Public commenter urges HTML agendas and accessible templates; committee asks OIP to review

A public commenter identified as Mr. Fritz told the Access Hawaii Committee that the state calendar frequently strips structure from posted agendas, making them unusable for screen‑reader users and others who need navigable headings and lists. "HTML is easier to get right than PDF because it has headings, lists, tables, and it's well organized," he said during the committee's public testimony period.

Chair Christine Sakuda and committee members said they had received Fritz's written testimony and discussed options including a permitted interaction group (PIG) to study the issue. Committee members and an attorney who addressed the group explained that a PIG can study and report back but cannot itself impose requirements on agencies. Rather than immediately establishing a PIG, the committee agreed to ask the Office of Information Practices (OIP) to consult with Enterprise Technology Services (ETS) and the Department of Civil Rights/Accessibility (DCAB) to review templates and make recommendations to the committee by the next meeting.

Committee members emphasized practical next steps: locating any existing DCAB templates, assessing whether OIP can promulgate guidance, and identifying whether a short communications effort could raise awareness among departments about posting accessible agendas. The chair marked the OIP review as an action item to be reported at the next Access Hawaii meeting.