Local government sites communicate almost everything through PDFs — permits, budgets, meeting packets, public notices, applications — spread across departments, pages, and years of updates. Level Five reviews and remediates public-facing PDFs for WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility readiness.
WCAG 2.1 AA Compliance for Local Government PDFs
Find the PDFs
- Crawl your public-facing website
- Catalog every PDF found
- Flag documents no longer in use
Organize by Type & Effort
- Group by document type — forms, reports, notices, agendas
- Estimate remediation effort per batch
- Prioritize by usage and importance
Assess Remediation Needs
- Identify accessibility issues in each file
- Determine which need lighter vs. heavier fixes
- Note any source file requirements
Provide a Quote
- Transparent pricing based on scope
- Realistic timeframe estimate
- No obligation to proceed
Remediate the PDFs
- Fix tagging, reading order, and alt text
- Test against WCAG 2.1 AA success criteria
- Deliver compliant, ready-to-publish files
The deadline is coming
The DOJ's ADA Title II rule requires state and local government websites and mobile apps to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA. That includes public-facing digital content, which may include PDFs used to share forms, reports, notices, policies, applications, meeting materials, and other public information.
[Feature Image: deadline table/timeline graphic] Caption suggestion: Compliance deadlines by population size
- April 26, 2027 — State and local government entities with a population of 50,000 or more
- April 26, 2028 — State and local government entities with a population under 50,000
- April 26, 2028 — Special district governments
This article is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice.
Waiting can create more work later
If public-facing PDFs aren't reviewed and remediated before the applicable deadline, the issue tends to compound rather than go away. Inaccessible documents can make it harder for people with disabilities to access public information, complete forms, understand notices, or take part in the services those documents support.
Title II of the ADA already requires state and local governments to make their digital content accessible — that obligation doesn't start on the deadline, it's already in effect. The deadline simply marks the point when WCAG 2.1 AA becomes the specific, measurable standard used to judge whether that obligation is being met.
In practice, entities that fall behind tend to run into the same few things: complaints or inquiries from the DOJ, occasional lawsuits from residents, and — most commonly — needing to remediate everything anyway, just later, under more time pressure, and sometimes as part of a formal agreement with its own reporting requirements attached.
None of that is meant to alarm you. It's simply why we recommend starting the review now rather than waiting — addressing this on your own timeline is almost always more manageable than addressing it on someone else's.
Let's find out what you're working with
Complete the form below and we'll review your website, identify public-facing PDFs that may need remediation, and provide a quote for next steps.