ADA Title II Revision – Training Needed To Satisfy New Web Content And Mobile App Accessibility Requirements For State And Local Government Entities
By Kevin Gunnenny, PhD
Editor’s Note: This post is adapted from the article, “ADA Title II Revision – Training Needed To Satisfy New Web Content And Mobile App Accessibility Requirements For State And Local Government Entities”, originally published in the June 2025 issue of Mealey’s® Litigation Report: Cyber Tech & E-Commerce. Mealey’s is a subscription-based information provider and division of LexisNexis.
Introduction
As of April 24, 2024, the Department of Justice issued final rules revising the regulation implementing Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The new rule requires that state and local governments (or “public entities”) ensure that “the web content and mobile apps that the public entity provides or makes available, directly or through contractual, licensing, or other arrangements, comply with Level A and Level AA success criteria and conformance requirements specified in [Web Content Accessibility Guidelines] WCAG 2.1, unless the public entity can demonstrate that compliance with this section would result in a fundamental alteration in the nature of a service, program, or activity or in undue financial and administrative burdens.”
While the rule declines to identify specific training requirements, it notes “public entities will likely find that some training is necessary and helpful to achieve compliance.” In addition, the Department of Justice’s Accessibility of Web Content and Mobile Apps Provided by State and Local Government Entities: A Small Entity Compliance Guide points out “it is important that staff receive training about how to ensure that content is accessible.”
Title II’s assertion that training will be needed is supported by independent analysis. In the area of higher education, for example, 81% of faculty say that they need more information on the Title II requirements. According to another study, “nearly half of local [government] leaders were missing key information about the April 2024 [Department of Justice] update.”
Accordingly, we will:
- Discuss key elements in the updated regulations for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act
- Review the topics and training that the rule indicates will assist state and local government entities in meeting the compliance standard
- Identify the elements of a comprehensive role-based approach to training
- Discuss limitations of the rule’s recommendations
- Explore approaches to meeting the training need
Key Elements of the Final Rule
The Department of Justice issued a final rule revising the regulation implementing Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act on April 24, 2024. The revised regulation ensures “that individuals with disabilities can access important web content and module apps quickly, easily, independently, privately, and equally.”
Title II did establish a few exceptions to the requirement to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA (Level AA includes all the criteria of Level A), but the exceptions were defined and limited. Exceptions include web content (used for reference and marked as archived); pre-existing conventional electronic documents (defined as word processing, presentation, PDF, or spreadsheet files established before the effective date and not actively used); content posted by a third party (where the third party is not posting due to contractual, licensing, or other arrangements with a public entity); individualized documents that are password protected; and preexisting social media posts.
An important, often overlooked point is that even when these exceptions applied, public entities still have to follow Title II’s effective communication requirements. Under the effective communication requirements, public entities have to ensure that people with disabilities can communicate with, receive information from, and convey information to public entities, and this communication is as effective for people with disabilities as that of people without disabilities. The exceptions do not eliminate this requirement.
The Department noted, if only in passing, that lack of knowledge or training would not be a valid reason for not meeting WCAG 2.1. When the Department released a draft of the rule with a request for public comment (as part of the Advance Notice of Public Rule-Making (ANPRM) process), at least one commentator asked that training be required as part of Title II. While Title II declined to do so, it acknowledged training may be needed, depending on the level of expertise possessed by the individual public entity.
Topics and Training That State and Local Governments Will Find Helpful
The Department recognized several topics for which public entities may need additional information. Many of these topics were highlighted in response to concerns raised in the ANPRM process.
Title II recognized that, while WCAG 2.1 has been in existence since 2018, and an earlier version, WCAG 2.0, in existence since 2008, that state and local governments might be unfamiliar with the WCAG success criteria and may need time to familiarize themselves with it before beginning the process of bringing their web content and mobile apps into compliance. Title II gave large state and local governments two years from the issuance of the rule to bring their web content and mobile apps into compliance; small entities received three years to ensure that their content met the standard. One action that Title II expected public entities to pursue during the delayed implementation period was training.
Title II acknowledged that this standards-based approach, while ensuring that web content and mobile apps would be available to people with disabilities, likely required a better understanding of WCAG criteria than many staff and volunteers currently possessed. And not only internal staff and volunteers—as Title II also required content produced by a third party on behalf of a public entity (for example, a contracted company that developed a website for the public entity) would need to meet the success criteria. Procurement departments would also need to be aware of the requirements and how to ensure compliance of the procured content.
