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Re: Inaccessible table

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From: tim.harshbarger
Date: May 24, 2023 7:36AM

I am not aware of any WCAG success or conformance criteria that require that the inaccessible content be concealed or hidden. I believe the relevant conformance criteria just require that, if the content cannot be made accessible, an accessible alternative is provided, clearly marked as an accessible alternative, and exists on the same page.

There are a handful of success criteria where it is not allowed to provide an accessible alternative. However, this is not one of those situations.

Personally, I am always a bit reluctant to hide content from screen reader users. While there are people with visual impairments who only use a screen reader, there are also people with disabilities who can see and use a screen reader. For those people, the original table may not be so inaccessible since they will be seeing and listening to the information. However, everything in this paragraph is just a personal opinion--so is definitely not necessary to follow to conform with WCAG.

If I erred regarding any of the WCAG requirements, I am sure one of our other knowledgeable experts will chime in and help clarify what is necessary for WCAG conformance.

Thanks!
Tim