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Commissioners discuss ADA web compliance options; direct staff to post communications/coordinator position
Summary
In a long work session the board reviewed options to address Colorado’s web accessibility requirements, favored a phased minimize-and-rebuild approach, and directed staff to post a communications/coordinator position to lead accessibility work and website remediation.
Rio Blanco County commissioners held an extended April 15 work session on ADA-accessible technology and website compliance, reviewed seven options ranging from taking the site offline to full outsourcing, and directed staff to advertise a communications/coordinator position to lead remediation efforts.
Staff presented seven approaches for handling county web and digital accessibility obligations: (1) temporary suspension of the public website, (2) minimize and rebuild using the existing platform, (3) continue incremental remediation with current staff, (4) hire short-term contractors, (5) build a full in-house compliance team, (6) short-term outsourcing via request-for-proposal, and (7) full outsourcing with contractual liability transfer. Presenters compared cost, legal risk, timelines and operational impacts for each option.
Staff noted current recurring costs and vendors: the county’s CivicEngage hosting platform costs approximately $15,000 annually, Converge Accessibility consulting was discussed at roughly $20,000 per year and a document remediation service (referred to in discussion as a continuous/document remediation engine) was cited in the meeting with annual costs in the mid‑five figures. Commissioners and staff said the state’s accessibility standard (WCAG 2.2 at the time) and an upcoming July 1 compliance benchmark required a documented plan and demonstrable progress.
Most commissioners favored a practical, phased approach: minimize the public site to a bare-bones, easy-to-navigate front page if necessary and recruit a communications/coordinator (title discussed) whose duties would include accessibility coordination, policy enforcement and remediation oversight. Staff proposed posting the position immediately, with a hiring target that could allow the new coordinator to begin work by late June. Proposed timelines discussed at the meeting included launching a pared-back site (phone numbers, department contacts and critical links) in the near term and moving toward a fully remediated site over a multi-month build cycle; staff suggested a possible target of initial bare-bones availability in July and fuller functionality in subsequent months while noting exact dates depend on hiring and resources.
Commissioners also discussed related digital resources — PDFs, video captioning, kiosks and third-party tools — and confirmed that ADA obligations extend beyond the main website. Multiple commissioners emphasized the difference between convenience and access: county staff will continue to provide records and documents on request even if a public page is scaled back. The board directed staff to finalize and post the communications/coordinator job description and to return to the commission with implementation details and a formal accessibility policy for adoption.
Why this matters: the state’s web-accessibility requirements create legal and operational obligations for counties; Rio Blanco’s approach will affect how residents access digital county services and how the county balances legal risk, budget and convenience.
