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Web Standards


Web standards for the California Department of Education (CDE) are based upon industry best practices, mandates (such as California Government Code Section 7405 and federal sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973), and styles and practices specific to the CDE. These standards have been adopted by the CDE and there is an expectation that CDE staff, its contractors, and anyone else doing work on behalf of the CDE will comply with them.

Web Standards

The following standards will be enforced for new and updated content as of January 18, 2018.

  1. Accessibility
  2. Draft MS Word
  3. Draft MS Excel
  4. Draft MS PowerPoint
  5. Draft PDF
  6. Draft Web Page and Website
  7. Style Manual (Content)
  8. Maintenance, Upkeep, & Quality Assurance Standards
  9. Web Content Approval, Department of Education Administrative Manual (DEAM), Section 3900
    (PDF; 68KB; 11pp.)
  10. Intranet Content Approval Standards (CDE Intranet)
  11. Security Standards for Web Applications
  12. Application Development Standards
  13. External Web Page and Application Design Standards
  14. Video & Other Multimedia Standards
  15. Plain Language Introductions

CDE's other web standards are currently under review. Draft standards for web pages, web applications, multimedia, and social media will be posted as they are available. If a new standard is not yet available for a given type of content, use the legacy standards until the new standard is available.

Legacy Web Standards

The following standards apply to content posted prior to January 18, 2018 that has not been subsequently edited or updated.

Internet and Intranet Standards

Enforcement of Web Standards

Compliance with the CDE Web Standards is enforced in different ways, depending on the type and location of the posting.

Web Pages Posted to the CDE Internet or Intranet Web Sites

All web pages posted by CDE staff to the CDE Internet or Intranet websites will be reviewed by the CDE Web Services Unit for compliance with the Web Standards. Pages that do not meet the standards are returned to the creator for revision.

Web Applications, Non-CDE Web Sites, and Pages Posted to Non-CDE Web Sites

The Web Application Review Team (WebART) performs reviews of the following web products:

  • Web Applications (developed by the CDE or contractor, posted anywhere)
  • Non-CDE websites (usually developed by a contractor as a product of a written agreement)
  • Web pages posted to non-CDE websites
WebART is a cross-functional group from the CDE Technology Services Division. As a result of a WebART review, a written report is issued. Required items on the WebART written report must be fixed according to the following time frames:
  • For existing web applications and sites: 90 days from the date of the WebART review
  • For new web applications and sites: prior to launch
IMPORTANT NOTE: if a web product does not meet a web standard and is inadvertently approved and posted, when the matter is discovered whether through the modification process or during a subsequent Technology Services Division (TSD) web review, the issue will be required to be corrected.

Please refer to the WebART web page for more details on the WebART team and review process.

Changes to These Web Standards

Our understanding of accessibility and usability will grow and technology will continue to evolve, so the CDE Web Standards will also change from time to time. Please visit the Web Standards Change Log for a complete list of changes that have been made since these standards were first posted to the CDE website.

Questions:   Web Services Unit | tsdweb@cde.ca.gov
Last Reviewed: Wednesday, November 2, 2022
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