Background on Accessibility Laws

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990. From voting to parking, the ADA is a law that protects people with disabilities in many areas of public life. Since then, a lot has changed in the ways governments operate and communicate with their constituents. The internet quickly became the primary means by which information is stored and delivered. These days, your digital footprint is as significant as ever. Recognizing this, in 2021 the Colorado State Legislature passed HB-21 1110 to strengthen protections against discrimination on the basis of disability. Then, in 2024, it passed HB-24 1454 granting a one-year extension of the deadline for public agencies to comply with digital accessibility standards if the public agency demonstrates a good faith effort toward compliance. That grace period expired on July 1, 2025, meaning public entities can now be held liable for failure to comply.

In May 2025, OIT amended the final Rules Establishing Technology Accessibility Standards to help clarify and define the standards and compliance parameters of Colorado’s digital accessibility laws, House Bill 21-1110 and Senate Bill 23-244. The rules are intended to provide a reasonable path to compliance while also providing equitable levels of service to people with disabilities. They are not intended to hamper the availability of government services and information.

Wednesday, September 24th Meeting Recap

Staff organized a webinar with OIT and AOR, Inc. to discuss the current landscape and address concerns from local government. Materials from this meeting are available at the links below (please note: the slide decks contain many additional resources embedded as clickable hyperlinks):

• Meeting Recording with Chat Shown (click to view or download)
• OIT Slide Deck: Overview of the Technology Accessibility Rules (click to view or download)
• AOR Slide Deck: Web Accessibility & HB21-1110 (click to view or download)

Next Steps

If your county needs help navigating these regulations, staff is here to help! Please reach out to CCI Staff to get started, or go straight to our expert partners with specific questions. We can help you with everything from finding more resources on the subject to scheduling an audit of your county’s website for digital accessibility standards compliance. Our areas of expertise are as follows:

• AOR, Inc: Help with implementation; website audits; technical questions. Has experience in both the public and private sectors.
  • Contact Alyssa (alyssa@thinkaor.com) and Elena (elena@thinkaor.com) via email.
• Office of Information Technology (OIT): Up to date information on accessibility rulemaking in Colorado; Background on accessibility laws; General resources.
  • Contact OIT (oit_accessibility@state.co.us) via email.
• CCI Staff: Getting started; Connecting you with the right expert.
  • Contact Kieran Boes (kboes@ccionline.org)

Staff has sent a survey out to members on this topic. Please fill it out at your earliest convenience. If enough members show an interest, this will become part of an ongoing series of “Ask the Expert” webinars. Reach out to Kieran Boes if you would like a copy of the survey.