All images have alt text; decorative images use empty alt or role="presentation"

Screen readers—used by blind and low-vision users and required for Section 508 2018 Refresh compliance under 502.3.1—rely on alt text as the sole description of image content. A content image missing alt text renders that information completely inaccessible. A decorative image with non-empty alt text forces screen readers to read irrelevant noise. Under WCAG 2.2 SC 1.1.1 (Level A), this is a non-negotiable baseline: failing it exposes agencies and federal contractors to Section 508 enforcement actions and excludes users with disabilities from core content.

Add meaningful alt attributes to every content image and alt="" to every decorative image. Open the component containing the image and update it:

// Content image: describe what the image shows
<Image src="/team.jpg" alt="Engineering team reviewing code at workstations" />

// Decorative image: suppress from screen reader output
<Image src="/divider.png" alt="" role="presentation" />

Avoid filenames (alt="team.jpg"), generic labels (alt="image"), and redundant phrases (alt="Photo of…"). Run npx axe-core or the browser's axe DevTools extension after changes to verify zero remaining violations.