteria
- Terms of Service — Includes accessibility commitments and shared responsibility terms
- Privacy Policy — Includes accessibility-related data processing disclosures
Questions?
For accessibility questions, procurement documentation, or to request this report in an alternative format:
We respond to accessibility inquiries within two business days.
Don’t let your agenda platform be your compliance gap
CivicCA meets WCAG 2.1 AA today — so your meeting content is accessible from the moment you publish it. No remediation tools required.