What Public Entities Are Asking About ADA Title II

In January, AI-Media hosted a live session titled “ADA Title II – Compliance Made Simple with AI.” 

The goal was straightforward: help public entities understand what the U.S. Department of Justice’s finalized ADA Title II rule means in practical terms – particularly for captions, transcripts, and audio description under WCAG 2.1 AA. 

But the most valuable part of the session wasn’t the slides. 

It was the questions. 

The concerns raised by attendees reveal where public entities are right now – and what agencies need to prioritize before the April 2026 deadline. 

Here are the themes that came up most often. 

Do we really need audio description on everything?” 

This was by far the most common question. 

Many agencies have provided captions for years. Very few have delivered audio description at scale. 

The short answer:
Under WCAG 2.1 AA, prerecorded video must include audio description when visual information is necessary to understand the content. 

That does not mean every single video requires AD. 

But it does mean any video where a viewer would miss essential meaning without seeing the visuals must include it. 

In practice, that often includes: 

• Council meetings with slides 

• Emergency briefings with graphics or maps 

• Training videos demonstrating procedures 

• Public information videos with charts or on-screen text 

• Educational recordings 

The key takeaway:
Audio description is not niche. It is now a core compliance consideration. 

“We have hundreds of hours of archived meetings. What do we do?” 

Another frequent concern was legacy content. 

Many public entities host years – sometimes decades – of archived video online. 

The regulation does include limited exceptions for archived content, but agencies must carefully assess what qualifies. Content that remains actively available and relevant may still require accessibility features. 

The practical issue raised in the webinar wasn’t legal interpretation. 

It was scale. 

Manual workflows simply cannot handle hundreds of hours of remediation within tight timeframes. 

This is why scalable automation is becoming central to ADA Title II planning – not as a convenience, but as a necessity. 

“How should we budget for this?” 

Government budgets operate on fiscal cycles, procurement timelines, and strict approval processes. 

Several attendees expressed concern about: 

• Unpredictable per-asset pricing 

• Vendor coordination complexity 

• Unexpected spikes in demand 

• Internal resource constraints 

One of the most important strategic shifts agencies are making now is moving from “per-video service thinking” to “workflow thinking.” 

Instead of asking:
“How much does it cost to describe this video?” 

Agencies are asking:
“How do we build accessibility into our publishing workflow going forward?” 

Predictable, scalable pricing models are becoming essential to long-term compliance planning. 

“Is automated audio description acceptable under ADA?” 

This question surfaced repeatedly. 

The DOJ rule does not prescribe how accessibility must be delivered – only that the outcome meets WCAG 2.1 AA requirements. 

There is no requirement that audio description be human-generated. 

The requirement is that the output: 

• Conveys equivalent information 

• Is synchronized appropriately 

• Provides meaningful access 

This clarification was important for many attendees. It shifts the conversation from “who creates it?” to “does it meet the standard?” 

Automation is not a shortcut.
It is a scalable method of achieving the required outcome. 

“What should we be doing right now?” 

Perhaps the most important question of all. 

With April 24, 2026 approaching for entities serving 50,000 or more people, agencies cannot afford to wait to begin planning. 

Based on webinar discussions, the most practical next steps include: 

✔ Confirm your applicable deadline (2026 or 2027)
✔ Inventory live streams and prerecorded libraries
✔ Identify where visuals convey essential meaning
✔ Estimate volume of impacted content
✔ Evaluate scalable workflows that fit within budget cycles 

Starting early allows agencies to phase implementation rather than compress everything into the final months before compliance deadlines. 

A Clear Pattern Is Emerging 

If there was one clear takeaway from the webinar, it’s this: 

Captions feel manageable.
Audio description still feels uncertain. 

And uncertainty – especially this close to a deadline – creates hesitation. 

But what’s changing is not the regulation. 

It’s the feasibility. 

Automated accessibility solutions have matured to the point where large-scale implementation is no longer theoretical. Agencies that once viewed audio description as too complex or too expensive are now deploying scalable workflows in weeks, not months. 

Solutions like LEXI AD allow agencies to: 

• Process large volumes of prerecorded video quickly 

• Maintain predictable turnaround times even under deadline pressure 

• Control tone, voice, pacing, and contextual accuracy 

• Integrate directly into existing publishing workflows 

• Deliver accessibility without adding significant internal headcount 

Recent customization enhancements – including voice selection, narration speed control, contextual introductions, audience guidance prompts, and assisted character recognition – provide oversight and flexibility while preserving automation. 

And increasingly, agencies are looking beyond minimum compliance. 

Multilingual narration and translation capabilities now allow public entities to: 

• Deliver audio description in multiple languages 

• Provide broader community access beyond English-only delivery 

• Align ADA compliance with equity and inclusion objectives 

While multilingual access is not required under ADA Title II, many agencies see it as a natural extension of digital accessibility strategy. 

The pattern is clear: 

Accessibility at scale is achievable – even under tight timelines. 

The 2026 Deadline Is Closer Than It Feels 

As of late February 2026, the first ADA Title II compliance deadline is just weeks away. 

At this stage, the conversation is no longer about awareness. 

It’s about implementation. 

Public entities that have not yet finalized accessibility workflows should focus on pragmatic, immediate actions: 

• Prioritize high-visibility, high-traffic prerecorded content 

• Ensure live streams are captioned in real time 

• Identify video content where visuals convey essential meaning 

• Deploy scalable audio description workflows for impacted media 

• Document compliance efforts and vendor partnerships 

For many agencies, this is not about remediating an entire archive overnight. 

It is about demonstrating structured, good-faith compliance efforts and implementing scalable solutions that can continue beyond April. 

Automation plays a critical role here. 

Manual-only workflows simply cannot be deployed across large content libraries within weeks. 

Scalable AI-driven workflows allow agencies to: 

• Begin bulk processing immediately 

• Manage predictable output timelines 

• Avoid vendor bottlenecks 

• Continue compliance progress after the deadline 

The agencies that will experience the least disruption in April are not necessarily those who started earliest – but those who deploy practical, scalable systems now. 

ADA Title II compliance is no longer a future milestone. 

It is an operational requirement. 

And it remains achievable with the right approach. 

Moving Forward 

The questions raised during our webinar reflect a sector that is actively preparing – not resisting – change. 

Public entities understand the importance of accessibility. 

The challenge is not intent. 

It is execution at scale. 

ADA Title II compliance is achievable.
But it requires early planning, realistic volume assessment, and modern workflows. 

Next Steps 

👉 Watch the webinar replay
👉 Download the ADA Title II Compliance Checklist
👉 Book a consultation with AI-Media