OIT Accessibility Policy Memorandum offers HB21-1110 Interpretation
The Governor’s Office of Information Technology (OIT), in collaboration with the Attorney General’s Office, has released an Accessibility Policy Memorandum to help clarify some of the confusion surrounding HB21-1110, Colorado Laws for Persons with Disabilities. The policy memo outlines the bill’s purpose, OIT’s role in supporting the bill and an FAQ.
Other resources OIT provides to assist state agencies in their efforts to comply with HB 21-1110 include:
State employees should direct accessibility-related questions to oit_accessibility@state.co.us.
OIT cannot support local governments beyond establishing the accessibility standards and is unable to meet with their teams. Local governments should contact Colorado Counties, Inc., Colorado Municipal League or Special District Association for questions and support.
I'm blind and these are the most annoying website mistakes I face every day
Chelsea Cook
Accessibility Tester
Governor’s Office of Information Technology (OIT)
Hello! I am Chelsea Cook, the accessibility tester for OIT. I rely on a screen reader to access my computer (I am a “native” user). A screen reader is software that translates text to speech for people with disabilities, including people like me who are blind.
Screen readers can be powerful tools, but only if the content is created correctly. Here are the most common annoying mistakes I encounter around the web on a daily basis:
- No or poor use of alt text (image descriptions). Good alt text makes me feel very included and fuzzy because it means someone took the time to care about what my experience will be like.
- Using tables in ways they weren't designed: layout of content vs. comparing items. These slow me and my screen reader down.
- Unlabeled or incorrectly labeled links make it hard to navigate a website. Link text that says “click here” or “learn more” gives me no clue about where the link will take me.
- Unlabeled buttons present mysteries. Am I submitting or canceling a form? Ack! Take the mystery element away and properly label buttons!
- Headings, headings, headings! My default navigation is by heading, so if a site has used fancy fonts instead of proper headings or used headings out of logical order, that distracts me from the page’s content.
If you incorporate these points while designing websites, you will be on your way to building inclusive experiences. These items prove that starting small with accessibility is possible and go a long way toward making my life a whole lot easier!
Learn about the impact of accessibility and the benefits for everyone who relies on text-to-speech technology. (Video, W3C WAI)
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