Forms collect only required information; progress indicators for multi-step forms

WCAG 2.2 SC 3.3.2 (Labels or Instructions, Level A) requires that form inputs provide clear labels, and SC 1.3.5 (Identify Input Purpose, Level AA) requires that fields collecting personal information be programmatically identifiable. Government forms that collect unnecessary fields create two compounding problems: they expose citizens to privacy risk (more PII collected than legally necessary), and they violate the principle of data minimization required by OMB M-17-06. Multi-step forms without progress indicators additionally violate WCAG 3.3 guidance and cause high abandonment — citizens who don't know how many steps remain often give up on benefit applications mid-way.

Mark every field as required or optional explicitly — do not rely on placeholder text or asterisk legend alone. Add a progress indicator to any form with more than one step.

// Clearly labeled fields
<label htmlFor="email">
  Email address <span aria-hidden="true">(required)</span>
  <input id="email" type="email" required autoComplete="email" />
</label>

<label htmlFor="phone">
  Phone number <span className="usa-hint">(optional)</span>
  <input id="phone" type="tel" autoComplete="tel" />
</label>

// Multi-step progress indicator
<nav aria-label="Form progress">
  <ol>
    <li aria-current="step">Step 1: Personal Information</li>
    <li>Step 2: Contact Details</li>
    <li>Step 3: Review and Submit</li>
  </ol>
</nav>

Remove any field that is not used in processing the request — excess PII collection is a compliance risk under OMB M-17-06.