What: On April 20, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) issued an Interim Final Rule extending the compliance dates for a rule that requires local governments to make their websites and mobile applications accessible under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This rule extension is effective immediately.
Why: The goal is to help people with disabilities, including those with vision or hearing loss, use special tools to make it easier to explore and read government websites. This includes everything on those sites, such as text, documents, PDFs, photos, videos, and future social media posts. There are some exceptions, including third-party content, archived documents, and older social media posts. Advocacy has warned the DOJ that the current rule does not provide small governmental entities with sufficient time for compliance.
Compliance Dates
| Public Entity Size | Previous Compliance Date | New Compliance Date |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer than 50,000 persons / special district governments | April 26, 2027 | April 26, 2028 |
| 50,000 or more persons | April 24, 2026 | April 26, 2027 |
The DOJ seeks feedback on the economic impacts of the 2024 final rule, particularly on small governments with a population of fewer than 50,000 people. The agency also seeks input on whether it should publish additional rulemaking to consider additional regulatory alternatives to make the 2024 final rule less costly for small governments.
Action: Read the interim final rule and submit comments by the June 22, 2026, deadline.
INTERIM FINAL RULE:
ADVOCACY BLOG:
DOJ Rule on Disability Access Brings Challenges for Small Governments
CONTACT:
Janis Reyes
EMAIL:
Regulatory Alerts
Is your small business or entity being impacted by a proposed rule? If yes, write a comment letter to the proposing agency.