Review your Report or Budget Book for Accessibility

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1. Disclosure Studio Built-In Accessibility Tools

2. Digital Budget Book Accessibility Tools

3. Questions to Ask as your Review your Report

Disclosure Studio Built-In Accessibility Tools

Disclosure Studio gives you the tools to make your financial disclosure ADA ready by building accessibility directly into the product's functionality.

• Report settings prevent the selection of branding colors that fail to meet the required accessibility standards. 

• Font sizes within text blocks cannot be altered. This is an intentional design choice to take the mental load of accessibility off your staff and put it onto the software.

• All images have the ability to have Alt Text added to provide a description of the image for a screen reader. You can also mark images as decorative text to allow people using screen readers to hear these are decorative so they know they aren't missing any important information.

Digital Budget Book Built-In Accessibility Tools

• A semantic structure giving web content clear meaning and logical hierarchy so assistive technologies like screen readers can interpret it correctly.

• Color contrast controls designed to support WCAG 2.1 AA standards. 

• All images have the ability to have Alt Text added to provide a description of the image for a screen reader. 

Questions to Ask as You Review your Report

Our tools are designed to support conformance with web accessibility standards; ADA compliance goes further; it asks whether a person with a disability can actually access and understand the published contents. You must still evaluate how your financial documents function in the real world. 

To ensure your disclosures meet the ADA’s broader mandate for "effective communication," ask your team the following questions:

• Is the financial content written in plain, understandable language? 
  • Financial reporting can be dense. Using simple writing and specific, nontechnical language helps residents of all reading levels understand the information. 
  • Always explain acronyms or complex financial terms that are necessary to include.
• Are you prepared to provide the document in alternative formats?
  • Even with accessible digital files, you must be prepared to provide alternative formats, such as large print, Braille, or HTML text, if a resident requests them.
• Does the document (or the webpage hosting it) include an accessibility notice? 
  • Your documents and the pages hosting them should include clear, detailed instructions on how users can request accommodations. 
  • If your municipality has an ADA Coordinator or an accessibility office, prominently display their contact information so it is clear who to reach if there is an accessibility issue.
• Can you process accommodation requests in a timely, private, and independent manner? 
  • Ensure you have procedures in place to quickly process requests without causing undue delay or violating the privacy of the requester.

True ADA compliance means a person with a disability can access, understand, and use your services as effectively as anyone else. ClearGov builds accessibility guardrails directly into the platform, so your team spends less time manually checking design decisions like color contrast and layout structure. 

We do not provide ADA Compliance. If subscribed, we provide document remediation supporting ADA requirements for the PDF documents your ClearGov product(s) produce. That's where human judgment adds real value.