With a new requirement from the Department of Justice looming, state and local governments must make their digital services accessible for people with disabilities, but not all are starting from the same place.
July/August 2024 •
Zack Quaintance
Adobe Stock
You’re visually impaired and trying to file your taxes, using a screen reader to do so via your state’s website. But when you need to read a PDF form, suddenly it stops working.
Or you’re colorblind, and you’re on your local health department’s web page. You’d like to check out how well a new restaurant in your neighborhood scored, but the rating is color coded — you can’t tell the difference.
Or English is your second language, and you want to use an online state portal to apply for a license. There’s no option for translation, however, and some of it is just too difficult for you to decipher.
These are all examples of accessibility challenges with digital government services — three situations that people with disabilities regularly face while [...]