# Title II vs Title III for city websites

Title II of the ADA is the part of federal law that covers cities, towns, and townships. Title III covers private businesses open to the public. When someone asks whether the city website must work for people with disabilities, they usually mean Title II — not a storefront rule.

## Who this is for

A clerk, administrator, or website vendor who heard “ADA website compliance” and isn’t sure whether that means **Title II** (public entities) or **Title III** (stores, hotels, banks).

Same statute. Different titles. Different buyers.

## The short split

| | **Title II** | **Title III** |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Who | State and local government | Private businesses open to the public |
| Website job | Public entity websites and apps under the 2024 web rule | Often discussed in commercial “ADA website” marketing |
| ActaPack year 1 | **Yes — this is our buyer** | **Not our buyer** |

Read [What Title II is](/title-ii) for the one-screen why. Read [Who it is for](/for) and [Who it isn’t](/not-for) for the product fence.

## Why the mix-up happens

Vendors who sell overlays and widgets often write for **Title III** shoppers (“does my website have to be ADA compliant?”) and then reuse the same language for cities. A clerk who Googles that phrase lands on commercial pages that never name **Title II**, **28 CFR 35.200**, or the **2027 / 2028** start dates by population.

Federal sources stay primary: the [ADA.gov fact sheet on the web rule](https://www.ada.gov/resources/2024-03-08-web-rule/) and the Title II regulations. We do not invent lawsuit dollars or Title III civil-penalty charts for cities — see [If you miss](/enforcement).

## What to do with the mix-up

1. Name **Title II** and the **public website** in the same sentence when you brief council.
2. Ask the website vendor whether their quote is for a **widget**, a **suite**, or a **dated file of the content**.
3. Keep a monthly dated record. The start dates do not wait for a stamp.

ActaPack’s written offer stays: **$8,400/year. Dated monthly file and ticket list for your public site. We do not certify compliance.**

## This month

Keep a dated record that someone looked at the public pages this month. Forward tickets to the website vendor. We do not certify that the site meets the federal standard.

## For implementers

Scope tickets to public pages and in-scope public PDFs. Do not treat overlay widgets as the WCAG method. Cite 28 CFR 35.200 when a product page says “ADA compliant” without naming Title II.