The U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division (DOJ) issued guidance concerning website accessibility under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on March 18, 2022.
The guidance applies to governments and private entities with businesses open to the public that maintain publicly available websites. The guidance stresses that websites inaccessible to people with disabilities are just as exclusionary as barriers to the entrance of a physical location.
The guidance indicates that ensuring website accessibility is a DOJ priority.
The guidance summarizes categories of website accessibility barriers, including:
The ADA requires that businesses open to the public provide “full and equal enjoyment” of goods, services, facilities, etc. to individuals with disabilities.
Businesses subject to the ADA must take steps to provide “appropriate communication aids and services” to effectively communicate with individuals with disabilities. The guidance makes clear that a website with features inaccessible to individuals with disabilities can, in turn, limit accessibility to goods, services, facilities, etc. and are therefore subject to the broad ADA accessibility requirements.
The guidance does not provide specific website accessibility standards; instead, it gives website operators the flexibility to ensure that the goods, services and programs offered online are accessible to people with disabilities. The guidance points to existing technical standards issued by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WCAG 2 Standards) and provides a sample list of areas of website accessibility concern.
Financial institutions should review the DOJ guidance and the specific list of areas of concern to ensure that public-facing websites are accessible to those with disabilities.
For questions concerning this topic, please contact Christopher R. Rahl.
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As we previously reported, certain temporary bankruptcy code amendments that Congress originally enacted in connection with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) expired as of March 27, 2022.
Among them is the increased debt limit from $2,725,625.00 to $7,500,000.00 for debtors seeking to file a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition as a small business debtor under the Subchapter V provisions in the Small Business Reorganization Act.
Recently, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators introduced a bill titled the “Bankruptcy Threshold Adjustment and Technical Corrections Act.” The bill seeks to:
For questions concerning this topic, please contact Bryan M. Mull.
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In the ever-changing world of digital assets, March proved to be a busy month at the state and federal levels.
First, the Virginia General Assembly on March 8, 2022, passed a bill that permits banks in the Commonwealth to provide virtual currency custody services. The new law should give comfort to Virginia banks who want to provide custodial services virtual currencies like bitcoin.
The law requires that banks providing such services do the following:
The law further states that banks may provide custody services in either a fiduciary capacity or nonfiduciary capacity:
This law is similar to guidance issued by the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in 2020 regarding national banks’ ability to safeguard digital currency for their customers.
On the federal level, President Joseph R. Biden on March 9, 2022, issued an executive order concerning digital assets.
Among other things, the executive order calls for:
For questions concerning these topics, please contact Bryan M. Mull.
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