The ADA web rule for cities, counties and districts
State and local government websites and apps must meet WCAG 2.1 AA under a 2024 Justice Department rule. Here are the dates, how to tell which one applies, and what to check first.
01 · THE DATES
Two deadlines, one standard
- Population of 50,000 or more
- April 26, 2027
- Under 50,000, and special district governments
- April 26, 2028
The Justice Department moved each date back one year in an interim final rule published on April 20, 2026. The standard itself, WCAG 2.1 Level AA, did not change.
02 · WHO IT COVERS
Every state and local government
Cities, counties, towns, school districts, transit authorities and special districts. It covers their websites and mobile apps, including content provided through contractors, and the documents posted on them, such as PDFs, forms and meeting agendas.
The size that decides your date is your total population in the most recent decennial Census. A city or county school district uses its city or county figure, an independent school district uses the Census Bureau’s Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, and a commuter authority or other instrumentality uses the combined population of the governments behind it. Only special district governments take the later date whatever their size.
The rule has a few narrow exceptions, such as archived pages and some older documents. Read them on ADA.gov before relying on one.
03 · WHERE TO START
Six checks for any public site
Not the whole standard, but the problems found most often on city and county sites.
- Every page works with a keyboard alone, with a visible focus outline.
- Text meets WCAG contrast: 4.5 to 1 for body text.
- Images have alt text, and decorative ones are hidden from screen readers.
- Videos have captions, and meeting recordings have them too.
- Posted PDFs and forms are accessible, or have an accessible web version.
- Each new page is checked before it goes up, not once a year.
SOURCES
ADA.gov: the web rule fact sheet W3C: WCAG 2.1
Last checked October 2026. This page explains the rule; it is not legal advice.