Jessica D. Gilbert Redman, Cody Hackett, and Tonia Graves co-moderated the September 16-17, 2025, Core e-Forum titled “Engaging with Vendors on E-Resource Accessibility.” Given the upcoming ADA Title II ADA regulation changes (for many public institutions, going live in April 2026) and the recently implemented European Accessibility Act (EAA) in June 2025, libraries are gearing up more and more to ensure the accessibility of their electronic resources. With lines of communication with vendors already open by subscriptions and general institutional procurement needs, we wanted to discuss how libraries were changing their communication with vendors to ensure accessible e-resources for our users.
Preparing for Legislative Changes
On day one, we focused on how we’re preparing for the Title II changes. Everyone is in a different stage of adjustment, and it seems that processes are emerging as organizations can determine appropriate policy and procedures to ensure compliance. Attendees spoke of a desire for more templates or scripts to use with vendors. Communication varies from person to person and vendor to vendor, and it’s not uncommon to be confused about how to approach the accessibility conversation in the beginning.
Library discussions with vendors range from those who readily can provide documentation and others that are caught off-guard when told of the new regulations that public institutions face. Attendees expressed concern for the small/society publishers who do not have the funds or employees to have the appropriate testing done to complete the required documentation. Products that are not as central to larger groups of academic research and study may not be able to meet compliance requirements and may lose subscribers in the process: lack of competition in the marketplace is already a concern to many, and niche research may lose ground.
Procurement: Accessibility of Product Going Forward
On day two, we discussed vendor communication more in-depth, focusing on the procurement and ensuring ongoing accessibility of e-resources year after year. Attendees noted that it can be challenging to obtain ACRs (Accessibility Conformance Reports, sometimes also called VPATs or voluntary product accessibility templates) from vendors, especially current, up-to-date documentation. Some reported receiving documentation that was five or more years old, which did not speak to the current accessibility of the product, its platform, or its resources.
Education is still needed (and often wanted) on both sides of the negotiation table: libraries want to know more about doing their own testing or verifying what the vendors’ ACRs are telling them, and vendors want to know more about what’s required of them or what libraries are expecting from them. Some vendors are becoming more proactive in sharing their updated accessibility documents as they’re created without waiting for a library to request it. Even though it can be discouraging to work with some vendors due to lack of ability or lack of desire to make their resources accessible, there have been many encouraging signs of progress with more vendors understanding what we’re asking for.
The discussion didn’t end with our external conversations: libraries often are part of larger organizations that are also beholden to the same requirements. Some were glad to report that their larger institution was talking about accessibility internally, which often helped the external vendor communication move along. Not only do library e-resources subscriptions fall under these new regulations, but websites, research guides, many kiosks, mobile apps, software, interlibrary loan, and other services are also bound by the same guidelines. Communication among institutional departments can be just as necessary and helpful as communication between libraries and vendors.
Shared Resources
Throughout both days, participants exchanged a wide variety of tools, resources, and educational options. Links mentioned during the e-Forum are listed below. We’re not recommending any specific tools or resources (and please note that not all listed are free to use), simply providing ones that the Core e-Forum participants mentioned over the course of our Q&A period.
Resources/Publications
- Library eResources Accessibility Portal (LEAP, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act standards testing)
- ASERL Eleven: Recommended Principles and Terms for Electronic Resource Agreements
- “Automated accessibility testing: strengths and limits” by Callum McMenamin, OpenAccess
Tools/Testing
- Library Accessibility Toolkit (Library Accessibility Alliance)
- WAVE (web accessibility evaluation tool – WebAIM)
- Template for Reporting Accessibility Issues (Harvard University)
- Accessibility Roadmap Template (California State University)
- TabA11y (tab order accessibility testing)
- Library E-Resource Accessibility Testing (University of Washington Libraries)
- NVDA (screen reader software)
- Equatio (math accessibility tool)
Education/Certifications
- FRAME – Faculty Resources for Accessible Media Essentials
- An introduction to accessibility and inclusive design (Coursera course through University of Illinois)
Thank you!
We want to thank everyone who participated in this Core e-Forum: posters and readers alike. Please feel free to reach out to any of us with any additional questions or comments. We’d love to help make the library accessibility community wider!
