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Welcome to our January issue of the Accessibility Minute Newsletter! This newsletter is produced by the CU Boulder Digital Accessibility Office (DAO) and covers one accessibility skill or topic per month. Please visit the DAO website to access past newsletters. As always, thank you for taking a minute (or two) to read.

Title II Update

As we approach the deadline for the Title II update of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), we want to take this time to review the ADA and breakdown the updates. Please note that this newsletter is not all-encompassing, and we highly suggest you utilize the information and resources provided by the Department of Justice to fully understand the scope of the changes to this law. The information in this month’s newsletter is intended to provide general information as of March 2026 and is only for informational purposes. It does not provide legal advice. As applicable laws, rules, policies, and guidelines can and do change over time and circumstances vary, readers should not rely on this newsletter as their only source of information. For more information, please .

requires state and local governments to ensure their services, programs, and activities offered online and through mobile apps are accessible to people with disabilities. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) updated Title II regulations to clarify that digital services, programs, and activities provided by state and local governments must comply with , Levels A and AA by April 24, 2026. WCAG is a set of internationally recognized guidelines that outline how to ensure web (digital) content is accessible to people with disabilities.

Examples of state and local governments that are required to comply with Title II include:

• State and local government offices that provide benefits and/or social services, like food assistance, health insurance, or employment services
• Public schools, community colleges, and public universities
• State and local police departments
• State and local courts
• State and local elections offices
• Public hospitals and public healthcare clinics
• Public parks and recreation programs
• Public libraries
• Public transit agencies

This rule applies to web content that a state or local government provides or makes available, even if the web content or mobile apps are managed by others, such as third-party developers or contractors.

What Needs to be Accessible to Comply?

According to , "'web content' is defined as the information and experiences available on the web." Examples of web content include text, images, sound, videos, controls, forms, emails, animations, social media, mobile applications, and electronic documents. It may feel like you and your organization have a lot of content to edit and make accessible. We recommend approaching this work by prioritizing your most important content first. For example, this could be your public digital content that is currently live and most frequently engaged with.

There are to digital content that are not required to meet Title II requirements and WCAG 2.1, Level AA, such as archived web content. Sorting through and archiving past content that is rarely used by the public is another good step toward compliance, whereas archiving current and frequently used content to avoid meeting accessibility guidelines is strongly discouraged.

What Happens if I Don't Make Accessibility Updates?

Title II of the ADA has been in effect since 1990, and the Department of Justice has required accessible websites for decades. The Department of Education has required WCAG compliance for years. The current Title II update is implemented to continuously enhance the accessibility of the digital environment, not create new obligations. In an era where technology is integrated into all aspects of our lives, it’s increasingly important to ensure that it is accessible to all. While these laws are established to protect people's civil rights and prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability, creating accessible digital content is simply the right thing to do.

ADA Information Resources

According to the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, if you have questions about this rule or the ADA, you can call the at 800-514-0301 (voice) or 1-833-610-1264 (TTY). 

Another source of information is the . The National Network includes ten regional centers that provide ADA technical assistance to businesses, state and local governments, and individuals with disabilities. The following toll-free number connects you to the center in your region: 800-949-4232 (Voice and TTY).

Colorado Resources

For information about Colorado accessibility requirements and helpful resources, please visit the .

Additionally, the DAO has created an ADA Title II Update webpage to specifically address how CU Boulder has been addressing digital accessibility.

DAO News

The DAO presents a tri-annual Digital Accessibility Buff Award, recognizing CU Boulder students, staff, and faculty who have demonstrated noteworthy digital accessibility practices and fostered an inclusive digital environment for individuals with disabilities. We are excited to share that Leila S. Saleh, PhD, Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, and Julian Martins, Director of Development in PEER (Physics through Evidence, Empowerment through Reasoning) Physics, have been selected as the Digital Accessibility Buff Award winners for the March 2026 cycle! Read more about why Leila Saleh, PhD and Julian Martins are our Digital Accessibility Buff Award Winners!