Is Meridian's Website Ready for the ADA Title II Deadline?
Did you know the deadline already changed?
Here's something many local officials missed: the original compliance deadline has already moved once. On April 20, 2026, the Department of Justice issued an Interim Final Rule pushing each deadline back a full year — which means Meridian's date is now April 26, 2027. A one-time extension is a grace period, not a reprieve. There is no indication another one is coming.
Has Meridian's website been checked yet?
We haven't published an accessibility scan for Meridian yet. Run one now — we'll crawl the site, test every page against WCAG 2.1 Level AA, score reading level, inventory PDFs, and flag any citizen service that residents with disabilities can't reach.
What WCAG 2.1 Level AA means for city government websites
Because Meridian serves 139,740 residents — above the DOJ's 50,000-person threshold — it falls in the first enforcement wave, with the earlier of the two federal deadlines.
WCAG 2.1 Level AA is the technical standard the DOJ adopted for ADA Title II. In plain terms, it's a checklist that makes sure residents who use screen readers, keyboard navigation, or captions can actually use your website: text on every image, labels on every form field, enough color contrast to read, and video captions.
For first-wave entities, the practical risk isn't only DOJ action — it's private lawsuits and demand letters that cite the federal standard the moment the deadline passes.
Meridian is a major population center, and its website is the front door for utility bill payment, permit applications, and public meeting agendas. Under ADA Title II, that front door has to work for every resident.
Don't find out about problems from a demand letter
A11yCheck monitors Meridian's website continuously and sends a plain-English weekly digest — no technical background needed.