Next Steps and Resources

In this Section:

Next Steps: On Risk

Focusing on risk aversion in this work can lead to fear and paralysis. Rather, framing the work around library expertise and skills to develop a stepped prioritization roadmap can make people feel empowered and moved to take action.

Of course, there is real risk associated with non-compliance, and this should be part of your library’s calculus. One way of getting institutional buy-in for compliance is to discuss your library’s compliance plan, as well as the potential impact of non-compliance. The final rule includes data on remediation costs that can be useful for these conversations.

Advocating for born-accessible content

It highlighted strategies that consortia and our member libraries are using to accelerate the adoption of born-accessible publishing. In the final rule, the DOJ notes that it expects that options for procuring accessible third-party services will grow in response to its rulemaking:

“[I]f this rulemaking incentivizes those publishers to produce accessible content, that decision may enable hundreds of public educational institutions to obtain accessible content. The Department also expects that as a result of this rulemaking, there will be an increase in demand for accessible content from third-party vendors, and therefore a likely increase in the number of third-party vendors that are equipped to provide accessible content.

ARL, the Library Accessibility Alliance (LAA), and the Library Publishing Coalition (LPC) will collaborate on advocating for born-accessible publishing.

Chart for analyzing the applicability of ADA Title II exceptions to your library’s resources

Below is a sample approach to analyzing the exceptions framework to prioritize making content accessible, using the specific example of licensed e-resources. If your answer is yes to the questions, the exceptions may apply. (Note that the archived web content exception includes four questions; the archived web content exception applies only if the answer is yes to all four questions).

Exception

Question(s)

Analysis of your library’s content

archived web content exception
  1. Was your content created before the compliance date for your library, or does the content reproduce paper documents created before the compliance date? AND

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  1. Is your content retained exclusively for reference, research, or recordkeeping? AND

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  1. Is your content unaltered or has not been updated after the date of archiving? AND

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  1. Is your content organized and stored in a dedicated area(s) clearly identified as being archived?

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pre-existing conventional electronic documents exception

Is your content currently used to apply for, gain access to, or participate in the public entity's services, programs, or activities?

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individualized, password-protected or otherwise secured conventional electronic documents exception

Is your content a conventional electronic document that is about a specific individual, their property, or their account, and is password-protected or otherwise secured?

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content posted by a third party

Is your content posted by a third party, where the third party is not posting due to contractual, licensing, or other arrangements with your library?

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preexisting social media posts exception

Is your content a social media post that was posted before the compliance date?

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Resources

First Reads

This Department of Justice fact sheet and guide are a great place to start for understanding the new rules. Our sites build on these primers.

Additional government resources

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines as incorporated by reference

Library resources