In January 2017, the U.S. Access Board issued the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Standards and Guidelines, updating its existing Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, ("508 Standards"), and the Telecommunications Act Accessibility Guidelines under Section 255 of the Communications Act of 1934 ("255 Guidelines").
Here at IA we follow WCAG2.1 AA as our standard for accessibility. In addition, IA utilizes the Content Management System (CMS) Drupal to manage U.S. Department of the Interior Indian Affairs. Drupal is an accessible tool for building websites that can also be accessed by people with disabilities. The Drupal initiative started with advancements with Drupal 7 accessibility and it has been committed to ensuring that all features of Drupal core conform with the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) guidelines: WCAG 2.1 and Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG).
Accessibility is one of the most important aspects of modern web development. Accessibility means the greatest number of users can view your content. It means search engines will be able to read your site more completely. Users of all types will have a better experience if you take accessibility concerns into account. And least of all, it is a required by law (36 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 1194) for all federal Electronic and Information (EIT) products to be accessible (with a few minor exceptions).
Every member of our content editors team should be aware of what accessibility concerns are and a basic understanding of how they are addressed.
If you have any questions about accessibility or would like help please reach out to the IA Section 508 Coordinator:
Office of Information Technology
Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs
