Website accessibility audits for local governments
A fixed-price review of your website against WCAG 2.1 Level AA, the standard the ADA Title II rule requires. Real people test your site with keyboards and screen readers. You get a plain-language findings report, a prioritized fix plan, and a fixed quote for the fixes.
Your compliance date depends on your population
The U.S. Department of Justice's ADA Title II rule requires state and local government websites, mobile apps and posted documents to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA. That includes content you provide through vendors, such as payment, permit and agenda systems.
| Population or entity | Compliance date |
|---|---|
| Population of 50,000 or more | April 26, 2027 |
| Population under 50,000, and special districts | April 26, 2028 |
DOJ extended both dates by one year in April 2026. The rule has exceptions for some archived and older documents, and we flag those in the report. Confirm how the rule applies to you with your legal counsel.
Hands-on testing, not just a scanner
Automated tools catch only part of the problems. We test a representative sample of pages by hand and scan the rest of the site automatically.
Page sample
Your homepage plus the main page types, such as a department page, news or agenda listing, event page, and contact or request form.
Whole-site scan
An automated sweep of every public page for common errors like missing image descriptions, low color contrast and empty links.
Keyboard
Every link, menu, form and button in the sample must work without a mouse, with a visible focus outline.
Screen readers
NVDA on Windows and VoiceOver on Mac and iPhone. We check headings, page regions, link wording, image descriptions and form labels.
Zoom and phones
Text at 200 percent zoom and the layout at phone width, with nothing cut off.
Forms
Labels, required fields, error messages and time limits.
Documents
A sample of your most-used PDFs, such as agendas, minutes and permit forms.
Video
Captions on meeting recordings and other videos.
Vendor tools
Payment, permit and agenda systems linked from your site are flagged, because the rule covers content you provide through vendors.
Overlay widgets
If your site uses an accessibility widget, we test the pages underneath it. A widget does not fix the code the standard measures.
A report your staff can act on
Findings report
Each issue lists where it occurs, which WCAG 2.1 AA requirement it fails, how serious it is and how to fix it, in plain language with screenshots.
Prioritized fix plan
Template-level fixes come first, because one fix can repair hundreds of pages.
Fixed-price fix quote
A fixed quote to fix what we find, or to rebuild when that costs less than patching. No obligation. The report is yours, and any web vendor can use it.
Draft accessibility statement
Ready-to-post language that names the standard and gives residents a way to report problems.
30-minute walkthrough
We go through the results with your staff and answer questions.
Optional add-ons, quoted separately: PDF remediation, and quarterly monitoring to catch new problems as staff post content.
About three weeks from kickoff to walkthrough
Kickoff call (30 minutes)
Agree on the page sample, the documents to test and the vendor tools your site links to.
Testing (one to two weeks)
Hands-on and automated testing.
Report delivered
By the end of week three.
Walkthrough
We review the findings with your staff.
Fix quote
Within a week of the walkthrough.
Three fixed-price packages, sized by your site
Essentials
Villages, townships and libraries
- Up to 10 pages hand-tested
- Up to 10 PDFs tested
Fixed price, quoted before work starts
Standard
Small cities, school districts and park districts
- Up to 20 pages hand-tested
- Up to 25 PDFs tested
Fixed price, quoted before work starts
Expanded
Counties and larger cities
- 30 or more pages hand-tested
- PDFs scoped to your site
Fixed price, quoted before work starts
Every package includes the whole-site scan, findings report, fix plan, draft accessibility statement and staff walkthrough.
A web team that can test it and fix it
HDM brings 20 years and 300+ website builds, with accessibility treated as a delivery requirement, not a badge. We test by hand, explain findings in plain language and can fix what we find, so you are not left holding a report no one can act on.
We're based in Southwest Ohio, between Cincinnati and Dayton, and work with organizations nationwide. Expect a written fixed-price quote, named milestones and plain-language updates.
Accessibility audit FAQs
Start with an audit
Tell us about your organization and website. We'll reply within one business day with next steps and a fixed price.
Request an audit quoteRequest an audit quote
Tell us about your organization and website. We typically reply within one business day.