July 1 Deadline Just Weeks Away
As Colorado approaches its state-mandated July 1st deadline for full digital accessibility compliance, many state and local governments, such as Gilpin County, face a significant challenge. With about 200 employees and decentralized document creation, ensuring PDF accessibility across departments at Gilpin County is no small feat. The County discovered they needed an intuitive, scalable PDF remediation solution. That’s where Equidox came in.
Challenge
Gilpin County’s original accessibility tool(s) proved too complex for most employees, who sought a better solution.
“Our original tool was very hard to learn. Occasional users couldn’t master it.” – Melanie Bleyler, Community Engagement Officer
Additionally, the cost structure was unsustainable as each individual user needed to be licensed. Expanding accessibility efforts across the county was cost-prohibitive.
Solution: Switching to Equidox
Equidox addressed both the usability and cost barriers the county faced.
Concurrent Licensing
Gilpin County adopted Equidox’s concurrent user licensing model, enabling all employees to share the platform without purchasing a license for each individual.
Ease of Use
Equidox’s intuitive interface allowed occasional users to quickly learn the platform and take responsibility for their content.
“It’s way easier for people to learn. Even if they only use it occasionally, it’s not that hard for them to review one of the Equidox training videos and relearn it.”
Zones, Not Tags
Users appreciated the mostly automated Zone Detector, which simplified tagging and content structuring—especially in older or poorly formatted documents.
“It’s a lot more intuitive. I can just draw zones around things instead of struggling with PDF tag structure.”
Easy Reading Order Adjustments
Equidox’s streamlined tools saved time and reduced frustration. Users could adjust the reading order without needing to retag every element on the page.
“It’s so easy to fix reading order with Equidox. Much easier than any of the other tools I’ve used.”
Impact
Equidox has significantly transformed Gilpin County’s workflow and accessibility culture.
Distributed Responsibility
With a user-friendly tool, departments are now empowered to manage their own content. Previously, nearly all remediation fell to a few overburdened staff members.
“Until we got Equidox, not much was being done except on my end. Equidox gave people the confidence to do it themselves.”
Adaptability Across Content
Equidox has been used to remediate a wide variety of content—from agendas and meeting minutes to complex budgets, ordinances, road regulations, and even scanned historical documents created on typewriters.
Improved Workflow and Responsiveness
Staff can now respond more efficiently to resident needs, eliminating bottlenecks in the remediation process.
“If a resident calls and needs something urgently, I can’t do it all at a moment’s notice. Equidox allows our entire team to be very responsive to our residents.”
PDF Accessibility Moving Forward
Thanks to Equidox, Gilpin County is on track to meet the July 1 accessibility deadline. Ms. Bleyler and the entire Gilpin County staff are confident they’ll meet the requirements—not just with the right software but with a sustainable, decentralized approach to PDF accessibility.
Tammy Albee
Tammy Albee | Director of Marketing | Equidox Tammy joined Equidox after four years of experience working at the National Federation of the Blind. She firmly maintains that accessibility is about reaching everyone, regardless of ability, and boosting your market share in the process. "Nobody should be barred from accessing information. It's what drives our modern society."
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