By: Dennis Walsh
Post 1 of 2
The US Attorney General takes the position that a commercial website is a place of public accommodation within the meaning of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). And this stance has teeth, as demonstrated by the Attorney General joining a lawsuit involving website accessibility, National Federation of the Blind vs. H&R Block. This case was recently settled with H&R Block agreeing to make its tax preparation software and other web services accessible to persons that use assistive technology to access a computer.
Similar legal actions in recent years involving companies such as Target Brands Inc., Priceline.com®, and Southwest Airlines® have also been settled in favor of the plaintiffs, without a definitive high court ruling on the web as a place of public accommodation. However, if the ADA had been enacted after development of the Internet as a commercial marketplace, it is reasonable to believe that Congress would have prescribed such a definition as part of the law.
The US Department of Justice has announced that it is considering proposed revision to the regulation implementing Title III of the ADA, as it pertains to private sector websites as a place of public accommodation. A Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) is scheduled for March 2015, to be followed by a public comment period.
Looking beyond what presumably will eventually be a settled legal requirement, it simply makes good sense from both a professional and business standpoint for CPA practitioners to make their technology resources accessible to persons with disabilities, clients and employees alike. These individuals need to access public accounting services and this community represents a valuable employment resource. Firms that are responsive to the needs of this population stand at a competitive advantage. And those who fail to be proactive will likely face additional stress and costs by postponing a plan for assuring ADA compliance.
Despite some common misconceptions, programming for accessibility is cost effective when planned for in the development stage. And notwithstanding the ongoing tension between graphic design and accessibility, screen displays need not sacrifice any appearance to be accessible using assistive technology.
Graphics lacking alternative text “alt-text” descriptions along with poorly positioned form field labels are among the leading barriers to the effective use of screen-readers, such as JAWS and Window-Eyes. These programs convert text to audible speech for persons with visual impairments or reading disabilities, and also provide enhanced keyboard functionality that is especially helpful to persons with motor disabilities which impede the use of a mouse or other pointing devices.
For practical suggestions on managing and maintaining ADA compliance on this topic, stay tuned for the second installment of this post titled, “10 Practical Suggestions for Accessibility”.
Through The Micah Project, Dennis Walsh, CPA, serves as a volunteer consultant to religious workers and exempt organizations, focusing on financial management, legal compliance, and organizational development. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin, he completed the Duke University certificate program in nonprofit management. Dennis is the author of “Legal & Tax Issues for North Carolina Nonprofits” and has written for various nonprofit publications. He actively volunteers with the Guilford Nonprofit Consortium, the Not-for-Profit Committee of NCACPA, and for the accounting assistance program of the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits. He can be reached at [email protected].