14 CFR Parts 382 and 399; 49 CFR Part 27 - Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Air Travel: Accessibility of Web Sites and Automated Kiosks at U.S. Airports - Preamble

6. Compliance Monitoring

The SNPRM: In the September 2011 SNPRM, the Department discussed several issues relating to ensuring and monitoring carriers' compliance with the WCAG 2.0 accessibility standard. We discussed, but did not propose to require, that carriers post WCAG 2.0 “conformance claims” on their Web sites. (A “conformance claim” is W3C's term of art for a statement by an entity giving a brief description of one Web page, a series of pages, or multiple related pages on its Web site for which the claim is made, the date of conformance, the WCAG guidelines and conformance level satisfied, and the Web content technologies relied upon.) See Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0: W3C Recommendation 11 December 2008, available at http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG/#conformance-claims (as of November 16, 2012). Although concerned that conformance claims may be too resource intensive for complex and dynamic carrier Web sites, we nonetheless invited public comment on effective alternative means for readily identifying compliant Web pages during the Web site conversion period and for verifying overall Web site accessibility after the compliance deadline. We asked whether the Department should initiate random “spot” investigations of carrier and online ticket agency Web sites to monitor compliance after the rule becomes effective. We also asked whether there were any specific technical barriers to maintaining Web site accessibility after full Web site compliance is initially achieved.

Comments: The Department received a fairly wide range of comments addressing our inquiries on compliance monitoring. The NFB disagreed with the Department's view that conformance claims may be too costly to be feasible, stating that conformance claims are the “cheapest and easiest method of identifying accessible Web pages for both the carrier and the user.” If the Department does not decide to adopt conformance claims, NFB suggested that in the alternative carriers provide: (1) A mechanism for users to request accessibility information that carriers must promptly disclose in an accessible format; (2) a “how to” tutorial on using the accessible Web site; or (3) customer service assistance specifically to address accessibility questions and needs. NFB considered these suggested alternatives less effective and less feasible than conformance claims. Some commenters suggested that the Department require carriers to adopt some form of self-monitoring such as a link to a customer survey prominently displayed on the Web site, a pop-up to ask users their opinion or permission to send them a survey regarding Web site accessibility, or a feedback mechanism on the Web site specifically for reporting accessibility problems. Other suggestions were that the Department itself randomly check carrier Web sites to ensure compliance or work collaboratively with academic institutions to carry out random monitoring. Yet another suggestion was that the Department require carriers to establish disability teams to conduct an annual or biannual assessment of their Web sites for accessibility barriers and send a report to the Department.

The carrier associations suggested that the Department employ accessibility experts and use available online tools to determine if carriers' Web sites meet the accessibility standard. They also suggested that initial “spot” investigations be used to provide constructive feedback to carriers on Web site areas that appear not to meet the required standard. Regarding specific technical barriers, they noted that Java or Flash programs used to enhance the customer Web site experience are not easily made accessible and should be exempt from the standard or a text alternative version permitted.

DOT Decision: The Department considered the value of conformance claims as a means to readily identify compliant Web pages and Web sites and weighed the expense that meeting all the required elements of conformance claims is likely to incur. We also considered the fact that W3C itself does not require entities to post conformance claims. We have decided that other methods would allow the Department to monitor Web site compliance and provide feedback to carriers without imposing any additional cost burden on them. The Department encourages carriers to adopt one or more of the suggestions above for obtaining user feedback on the accessibility of their Web sites and urges them to use the feedback to continuously improve the accessibility of their Web sites. We especially recommend, but do not require, that carriers include a feedback form on their Web sites, perhaps located on a page that can be reached from a link on the Web pages associated with disability assistance services. At the same time, we do not consider self-monitoring alone adequate for ensuring compliance. The Department intends, therefore, to engage Web site accessibility experts after the date specified in this rule for Web site compliance to check the compliance status of carrier Web sites so that we can notify carriers of non-compliant areas for corrective action. A carrier's failure to take corrective action within a designated time frame may result in the Department taking enforcement action.