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Good practice Imported

US DOJ's ADA Title II Web & Mobile App Accessibility Rule — and Its 2026 Deadline Retreat

United States of America · Washington, D.C. · See the United States of America profile · See the Washington, D.C. profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 82% 52/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

In April 2024 the US DOJ mandated WCAG 2.1 AA for all state and local government websites and apps under ADA Title II. Four days before the first deadline, in April 2026, DOJ pushed every compliance date back a year, a move disability advocates called ‘rewarding inaction.’

US DOJ's ADA Title II Web & Mobile App Accessibility Rule — and Its 2026 Deadline Retreat

Details

Promoter
U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division
Period
2024-present
Keywords
digital government, web accessibility, disability rights, federal regulation

Context

On 24 April 2024 the US Department of Justice finalised a rule under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act requiring every state and local government entity to make their websites, mobile apps and web-based digital course materials conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA -- the first time DOJ adopted a specific technical accessibility standard for digital content under the ADA.

Results

On 20 April 2026, four days before the first deadline was due to bite, DOJ issued an Interim Final Rule extending every compliance date by one year (to 26 April 2027 for larger entities and 26 April 2028 for smaller ones), citing an original overestimate of 'the advancement and availability of technology' and smaller jurisdictions' capacity constraints.

Conclusions

The American Association of People with Disabilities called the extension 'a profound disappointment and a serious setback for the disability community.' The underlying WCAG 2.1 AA standard itself was left unchanged, and disability-rights advocates have signalled possible legal challenges to the delay.

Implementation
Indicative cost
High (€500k–€5M)
Time to results
Long (> 3 years)

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