We need to make websites and their content and information be Accessible to everybody, no matter the nature of anybody’s ability or disability.
The Americans Disability Act 508 compliance can be viewed here: https://www.ada.gov/508/
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. § 794d) requires that Federal agencies' electronic and information technology is accessible to people with disabilities, including employees and members of the public.
Boiling this down to one word: "Accessibility"We need to make websites and their content and information be Accessible to everybody, no matter the nature of anybody's ability or disability.
In August 2018, President of Town Web, Dustin Overbeck, gave a presentation at the Wisconsin Municipal Clerk's Association about making municipal websites accessible. Here is a video "Cliff Notes" version from that presentation:
For the purpose of covering most of what is needed for a municipal website to be ADA 508 compliant, I have listed four main areas: Visual, Hearing, Mobility, and Cognitive.
Undoubtedly you recognize the ISA wheelchair logo as a white wheelchair symbol with a circle for a head, and a blue background. The actual design of this logo was created by a Danish design student (Susanne Koefoed) in 1968, according to the Wikipedia page entry.The intended purpose of the design was to show that access to areas had been improved, particularly for wheelchair users. However many people who have disabilities are individuals who do not have a physical disability. According to statistics from a collective of creatives in London called Visibility93, 93-95% of all individual who have a disability have one that is non-visual.
It is also considered impolite to ask people the nature of their disability. If an individual states that they have a disability to somebody at your municipality, it would be better to ask how they can be accommodated.
In 2014, there were changes made in the State of New York by a bill which removed the words "handicapped" from signage and which also updated the wheelchair symbol to a new design (which is still considered controversial) according to an article on Yahoo News.
At Town Web, we are consulting with several different individuals who are real-world users of municipal websites and who are best poised to give us feedback. One individual mentioned that a majority of blind users will visit sites using a mobile device and they will use the a screen reader that is part of the operating system they are using.For example, the Screen Reader for iOS devices is called VoiceOver. The screen reader for Android devices is called TalkBalk.
Here is a free online tool that can be used for checking contrast of image and of foreground/background combinations.