One key topic was making conventional electronic documents compliant, as electronic documents aren’t explicitly addressed in WCAG. Title II suggested that public entities may find it helpful to consult W3C’s guidance on non-web information and communications technology, which explains how the WCAG success criteria can be applied to conventional electronic documents.
Title II recommends a similar approach, where public entities look to existing material, for determining methods of captioning multimedia, encouraging “public entities to make use of W3C’s and others guidance documents available on captioning.”
In addition to guidance and resources, Title II also points to existing support for training (in particular for public educational institutions and public libraries), including “free and low-cost training materials available that would help public entities to produce content compliant with WCAG 2.1 Level AA.”
The Department notes that some state agencies, “including in California, Minnesota, and Texas, have developed assessment checklists, trainings, testing tools, and other resources” that may offer assistance in meeting the updated requirements.
Elements of a Comprehensive Role-Based Training Approach
In general, in the rules and supporting material, Title II recommends a multi-tiered approach for meeting the training needs of public entities.
In State and Local Governments: First Steps Toward Complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act Title II Web and Mobile Application Accessibility Rule, the Department of Justice divides training into general (or fundamental) and specialized training. General training, which the Department recommends for all staff, focuses on what accessibility means and why it is important. While fundamental training contains some technical information, there is a much stronger emphasis on understanding why accessibility matters.
The Department notes that “the W3C has some useful resources that may help with this foundational training, including an Introduction to Web Accessibility page and a page on How People with Disabilities Use the Web.” The Department also points to the W3C’s Digital Accessibility Foundations Free Online Course.
The First Steps guide suggests that once staff and volunteers complete general training, they participate in a role-based approach, which establishes roles and aligns training with those specific roles. Suggested role-based specialized training includes:
- Training for designers and marketing staff on accessibility and visual design
- Training for web developers and content testers on accessible coding solutions
- Training for non-technical content authors on writing accessible content
- Training for procurement staff about how your state or local government plans to make sure it buys web content and mobile apps that comply with the rule
Additional examples include those present on W3C’s website:
- Introductions to accessibility for everyone
- How accessibility benefits your business for management and project managers
- Accessible visual design for designers and marketing
- Accessible coding solutions for developers and testers
- Writing accessible content for non-technical content authors
Limitations of the Rule’s Recommendations
While Title II identifies the need for training and suggests several approaches to training, with the exception of the W3C’s Digital Accessibility Foundations – Introduction to Web Accessibility, it focuses more on general guidance than identifying ready-made training. It does note that WCAG is well-established. WCAG 2.1 added only 12 Level A and Level AA criteria to WCAG 2.0, which was published in 2008. If public entities are familiar with WCAG 2.0, then the additional criteria added by WCAG 2.1 should be relatively easy to address.
The assumption that state and local governments are familiar with accessibility standards may be overly optimistic. One recent study noted that knowledge of accessibility compliance varied widely across local government, from a high of 49% of communications departments to a low of 12% of public works departments.
In addition, the training and approach that Title II and supporting documents identifies tend to focus on accessibility awareness and implementing the technical details of WCAG 2.1. The broader scope created by the existence of the rule itself is not covered by existing training, such as the rule’s five identified and specified exceptions; an exception for when conformance would result in a fundamental alteration in the nature of a service, program, or activity; an exception for where conformance would cause an undue burden; and training related to when a conforming alternate version of the content would be acceptable.
Approaches to Meeting the Training Need
As of October 2024, only 14% of government leaders have reported providing training related to accessibility (although 21% note that training is currently in the works). For the remaining, 22% plan to provide training in the next year, and 32% plan on providing training “eventually” (with 11% not planning to provide training at all).
Many of the sources of training that Title II notes enumerate essential elements such as course topics, resources, and suggestions; however, public entities will still need to convert the material into training courses that will provide participants with the skills and knowledge needed to bring web content and mobile applications into conformance with WCAG 2.1. Once existing staff and volunteers have the knowledge and skills to address accessibility issues, any new employees will still need to acquire knowledge and skills in making content and mobile apps accessible. Although WCAG 2.1 is an established standard, accessibility itself is ever changing, as new tools and techniques are developed to enable existing criteria to be met, and, at times, existing tools and techniques become depreciated.
