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The Town of Sudbury published a “Web edition” of the 2024 Annual Town Meeting Warrant to the Town website recently. Many residents have grown accustomed to the print edition that is physically mailed to each household, or the PDF version of the warrant which is usually the first version made available each spring. However, certain types of PDF’s are not accessible, and may not work with screen readers. PDF’s also have limitations on mobile devices.
The web edition is fully compatible with screen readers, which makes the warrant accessible for anyone who has difficulty seeing text on digital screens. However, the format is also more efficient for all residents to navigate, as each article is hyperlinked from a Table of Contents at the top of the page. Rather than scrolling through a long PDF, trying to discern page numbers labeled on document pages versus the page number displayed on a PDF reader, each article is just a single click away from the Table of Contents.
The Americans with Disabilities Act requires that municipal websites be accessible. You can read more about those requirements here. Harvard University’s Digital Accessibility Services (DAS) department has published helpful guides on how to make common documents accessible here. There are also “accessibility checker” apps, such as Grackle, available online.
Harvard’s DAS department notes: “Accessible documents are easier to understand and read for all of your users, not just users with disabilities.”
Sudbury’s Annual Town Meeting will begin on May 6 at 7:30 p.m.