The accessibility officer is here. Now comes the backing.

There's good news hiding inside a tough survey: the state digital accessibility officer is now a permanent fixture of American government. At least 40 of NASCIO's 56 states and territories have one.

NASCIO surveyed 36 of those officers this summer, and the results, covered by StateScoop, read less like a report card and more like a job description for what the role needs next. Only 17% have oversight across all agencies. More than half have nobody reporting to them, and 67% work without a dedicated budget. With a federal deadline next April, most states describe themselves as partially or mostly compliant, held up mainly by the grinding work: document remediation, fixes to high-traffic systems, expanded testing.

For cities and counties on the same deadline, the states have effectively drawn the map. Naming an owner is the first half. Backing that person with real authority and funded hours is what finishes the job, and the jurisdictions doing both are doing some of the most important work in government: making sure it reaches everyone.

Source: StateScoop