Student calls on Austin commission to back 'Accessible Austin' certification and vendor rules
June 12, 2026 | Austin, Travis County, Texas
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Sharan Khanna, a Westwood High School student, urged the commission to partner on an "Accessible Austin Initiative" that would reward and require business accessibility in physical and digital spaces.
"When 102,000 Austinites ... cannot fully access the businesses, services, and digital spaces that define daily life in the city, that is a failure of that responsibility," Khanna said, and proposed two near-term steps: a city-issued Accessible Austin certification badge for third-party-verified businesses and a requirement that any city vendor maintain an accessible website. Khanna also proposed a longer-term accessibility tax incentive of up to $5,000 a year for three years to encourage compliance.
Khanna said the U.S. Department of Justice's 2024 ADA Title II rule will require state and local governments and their vendors to meet federal digital accessibility standards, and she urged the commission to act proactively rather than reactively to the April 2027 compliance deadline she cited.
She described enforcement as a verification model familiar in other regulatory contexts: "Audits are conducted by certified private professionals, certified accessibility specialists, and organizations already trusted by the federal government and Fortune 500 companies to verify ADA and digital compliance," she said, arguing the city would "set the bar and professionals verify it." Khanna said two low-cost "quick wins" (the badge and vendor requirement) would have "0 budget impact" and build toward larger incentives.
Commission members indicated interest in putting Khanna's ideas on a future agenda for staff feasibility review. At the end of the meeting the chair said the commission would consider exploring the badge proposal and work with city departments to assess feasibility.
What happens next: commissioners suggested adding the proposal to a future meeting agenda and staff follow-up; no formal action on the proposal was taken at this meeting.
"When 102,000 Austinites ... cannot fully access the businesses, services, and digital spaces that define daily life in the city, that is a failure of that responsibility," Khanna said, and proposed two near-term steps: a city-issued Accessible Austin certification badge for third-party-verified businesses and a requirement that any city vendor maintain an accessible website. Khanna also proposed a longer-term accessibility tax incentive of up to $5,000 a year for three years to encourage compliance.
Khanna said the U.S. Department of Justice's 2024 ADA Title II rule will require state and local governments and their vendors to meet federal digital accessibility standards, and she urged the commission to act proactively rather than reactively to the April 2027 compliance deadline she cited.
She described enforcement as a verification model familiar in other regulatory contexts: "Audits are conducted by certified private professionals, certified accessibility specialists, and organizations already trusted by the federal government and Fortune 500 companies to verify ADA and digital compliance," she said, arguing the city would "set the bar and professionals verify it." Khanna said two low-cost "quick wins" (the badge and vendor requirement) would have "0 budget impact" and build toward larger incentives.
Commission members indicated interest in putting Khanna's ideas on a future agenda for staff feasibility review. At the end of the meeting the chair said the commission would consider exploring the badge proposal and work with city departments to assess feasibility.
What happens next: commissioners suggested adding the proposal to a future meeting agenda and staff follow-up; no formal action on the proposal was taken at this meeting.
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