OS Digital Accessibility Conformance Review Guidelines

The solution center is open Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. eastern time, excluding federal holidays. 

The Digital Accessibility @ HHS page contains examples of content requiring a conformance review. A good experience includes adhering to guidelines.

• Content owners must confirm all content formats meet acceptance criteria before submitting an intake form. Note: Only OS owned or managed content is accepted for the queue.
• Review the services information for conformance review process steps and expectations.
• Plan adequate time into the schedule for the conformance review cycle to occur. Reasonable attempts are made to meet customer deadlines but not guaranteed.
• Conformance reviews use representative testing. This method of testing reviews unique types of content. The conformance report provides examples of where issues exist. Development teams / content authors must locate and remediate all instances of similar issues.
• Content format specific guidelines:
  • eBlasts: Submit time-sensitive eBlasts by 3pm eastern time for same-day review.
  • OS Multimedia and Webinars: OS entities should contact the Office of the Secretary Equal Employment Opportunity Service Center (OS EEOSC) for help with hosting accessible meetings and events. An example service is providing real-time captioning during meetings and events.
  • EPLC Projects: Enterprise Performance Life Cycle (EPLC) projects must be conformant before a go-live date.  An OS Digital Accessibility conformance report serves as the official artifact of conformance.

Support Through All Content Phases

The solution center encourages content owners to engage early in the planning of content.  Most content flows through a few stages from conception to release and maintenance.  Content travels through phases such as concept planning, requirements gathering, content development, acceptance testing, and post-release maintenance. Examples of how the solution center assists in each content phase include, but are not limited to:

• Concept Planning: Planning involves deciding what format is best for presenting information. The solution center can provide feedback on a potential product’s Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR).  The solution center can review the existing document templates and offer conformance results.  
• Requirement Gathering: Selecting color schemes and element types such as lists, images, dialog boxes, form fields, tables, accordion controls, and many others have an impact on conformance levels.  The solution center reviews storyboards, wireframes, and functional prototypes to guide content creators in a conformant direction.
• Content Development: Solution center assessments of functionalities or completed sections shape the creation of similar content.  
• Acceptance Testing: The solution center must provide conformance validation of a product or document before release.  Content built with digital accessibility in mind benefits from a quicker review process.
• Post-Release Maintenance: Content sometimes requires minor tweaks or updated versions. Introducing new content or functionality requires a conformance check. The solution center ensures new content or functionality does not cause conformance issues.

Every stage of product creation or development needs to include digital accessibility practices. Incorporating accessibility standards throughout the life cycle reduces remediation effort, time and cost.

When to Seek Conformance Verification

Conformance testing for actions such as (but not limited to) the following must occur:

• Major software version upgrades / releases
• Internet and intranet content updates
• Hardware upgrades
• Content creation (emails, reports, presentations, etc.)
• Design / user experience changes (i.e. swapping drop downs for radio buttons; changes to navigation methods; etc.)

ICT conformance reviews may involve layers of testing. Developers may perform unit testing before independent third-party testing happens. The development team must resolve all identified issues. Finally official Section 508 verification can occur.

Contact the OS Accessibility Program

Direct feedback about OS’s digital accessibility efforts to the OS Digital Accessibility Program.