Building on the material identified by Title II and created by W3C, there are several options available to help public entities meet the new requirements.
Provide Resources for Staff to Develop Knowledge and Skills on Their Own
The multiple resources highlighted by Title II and provided by W3C can assist individuals tasked with implementing Title II requirements in developing their own skills and knowledge. A self-directed approach has the advantage of requiring little oversight by the public entity and may be a reasonable option with the limited budgets that many public entities (especially small public entities) possess.
A significant challenge with a self-directed approach, however, is a lack of verification and oversight. Without guidance and tracking, it will be difficult for public entities to ensure that individuals both possess the knowledge and skills and are applying them in a consistent manner and to an established standard.
A public entity may be able to mitigate these challenges by formally setting a limited number of training requirements—for example, ensuring that all staff involved in development take a fundamentals-level course. The public entity may also choose to establish roles and role-based training recommendations, in conjunction with a resource list, where existing third-party training and resources are curated and cataloged by those with expertise in WCAG 2.1 and the requirements of Title II of the ADA.
Internally Develop Training and Training Programs
A second option might be for the public entity to develop its own training and training program. As Title II notes, the W3C provides several sets of materials that would support a public entity in pursuing this option. The W3C provides objectives, outlines, and resources for topics needed by developers, designers, and content authors (among others).
Developing internal training programs would also allow public entities to take a more proactive approach toward implementing a comprehensive training program (so that each person in each role will know what skills they need to acquire), develop attendee tracking tools and processes (to track who completed which course), identify any evaluation metrics (so that the public entity can determine whether the training is working), and establish a refresh/renewal process (to help ensure that staff and volunteers continue to meet accessibility standards in a changing environment).
Outsource Training to an External Entity
Training can be outsourced to external organizations that specialize in accessibility, training, or specialize in both. Working with an external entity can ensure that staff and volunteers have the knowledge and skills they need to meet WCAG 2.1 and create an opportunity for the public entity to focus on other aspects of implementing the rule. As with other options, there are several possible methods by which public entities can engage outside experts. They can use pre-packaged accessibility training solutions, work with outside consultants to create solutions to a public entity’s particular needs and processes, or develop an approach that engages outside consultants to support specific areas that public entities lack.
The challenge of outsourcing training may mainly be in having funds available to do so. This might be mitigated by strategically using external entities to support specific, limited areas of training.
Combinations and Limitations
Depending on a public entity’s knowledge, skills, needs, and funding, elements of the above options may be combined in several ways. For example, a public entity may engage an outside accessibility consultant to develop training plans and recommendations, which the public entity could then execute. Or a public entity might use freely available foundational material, and augment that with either internally or externally created role-based training.
One element that remains unchanging, however, is the need to ensure that staff and volunteers have the time available to participate in training, whether the training is self-directed or provided in a structured, guided environment. Providing dedicated time for staff and volunteers to train may be difficult, given the everyday demands placed on public entities, and that lack of staff time is the most frequently cited barrier to web accessibility compliance. But without setting aside time, any approach to training will see its effectiveness significantly limited.
Conclusion
It is incumbent on public entities to determine how best to meet the requirements of the updated Title II of the ADA. While establishing that web content and mobile applications of state and local governments need to be in conformance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA criteria, Title II declined to impose requirements on how public entities move to and maintain compliance. It did, however, point to several resources and training provided by other entities, namely the W3C, and suggested that experts could help public entities meet the need.
At the same time, recent research has indicated that public entities are largely operating from a position of extremely limited knowledge regarding accessibility, both in what the requirements are and in possessing the skills and knowledge to ensure that their web content and mobile apps meet those requirements.
From the perspective of training, Title II identified several resources and approaches that can help public entities train staff and volunteers to fulfill and maintain compliance, and additional resources continue to become available in the accessibility community. Public entities can avail themselves of these resources, including free training, recommendations for structuring training programs, and content outlines and activities to provide their staff and volunteers with the expertise needed to fulfill the rule’s new requirements. Time, however, is of the essence; large public entities have only until April 2026 and small public entities have only until April 2027. And training is only an early step in bringing web content and mobile applications into full conformance with the new rule.
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