Florida Special District Accessible Websites
Let's not strive to meet the minimum standards like most in this industry, let's strive to best assist our Florida neighbors.
CONTACT USAbout MyDistrictWebsite.com
MyDistrictWebsite.com was created in 2015 by Merit Management (Merit, Inc.), which manages several special districts in the Tampa area to accomplish three goals:
- Build special district websites so that Floridians who require assistance can fully experience their government’s accountability.
- Build special district websites that meet the required ADA and Section 508 minimum standards and exceed them by meeting WCAG 2.2 AA compliance standards.
- We understand the financial constraints of many small districts across the Sunshine State that do not have paid staff and/or highly technical volunteers. That’s why we have kept the price of MyDistrictWebsite.com at a reasonable $450 per year, which includes hosting, technical and accessibility updating, and loading your documents onto your website. When you email your remediated documents to us, we’ll have them uploaded to your website within 24 hours. (If you prefer to have access to load your own documents, we will provide you with that access as well.)
VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION
While MyDistrictWebsite.com provides a fully compliant website that meets all the compliance standards required by the State of Florida and the Federal government, this is only half the story. Your District is responsible for providing fully compliant documents to be loaded onto your fully compliant website. If you have a compliant website and non-compliant documents, you remain non-compliant and in violation of ADA and Section 508 requirements and subject to governmental fines and civil lawsuits.
The remediation of your documents can be expensive if not properly created. Hundreds of contractors are available online, and an internet search for “document remediation” will locate firms offering remediation services for your documents. (Contact MyDistrictWebsite.com below for our pricing package on our document remediation services.)
CONTACT USLegal Requirements and Accessibility
The State of Florida requires all special districts to have websites (Florida Statute 189.069). These websites must also comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and, if the special district has received federal funding, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Proper accessibility simplifies the website experience for all end users and helps prevent the exclusion of tens of thousands of our fellow Floridians with disabilities.
Our Mission
By working with us, you can make your content accessible to a broader range of citizens, including those with low vision or blindness, deafness and hearing loss, learning disabilities, cognitive limitations, limited movement, speech disabilities, photosensitivity, and combinations of these. We are consistently reviewing, testing, and updating our website so that our fellow Floridians can access the information they require.
Our Commitment to Quality
Our websites are not fancy, with few bells and whistles. However, they exceed the State of Florida and the Federal government’s requirements for compliance. We should all strive to build websites that not only meet the bare minimums but also provide a quality experience to the 56.7 million people with disabilities in the US—many of whom are our Florida neighbors.
LAWSUITS OVER DIGITAL ACCESSIBILITY ARE INCREASING
In 2023, plaintiff firms filed more than 4,500 ADA-related app and web accessibility lawsuits, for an average of 80–100 lawsuits a week. Most lawsuits were filed in New York and Florida, and in both federal and state courts.
Just as buildings must have wheelchair ramps, public websites must have special provisions for users with disabilities. According to the National Special District Coalition (NSDC), the number of lawsuits rose 56% in 2021, and the penalties for noncompliance are rising as well—averaging from $4,000 for an ADA claim in 2019 to $39,000 in 2022. It’s a situation that The Wall Street Journal calls “very perilous” in a recent article.
Special Districts at Risk
Because 75% of new actions target organizations with revenue of less than 50 million, special districts have emerged as “at risk,” as they are often not aware of (or prepared to meet) web accessibility standards. Special districts frequently ask themselves, “What is the risk that an ADA claim will affect us?” According to the NSDC, the results are both surprising and unpredictable.
The overwhelming majority of ADA-related claims never make it to court. They are quietly settled—sometimes forced by an insurer who wants to manage risk without publicly admitting to any wrongdoing, or districts whose EPLI insurance doesn’t cover website-related ADA issues (most do not).
- More than 2,403 special districts have been affected.
- About 6% of all special districts in the US, including county-dependent districts, have been fined, received demand letters, or gotten Department of Justice Office of Civil Rights (OCR) letters for website ADA violations in the US.
- That number is expected to exceed 4,000 (10%) by the end of 2024.
- Very few (if any) special district insurance policies even partially cover the costs of web accessibility issues.
Florida is Second in the Nation
According to UsableNet, a company that focuses on making the digital world more accessible, Florida is second only to New York in accessibility lawsuits filed, with 44 filed in just June of this year. MyDistrictWebsite.com can assist you in avoiding accessibility lawsuits as well as making your information available to your residents.
We Can Help You Create a Compliant Website
We look forward to speaking with you soon to discuss your website needs. Simply give us a call or contact us for more information.