W3C Web Accessibility and Italian Law: mission impossible?

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WCAG 2.0 and a new government initiative

Accelerating Web Accessibility Migrating to WCAG
2.0 and Ensuring Vigilance over Emerging
Technologies
Special Session on Web Accessibility AAATE 2009
Conference, Florence September 1st, 2009
Roberto Scano
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About me

• W3C AC Rep. For IWA/HWG
• W3C WCAG Working Group Member
• W3C ATAG Working Group Member
• Expert of ISO/TC 159/SC 4/WG 5 'Software
  ergonomics and human-computer dialogues'
• Co-author of italian accessibility Law technical
  requirements (4/2004) and technical manual as a
  consultant for CNIPA (National Centre for
  Informatic in Public Admin.)
• Consultant for DDIT (Department for
  Digitalization for the P.A. and Technological
  Innovation) in the Prime Minister Office (PCM)
• Member of the DDIT / FORMEZ Accessibility
  Observatory

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Topics

• 4/2004 Law and public websites
• 2009 Law update and WCAG 2.0 application
• Italian Goverment Web Accessibility Initiative

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4/2004 law and public websites

• 4/2004 Law
• Law since Jan 17th, 2004.
• 22 WCAG 1.x requirements since July 8th,
  2005.
• Accessibility requirements for public Web sites.

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4/2004 law and public websites

• Issues
• Difficulty in finding products that respect the
  compliance
• No accessibility culture in both Web
  professionals and in the Public Administrations

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4/2004 law and public websites

• Solutions
• New Web-CMS made in Italy.
• Promotion of a Design for All approach by
  CNIPA (courses and training) and Web
  acessibility experts.
• IWA association seminars for education and
  outreach.

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2009 law update and wcag 2.0 application

• There is an official translation work in progress
  (coordinated by IWA/HWG).
• Law is different than a Recommendation
• Need to select WCAG 2.0 success criteria with
  law-like rewording.
• Need to guarantee that Italian Web sites that are
  compliant with 4/2004 Law still conform to the
  Law update.
• Need to have all success criteria measurable
  objectively.

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Italian Goverment Web Accessibility Initiative

• DIT together with FORMEZ create an Accessibility
  Observatory with two main goals
• Involve the USERS in the public Web site
  accessibility evaluation through the LINEA
  AMICA government Web site.
• Update of the national regulation to WCAG 2.0
  recommendation

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Italian Goverment Web Accessibility Initiative

• USERS INVOLVEMENT
• Citizen that find accessibility problems in
  public Web sites open a public ticket.
• The backoffice accessibility team evaluate the
  item and forward to the public Web site owner
  suggestions about how to solve the problem.
• The solution is published in the Web site.
• The ticket is closed.

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Italian Goverment Web Accessibility Initiative

• USERS INVOLVEMENT
• The Accessibility Observatory
• Will contain also best practices and useful
  techniques for developing compliant Italian
  Accessibility Law Web sites.
• Will be public available on the Linea Amica web
  site at the following address
• http//accessibile.gov.it

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• Thank you!
• More info
• www.innovazionepa.gov.it
• www.lineaamica.it
• www.accessibile.gov.it
• http//robertoscano.info/about
• http//www.iwa.it