An increasing number of jobs, schoolwork, information, and government services have permanently migrated online as a result of the pandemic. While technological advancement makes a wealth of tools available that improve quality of life and enable aging in place, too often people with disabilities lack the requisite Internet service and devices to meet the demand of high-bandwidth applications.
With more funding than ever directed at state and local governments to increase connectivity nationwide, centering the ongoing needs of people with disabilities must remain a top priority.
People with disabilities face significant barriers to broadband adoption.
The California Emerging Technology Fund’s 2021 Statewide Broadband Adoption Survey found that only 83% of adult Californians with a disability have high-speed home Internet through a computer or smartphone compared to the 90% average. In September 2021, Pew Research revealed that while 81% of adults without a disability say they own a desktop or laptop computer, only 62% of adults with a disability could say the same. People with disabilities similarly lag behind in smartphone adoption and are far less likely than those without a disability to have a high-speed home Internet subscription, smartphone, computer, and tablet.
Designing digital inclusion plans with differing abilities in mind can help.
Local governments can improve broadband adoption rates by centering the needs of people with disabilities when identifying barriers to ubiquitous connectivity. Over the past several years, an increasing number of cities and counties have conducted digital equity studies and developed inclusion plans that prioritize accessibility for people with disabilities.
For example, the City of Austin, Texas, made accessible digital inclusion programming a central part of its 2014 digital inclusion strategy, highlighting the importance of designing public computer access and digital literacy training with accommodations for residents with disabilities from the outset. Proactively designing initiatives for people with disabilities helps mitigate the need for retrofitting, which can cause costly delays in offering accessible services.
In the words of Austin’s Telecommunications & Regulatory Affairs Officer, Rondella Hawkins,
We are living in a digital world with more and more services becoming digital. People expect to interact with government through technology such as websites, mobile applications, kiosks and other electronic channels. In order to ensure equal access to government programs and services, government technology must be accessible and inclusive of people with vision and hearing impairments, mobility challenges, cognitive, and other disabilities. The same holds true for the programs and services of the private sector.
The City of Chula Vista, California, is working to improve accessibility for the 5.4% of residents under 65 that have a disability, identifying collaborative opportunities to provide digital literacy and assistive technologies, including voice-activated software and screen readers. Additionally, the City plans on improving the accessibility of its own website. Taking a comprehensive approach can help embed accessibility into a wide range of services, incorporating inclusion into every step of the broadband adoption process.
Collaborating with community members with disabilities is paramount.
State guidance also plays an important role in supporting local digital inclusion efforts. North Carolina’s Digital Inclusion Plan Template and Guide recommends identifying whether people with disabilities are served by the current digital inclusion ecosystem in order to address persistent gaps. State-level recommendations provide a useful reference point for local efforts. For instance, in Carteret County, North Carolina, the County’s digital inclusion plan recognizes the need “to remove barriers to access for people with disabilities” as a fundamental component of its universal broadband goal.
Inviting disability rights advocates to help inform digital inclusion efforts can help identify opportunities to improve accessibility. The Nebraska Digital Inclusion Planning Guide & Workbook recommends including groups that represent people with disabilities in local digital inclusion committees. When developing its Digital Equity Action Plan, Portland, Oregon, hosted focus groups with a range of stakeholders, including a group focused on the needs of community members who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing. Centering people with disabilities in the conversation can help local governments better understand connectivity barriers and assure that local digital inclusion efforts address residents’ diverse needs.
Supporting diverse needs accelerates the journey to universal broadband access.
Despite the widespread need for universal access and adoption, people with disabilities face a multitude of barriers to Internet connectivity. By inviting people with disabilities into the digital inclusion planning process, local governments can invite meaningful collaboration, obtain a more accurate picture of remaining connectivity gaps, and begin a conversation that yields long-term solutions.
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