Justice Department’s Final Rule to Improve Web and Mobile App Access for People with Disabilities

On April 24, the Justice Department published a landmark final rule to strengthen accessibility of web content and mobile applications under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  

Websites and mobile apps are used by state and local governments to provide a wide variety of services including health care, education, civic education, voter information and registration, parking and permit applications, among others. Now, public entities, such as state and local governments, must ensure that their web content and mobile apps meet the technical standard established in the rule within two or three years, depending on population size. By requiring that public entities meet a technical standard, the rule will increase people with disabilities’ independence, flexibility, dignity and privacy in their everyday lives.

The department crafted this rule with broad input from the public, including from individuals with disabilities, advocacy organizations, state and local governments and web accessibility experts. Many members of the public provided valuable feedback, much of which is reflected in the final rule.  

Many public commenters stressed the impact this rule would have on their lives and how much of a barrier inaccessible websites can be. “As blind and visually impaired adults, we live just as independent, productive and self-sufficient as anyone would,” one commenter wrote. “[O]ur privacy, confidentiality and livelihoods depend on full unrestricted accessibility of any website and mobile app available to everyone.”

Another commenter, discussing the need for this rule, explained that “[t]he internet lifts the barriers to communication and interaction that millions of Americans face in the physical world. This regulation has the potential to dramatically change the lives of [individuals with disabilities] and so many others.” The commenter also observed that the rule “will benefit our neighbors without disabilities, as well as state and local employees, who work hard to provide good service.”

Such comments illustrate how the requirements of this rule will help eliminate barriers to civic participation and will help individuals with disabilities engage with their communities in meaningful ways. This rule will help ensure that the ADA’s vision of “equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living and economic self-sufficiency” for people with disabilities is realized in the digital world.

The published version of the final rule is available on the Federal Register’s website. A copy of the rule is also available on ADA.gov, along with a fact sheet that provides an overview of the information about the final rule and a Small Entity Compliance Guide that is designed to help people who work for or with small state and local governments understand the requirements of the rule.

For inquiries regarding the ADA or this rule, please contact the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (voice) or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or visit the ADA website at www.ada.gov. For more information about the Civil Rights Division, please visit the department’s website at www.justice.gov/crt.