One DHS People, Access and Culture · Checklist · How to do it
Equity and access checklist for new work
A one-page checklist for a new program, service, or digital application. It covers people and purpose, access, language, the effort required of people, evidence, partners, decision responsibility, and review.

Why it matters: Use it as a working document for your program, with a responsible person for each follow-up and a review date. This makes the next steps clear and accountable.

CONTENT
1. People and purpose: who it is for; who may be missing; what result would show that a disparity was reduced rather than shifted elsewhere.
2. Access: screen reader, keyboard, magnification tested; equally effective phone, in-person, or paper path; documents meet the accessible-document standard.
3. Language: languages people will need; vital documents identified for translation with human review; interpreter reachable at first contact.
4. Time and effort: count the steps, documents, and visits from the person's point of view; consider when deadlines or office hours become barriers to eligibility.
5. Evidence: current use and denial patterns by community, language, disability, and place; missing community knowledge named with a respectful way to get it.
6. Partners: Equity Director informed; accessibility and language access leads involved; community partners with purpose, authority, compensation, and report-back; Tribal consultation first where applicable.
7. Decision responsibility: who decides; which rights, rules, and obligations set the limits; what can still change if a rule must remain.
8. Review: who is responsible for each follow-up; the next review date; what would lead you to pause, redesign, or seek further guidance.

NEXT STEPS
• Build your checklist with the launch path — program page /practice/gp-1
• Questions about steps, time, and effort — program page /library/ja-process-burden

PRACTICE PATHS THIS SUPPORTS
• New program or service concept

One DHS People, Access and Culture