18F at ten
We’re celebrating all the ways we continue to realize our founding vision: bringing technologists into government, launching shared digital services, and helping partner agencies build user-centered technology.— via 18F
Accessibility
The design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities
More News and Events on Accessibility
177 posts
Annual Gathering
Spring 2024 Community Summit
Digital service experts across the federal government will share case studies and best practices on delivering a digital-first public experience.
2024
Equity in action: GSA’s study on remote identity-proofing technologies
The Biden-Harris President’s Management Agenda (PMA) emphasizes an effective, equitable and accountable government. As part of this effort, the General Services Administration (GSA) is conducting a study on the equity of remote identity proofing. The study aims to assess and improve the accessibility and equity of remote identity verification technologies such as facial matching systems. Learn more about the context, purpose, and progress of the study, and how it supports GSA’s goal of enhancing digital government services and prioritizing equitable design practices.— via Performance.gov
Optimizing the federal digital experience: aligning content governance, coordination, and database development
This blog post dives into the details of building a dynamic content database and audit for onrr.gov. Learn how effective subject matter expert (SME) coordination, strategic content planning, and application of visualization tools contribute to enhancing content governance and user experience on a federal website.— via Office of Natural Resources Revenue
Balancing priorities and values
This article summarizes four priorities and values that simply take time: consideration of the public’s time, privacy, accessibility and equity, and scope.
Getting the word out about voter registration: Vote.gov’s first social media takeover with USAGov
Last fall, vote.gov and the USAGov program partnered for their first-ever social media takeover on National Voter Registration Day. The campaign, which encouraged the public to register to vote, reached 36,000 people across USAGov’s platforms and generated over 2,000 engagements. The partnership raised awareness for vote.gov, boosted vote.gov’s website traffic, and laid the groundwork for the future collaborations and resource-sharing between the two entities. This collaboration between vote.gov and USAGov offers a model for social media takeovers and partnerships between federal agencies and teams.— via USA.gov
Designing with empathy
Discover the transformative power of empathy in design with USAGov’s benefit finder. From simplifying applications to a mobile-first approach, the revamped tool not only functions efficiently in two different languages and cultural contexts, but demonstrates the consideration for users in challenging situations. Explore how empathy turned a government service into a compassionate lifeline, creating a product that genuinely understands and meets people where they are.— via USA.gov
In 2023, TTS stepped up to meet growing technology demands for government
GSA’s Technology Transformation Services (TTS) celebrated major milestones and met growing demand for its services in 2023. This wrap-up summaries key successes in five areas: improving customer experience, modernizing federal technology, innovating for the future, focus on equity and accessibility, and building the technology workforce of tomorrow.— via General Services Administration
This month the Design System team will talk about the development and rollout of their new accessibility tests for components.
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2024
Accessibility testing: Creating digital services everyone can use
Making sure that USA.gov and USAGov en Español remain accessible to people with disabilities is essential. The product team shares four testing tips they’ve learned to help ensure that everyone has equal access to digital products and services.— via USA.gov
GSA Issues Report to Congress Highlighting Need for Improvement in Federal Government Section 508 Compliance
The report, the FY23 Governmentwide Section 508 Assessment, evaluates reporting entities’ adherence to the criteria established by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in coordination with GSA, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), and the U.S. Access Board (USAB). It provides a baseline and recommendations for strengthening compliance initiatives and enhancing Section 508 activities across the federal government.— via General Services Administration
OMB Releases Digital Accessibility Guidance to Ensure All Americans Have Ability to Access Critical Government Resources
The Biden-Harris Administration is championing inclusivity by requiring federal agencies to prioritize accessibility in the digital space, recognizing the gap in access for the 61 million Americans with disabilities on nearly half of popular federal government websites. The new guidance mandates rigorous testing, inclusion of individuals with disabilities in design processes, and the incorporation of experts in procurement, emphasizing a commitment to universal access. Read more to discover how these measures aim to change the federal digital experience for all Americans.— via The White House
Delivering on 21st Century IDEA: A case study from the GSA SmartPay team (Part 3)
A GSA SmartPay product owner shares her experience designing user-centered, accessible content for multiple audiences.
Next steps in the U.S. Web Design System’s inclusive usability research
USWDS Monthly Call - November 2023
The USWDS team will continue sharing our progress to improve ongoing research, publishing results and addressing recent findings.
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2023
Conducting user research with people with disabilities
USWDS Monthly Call - October 2023
This month, we’ll share progress and findings from our recent effort to improve our ongoing research practice.
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2023
Celebrating 20 years of USAGov en Español
USAGov en Español is excited to celebrate their 20th anniversary this month! Since 2003, the website has been a trusted guide to government information and services for Spanish speakers. Explore this timeline of USAGov en Español’s milestones, name changes, and accomplishments as they’ve served Spanish speakers and federal partners over the past two decades.— via USA.gov
Why the American People Deserve a Digital Government
OMB released new policy guidance for government that includes a variety of actions and standards to help federal agencies design, develop, and deliver modern websites and digital services. Memo M-23-22, Delivering a Digital-First Public Experience, will make it seamless for the public to obtain government information and services online, and help agencies fully implement the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA).— via The White House
A conversation about content audits
Content audits can be tedious. Two content designers discuss why we do them anyway, and how to get started.
First, do no harm: mistakes to avoid in creating accessible user experiences
Accessible design and development practices help us build inclusive experiences. But we can lose sight of the people we serve if we don’t steadily work to better understand our users. To create accessible experiences, avoid these mistakes.— via 18F
Blind Veterans can now read decision letters
VA now offers accessibility to blind Veterans so they can independently read decision letters online.— via U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
