Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 3.0 CAN-ASC-6.3 – Notice of intent
This notice of intent informs the public and other standards development organizations of our intention to develop or adopt a new standard. This is to avoid duplication in the development of accessibility standards. The notice also defines the scope of the standard that we propose, defines the need for the project, and provides the period of time during which we invite the public to send us their comments about this standard.
Standards development organization
Accessibility Standards Canada
Contact information
Email:
Info.Accessibility.Standards-Normes.Accessibilite.Info@canada.gc.ca
Mailing address:
320, St-Joseph Boulevard
Suite 246
Gatineau, QC K1A 0H3
Telephone:
1-833-854-7628
Work program
The work program lists all of Accessibility Standards Canada’s in-progress and completed standards. It is available on our site.
Designation number
CAN-ASC-6.3
Standard type
National Standard of Canada – Domestic
Standard development activity
New standard
International Classification for Standards (ICS) codes
- 35.020 - Information technology in general
- 11.180 - Aids for disabled and handicapped persons
- 35.080 - Software
- 35.240 - Applications of information technology
Comment Period Start Date
[Completed by SCC]
SDO Comment Period End Date:
[Completed by SCC]
Scope
The purpose of the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 3.0 is to develop a standard that goes above mandatory minimum technical specifications and produces equity-based technical requirements. The Accessible Canada Act identifies 7 priorities areas, including information and communication technologies (ICT).
There are common areas where persons with disabilities may face barriers related to digital environments, including those created with or without artificial intelligence (AI) authoring tools. These include, but are not limited to:
- Tools that help create content, whether they use AI or not, that are designed in ways that make them hard for people with disabilities to use.
- Content made with these tools can also be hard to access, meaning people with disabilities might struggle to use important websites, applications, and services that affect their daily lives.
To address these barriers, the standard will build upon the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0 and establish Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 3.0 with new technical requirements and guidance for accessible authoring tools and software platform development including but not limited to:
- Tools that automatically create web content that is accessible from the start, meaning the content is designed to be usable by everyone, including apps and interactive services.
- Interfaces for tools that are easy to use for people with disabilities and can work well with assistive technologies, which help those users navigate and create content.
- Making sure software platforms, where users create digital content manually without AI, are also accessible.
- Ensuring that tools are usable on different devices, such as mobile phones and desktop computers.
This standard will align with relevant technical requirements found in other Accessibility Standards Canada standards. These include:
- CAN/ASC - EN 301 549:2024 - Accessibility requirements for ICT products and services (EN 301 549:2021, IDT)
- CAN-ASC-6.2 Accessible and Equitable Artificial Intelligence Systems
Project need
The Accessible Canada Act has a goal to create a barrier free Canada by 2040. To inform the development of the Accessible Canada Act (ACA), between June 2016 and February 2017, the Government of Canada conducted extensive consultations with Canadians. These consultations included participation and input from interested parties, including 6,000 Canadians and 90 organizations and identified barriers to accessibility for Canadians with disabilities in seven key areas. Following the consultations, the ACA was created and came into force in June 2019 and includes these seven priority areas to address the barriers identified during the consultations. Accessibility Standards Canada was created under the ACA and has a mandate to contribute to the realization of a barrier free Canada through the development of standards to prevent, identify, and remove these barriers to accessibility for Canadians with disabilities in the seven priority areas in the ACA.
The strategic need for this standard aligns with the Information and Communication Technologies priority area identified in the ACA and is intended to remove barriers to accessibility in AI authoring tools and content created with or without AI. This strategic need has also been confirmed with the Governor in Council appointed Board of Directors, who are primarily people with disabilities and who have approved the development of this standard.
In addition to these identified needs, Accessibility Standards Canada’s standards are developed following the principle of “nothing without us”. This means that Accessibility Standards Canada’s standards are developed with research that has been led by people with disabilities or lived experience and participation of people with disabilities on our technical committees which contribute to the development of equity-based requirements that take into account the needs and perspectives of people with disabilities. This also means that the public review process for this standard will be accessible, allowing even more people with disabilities to be part of the standards development process.
Posted on
TBD