WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

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RE: are accessibility audits mandetory in any nation?

for

From: Webb, KerryA
Date: Sep 4, 2006 11:40PM

Raena wrote:
>
> On 9/5/06, Webb, KerryA < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
>
> > The question was about audits being mandatory, and that was what I
was
> > addressing.
> >
> > There's no argument about the requirement for testing as a part of
site
> > development - either in the Commonwealth or in other jurisdictions.
>
>
> Maybe I'm not clear on the difference between testing for
accessibility
> while implementing, versus testing for accessibility any other time.
>
> I would hope one would want the same criteria for both instances.
>

OK - the question was about whether it was mandatory to conduct audits -
or that was my interpretation at least.

In my experience, an audit is what is undertaken some time after a
system is put in place and is usually carried out by a body other than
that responsible for the development. The Australian Government has the
Australian National Audit Office that does all sorts of audits - not
just on IT-based systems. In the ACT Government, we have our own
Auditor-General's Office which does the same sort of thing.

To the best of my knowledge, neither of these organisations has a
mandatory requirement to audit websites for accessibility. But, there
are certainly requirements for developers to ensure that their websites
meet certain standards for Accessibility.

If an Audit organisation conducted an audit of the accessibility of a
website, it would use the same criteria as the developed did when
checking that the site was Accessible.

But maybe Shri's initial question didn't refer to that sort of Audit.

Kerry

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