Accessibility statement

What we aim for

Open America aims to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at the AA conformance level. Civic data should be usable by every citizen, including those using assistive technologies — screen readers, keyboard-only navigation, voice control, high-contrast modes, screen magnifiers, and so on.

What we do

• Semantic HTML. Headings, landmarks, lists, and form controls use the elements they were meant to use, not generic <div>s with simulated behavior.
• Keyboard support. The site is navigable end-to-end without a mouse. Skip-to-content links are present on every page.
• Visible focus. All interactive elements have a visible focus indicator.
• Color contrast. Body text and UI controls meet WCAG 2.1 AA contrast ratios under both light and dark themes.
• Alt text. Meaningful images carry descriptive alt text. Decorative images use empty alt="".
• Live regions. Real-time widgets (chamber session status, live floor activity) update accessibly without trapping focus.
• Reduced motion. Decorative animations respect prefers-reduced-motion.
• Color-independent meaning. Status indicators do not rely on color alone (an "in session" indicator carries both a colored dot and a text label).

Known limitations

• The legacy data we ingest from congress.gov, clerk.house.gov, and senate.gov includes bill summaries and titles written by Congress; we surface them as-is and cannot rewrite the legalese.
• PDF documents linked from the Service are produced by upstream sources and may not be accessible. Where possible we prefer HTML or XML formats.
• Some legacy interactive widgets in the older parts of the site may not yet meet the standards above. We're working through them.

Tell us what's broken

If a page is unusable, awkward, or fails an assistive technology check on your end, please email accessibility@openamerica.io with:

• The URL of the page
• What you were trying to do
• What blocked you
• The assistive technology, browser, and operating system you were using (helps us reproduce)

We will reply within 5 business days with an acknowledgement and a plan. We will not ask you to upgrade your software, switch browsers, or use a desktop computer instead of a phone in order to use the site. Accessibility is our responsibility, not yours.

Alternative formats

If you need information that is on the site in another format — large print, plain-text email, dictation — write to accessibility@openamerica.io and tell us what you need. We'll do our best to provide it at no charge.

This statement

This statement was last reviewed on the date at the top. We aim to review it at least every six months and after any significant change to the site's structure or technology.