Don't Look Up

This article was originally written in February 2023. With July 1, 2024 being a significant date with respect to CO HB21-1110, I thought it would be interesting to post it on LinkedIn and see what people have done or are doing with respect to accessibility of their applications, particularly with focus on GovTech in Colorado. Please post your comments on the state of accessibility ahead of CO HB21-1110 taking full effect.

The Netflix movie Don't Look Up is a dark comedy that satires society's indifference to real evidence of impending crises. The plot flows around astronomers who discover a comet that will impact Earth with civilization-ending consequences. As they attempt to warn the world and develop plans to prevent the disaster, politics, big-business, celebrities, and the media cloud the core message with distractions, ignorance and bias creating a perfect storm of confusion that prevents a successful thwarting of the disaster. A great movie plot, right? But what, on Earth, does this have to do with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and your digital products?

What are ADA and WCAG??

First let's get our terms straight. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed in 1990 prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability in places of public accommodation. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has affirmed that the ADA applies to websites and mobile apps in the service of places of public accommodation. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) is a set of standards by which websites can function inclusive of users with disabilities.

Confusion While the Comets Are Out of Sight?

Very few lawsuits have been introduced in the courts against software companies for several reasons. First, the ADA predates widespread use of the internet and even more so, mobile apps. Accordingly, there is no specific mention of those virtual things equating to public physical spaces. Second, the ADA is a federal law. Federal civil suits are difficult and expensive for the average citizen to undertake, let alone successfully argue.?

However, in 2016 a lawsuit was filed in the Central District of California alleging that the Domino's Pizza website and mobile app were not accessible to blind or visually impaired individuals using screen readers. After being dismissed by the lower court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the decision. The appellate court opinion clarifies why the law applies to this case:?

"The Act mandates that places of public accommodation, like Domino's, provide auxiliary aids and services to make visual materials available to individuals who are blind. Even though customers primarily accessed the website and app away from Domino's physical restaurants, the panel stated that the ADA applies to the services of a public accommodation, not services in a place of public accommodation. The panel stated that the website and app connected customers to the goods and services of Domino's physical restaurants."

While the case does not specifically address the lack of compliance as to Domino's website and app with the WCAG standards, WCAG compliance would have prevented and/or resolved the issue. The DOJ's failure to specify regulations does not excuse Domino's from creating an accessible website and app.

Every software company provides tools for communication and sharing information. Whether the focus is b2b, b2c, internal ERP, consumer, gov tech, entertainment or marketing, this case and others like it have drawn attention to and affirmed that virtual accessibility equates to physical accessibility. States, led by Colorado and California, are enacting legislation that specifically sets standards and consequences for non- compliance in virtual spaces. These states are opening the floodgates to civil cases against state and local governments when tools they use for citizen portals, apps and internal productivity are not accessible for people with disabilities. Plaintiffs are potentially anyone with a disability, whether permanent or temporary, interacting with software. This includes citizens accessing government resources over the web or mobile apps and employees of government agencies using software tools in their day-to-day work.

New Legislation?

Colorado HB21-1110 was signed into law in 2021 with laser focus on web accessibility stating that all state agencies and local governments must be compliant with state standards by July 1, 2024. The legislation places responsibility for compliance on both third-party platform providers and content owners. The Colorado Office of Information Technology has statutory authority to establish the statewide accessibility standards where previously there was no formal process and little enforcement. Platform providers, including vendor partners, are required to provide a platform that is compliant with the most recently published W3C, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), currently 2.1 with version 2.2 expected mid-2023. The Colorado legislation is the first and the model for future state legislation around the country.

Look! Can you see it now??

The Domino's Pizza case combined with the Colorado legislation is the first glimpse of the comet streaking toward Earth. We know it's going to hit us. We've known for a long time. Now we can see it. Can you see it? It's starting to get real. It's time to do something.

WCAG compliance is only partly dependent on inclusive design. Product designers and groups that advocate for people with disabilities have been proclaiming the need for inclusive software products for decades. Product Design teams have been making design decisions with attention to accessibility for years. Most digital products have not become fully accessible solutions because WCAG compliance is mostly an engineering issue. Product Design can specify colors and fonts that meet WCAG standards. We can specify tab orders and keyboard accelerators. But there is much more necessary to achieve compliance. If products are not engineered for WCAG compliance, they fall short and put the company at risk. Engineers understanding how code structure impacts screen readers and other assistive technologies and how to implement ARIA landmarks, roles, and attributes, is required to make WCAG compliance complete. If digital products are not tested for WCAG compliance, they fall short and put the company at risk. Testing keyboard navigation, focus control, screen readers and other assistive devices are required to be part of everyday quality control to make WCAG compliance complete.

Spoiler Alert!?

Don't Look Up, in true dark comedy form, ends with literally everyone dying. Thankfully, companies still have time to bring products up to WCAG standards and thwart the catastrophe. The deadline for the Colorado legislation is July 1, 2024. Colorado HB21-1110 is just the first comet. While others are not visible yet, they do exist. The good news is, once we deflect the first comet, it's nearly assured all other comets are deflected at the same time.?

WCAG compliance is more like a forcefield protecting the Earth from all comets than a missile taking out one comet.

Compliance benefits the company, customers and citizenry served. Compliance also provides a competitive edge and strengthens any digital product's presence in the marketplace.

This article was originally written in Feb, 2023 with a focus on GovTech products. It has been modified for public distribution.