Annual 508 accessibility audit by third party documented

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and the 21st Century IDEA Act require federal websites to be accessible, but self-attestation alone is insufficient for ongoing compliance. Annual third-party audits catch regressions that internal teams miss — new features, content updates, and framework upgrades routinely introduce WCAG failures that only appear in fresh manual testing. Without documented audit dates and findings, there is no evidence trail for oversight bodies or the public that the agency is actively maintaining its conformance claim. An outdated audit (more than 12 months old) means the accessibility statement is making claims that may no longer be true.

Arrange an annual third-party Section 508 accessibility audit with a qualified vendor (e.g., Level Access, Deque, or SSB BART Group). Document the audit date, vendor name, and scope in your accessibility statement at app/accessibility/page.tsx.

// app/accessibility/page.tsx — add an audit documentation section
<section>
  <h2>Third-Party Audit</h2>
  <p>
    This website was audited for Section 508 and WCAG 2.1 AA conformance by
    <strong> Level Access</strong> in <strong>January 2025</strong>.
    The audit covered all public-facing routes. A corrective action plan for
    identified issues is maintained internally and reviewed quarterly.
  </p>
  <p>Next scheduled audit: January 2026.</p>
</section>

If no audit has been conducted, schedule one before the next fiscal year. Track remediation items in your issue tracker with a section-508 label so audit findings can be closed systematically.