36 CFR Part 1194 - Proposed Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Standards and Guidelines NPRM - Preamble

502.3.1 Object Information (Section-by-Section Analysis)

This section proposes that particular programming elements—namely object role, state, boundary, name, and description—must be programmatically determinable. Moreover, user-adjustable states would be required to be set programmatically, including through assistive technology. This proposal, along with proposed 502.3.3, corresponds to WCAG 2.0 Success Criteria 4.1.2 Name, Role, and Value. It is also consistent with existing 508 Standards § 1194.21(d), but more explicitly provides for the user to be able to change data values, not just read them. Making the specified states programmatically determinable is already a widespread industry practice and is a standard feature provided in software designed to be accessible. Nonetheless, it is important to address this issue in the proposed rule because, on occasion, users of assistive technology find that they can read data in fields, but cannot make changes.