Impact of HB21-1110
In Colorado, HB21-1110 makes it a state civil rights violation for a government agency to exclude people with disabilities from receiving services or benefits because of lack of accessibility.
Any Colorado government entity that doesn’t meet OIT’s web accessibility standards could be subject to injunctive relief, meaning a court order to fix the problem; actual monetary damages; or a fine of $3,500 payable to the plaintiff, who must be someone from the disability community.
Summary
- Legislation places responsibility for compliance on both platform providers and content owners.
- OIT has statutory authority in C.R.S. 24-85-101 to establish statewide accessibility standards. Previously, there was no formal process and little enforcement.
- All state agencies and local governments must be compliant with state standards by July 1, 2024.
- OIT will provide resources, training on the state standards, and tools to assist with accessibility, but agencies and local governments will need to make the changes and improvements to their online content.
- FAQ: HB21-1110 Colorado Laws For Persons With Disabilities
What you can do…
State agencies:
Local government:
Accessibility law pro tip
WCAG 2.1 A and AA standards and cognitive disabilities
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provide guidance for accommodating people with neurocognitive differences, intellectual disabilities and other conditions. Cognitive and learning disabilities include long-term, short-term and permanent difficulties relating to cognitive functions, such as:
- Learning, communication, reading, writing, or math
- The ability to understand or process new or complex information and learn new skills, with a reduced ability to cope independently, and / or memory and attention or visual, language, or numerical thinking.
By prioritizing cognitive accessibility, you can reach more people — and WCAG provides an excellent framework for building effectively.
For example, by using basic terminology and plain language, you can create content that appeals to more of your readers. WCAG Success Criteria (SC) 3.1.5, “Reading Level,” recommends writing text at a lower secondary education level.
A Tool to Use
Hemingway App
Copy and paste the text into the Hemingway app and get immediate readability feedback:
- Identify the grade reading level of the writing.
- Highlight the use of passive voice and adverbs.
- Provide simpler alternatives for complex or lengthy words.
- Spotlight difficult-to-read sentences.
Who the Hemingway app helps
APS webmasters and writers should use the Hemingway app before posting online.
- Easier-to-read content helps everyone, including:
- People who may have a learning disability, such as dyslexia.
- People who are not native English speakers.
- Mobile readers who skim content.
How the Hemingway app works
To learn more about cognitive accessibility, we recommend visiting the Web Accessibility Initiative’s (WAI) Cognitive Accessibility guide. WAI’s resources explain the various ways that accessibility barriers affect real people, which can be extremely helpful when developing your organization’s digital accessibility strategy.
Accessibility Standards
State of Colorado Accessibility Statement
C.R.S. 24-85-104, ARTICLE 85. "INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ACCESS FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE BLIND OR VISUALLY IMPAIRED", (PDF)
TS-OEA-001: Technology Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities, (PDF)
TS-OEA-002: Technology Accessibility for Web Content and Applications, (PDF)
WCAG 2.1 Standards, W3C
Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of 1973, section508.gov
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