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Electronic and Information Resources Accessibility Policy

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to ensure our Electronic and Information Resources are accessible to the public including persons with disabilities in accordance with applicable state and federal laws and standards governing accessibility.

Scope

This policy applies to Electronic and Information Resources (EIR) developed, procured, maintained, or used by the Comptroller’s office, including but not limited to:

1. Websites and web applications;
2. Video and multimedia;
3. Software applications and operating systems; and
4. Telecommunications products.

This policy also extends to vendors, contractors, and service providers who develop, provide, or maintain EIR on behalf of the Comptroller.

Policy Statement

The Comptroller’s office is committed to ensuring all individuals, regardless of their abilities, have equal access to our services, programs and information. We aim to meet and exceed state and federal accessibility laws and standards by aligning our policies and practices with the Texas Government Code Chapters 2054 and 2155, Texas Administrative Code Title 1, Chapters 206 and 213, Section 508 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. § 794d), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. § 794), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, as amended (42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq.) and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).  

Procurement of Information Resources

Our EIR procurements incorporate accessibility criteria consistent with Agency Purchasing Procedures, the Department of Information Resource’s (DIR) IT Commodity Purchasing Guidelines for State Agencies and the State of Texas Procurement and Contract Management Guide.

The Comptroller’s office uses the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) for vendors to communicate their product’s accessibility features and compliance with specific standards. At times, additional analysis and testing may be performed by our office to validate the accuracy of the VPAT or if no VPAT is available.

Additional details regarding the Comptroller’s office purchasing authority, oversight and responsibilities, as it pertains to procurement of accessible technology, are outlined in Texas Government Code Chapters 2155 through 2161 and Texas Administrative Code, Title 34, Part 1, Chapter 20.

Standards and Specifications

Texas Administrative Code (TAC) §206.50 and §§213.10 through 213.17 prescribe the standards and specifications to which the Comptroller’s office and other state agencies must comply with in order to make EIR accessible to persons with disabilities. The Comptroller’s office is dedicated to ensuring compliance with the standards and specifications for EIR.

Guidelines

The Comptroller’s office strives to follow the guidelines established by the World Wide Web Consortium Web Accessibility Initiative , Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 (up to level AA), as required by the Title II of the ADA Rule "Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability; Accessibility of Web Information and Services of State and Local Government Entities," as well as the guidelines in the 1998 Amendment to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d) that are required by Texas state law.

Testing and Validation

The Comptroller’s office utilizes DIR-listed accessibility testing tools and methodologies such as manual testing procedures.

Exceptions

The Comptroller’s office may approve an exception from compliance under TAC §213.17 if it determines that such compliance would impose a “significant difficulty or expense.” In such cases, alternate methods of accessibility are provided to the extent possible pursuant to Section 2054.460, Texas Government Code (PDF).

Under Title II of the ADA Rule “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability; Accessibility of Web Information and Services of State and Local Government Entities” ,  five categories of content are exempt from WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance requirement: certain archived content created before Aril 24, 2024; pre-existing electronic documents published before April 24, 2024; third party content not developed by the agency; individualized password protected documents and social media posts made before April 24, 2024.

EIR Accessibility Coordinator

The Comptroller’s office has designated an EIR Accessibility Coordinator to monitor the agency’s compliance with this policy. If you use assistive technology and the format of any material on this agency’s websites interferes with your ability to access the information, please send an email to the EIR Accessibility Coordinator and the CPA accessibility team. To better assist you, please indicate the nature of your accessibility problem, the format in which you would like to receive the material, the Web address of the requested material and your contact information. The Comptroller’s office welcomes comments on how to improve its pages for persons with disabilities.

Workplace Accommodations

Please contact our Workplace Accommodations Coordinator in the Human Resources Division at 800-531-5441 for any non-Web related assistance.

If you need to contact the agency via TDD equipment, please visit Relay Texas for assistance.

Additional information about accessibility programs in Texas is available from the Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities .

Glossary

Accessible:

A resource that can be used in a variety of ways and that does not depend on a single sense or ability.

Alternate methods:

Different means of providing information, including product documentation, to people with disabilities. Alternate methods may include, but are not limited to, voice, fax, relay service, TTY, Internet posting, captioning, text-to-speech synthesis, and audio description.

Electronic and Information Resources:

This includes information technology and any equipment or interconnected system or subsystem of equipment that is used in the creation, conversion, duplication, or delivery of data or information. The term electronic and information resources include, but is not limited to, telecommunications products (such as telephones), information kiosks and transaction machines, websites, multimedia, and office equipment such as copiers and fax machines. The term does not include any equipment that contains embedded information technology that is used as an integral part of the product, but the principal function of which is not the acquisition, storage, manipulation, management, movement, control, display, switching, interchange, transmission, or reception of data or information. For example, HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) equipment such as thermostats or temperature control devices, and medical equipment where information technology is integral to its operation, is not information technology.

Exception:

A justified, documented non-conformance with one or more standards or specifications of Chapter 206 and/or Chapter 213 of Title 1, Texas Administrative Code, which has been approved by the Executive Director of an Agency.