Accessibility Scan Report

Title: NSF.gov — Issue: #169 Date: 3/19/2026, 4:54:20 PM Duration: 16.2m URLs: 123 / 123 🌙 Dark Mode: 33 / 123 URLs🖥️ Forced Colors: 42 / 123 URLs

Summary

Issues

  • By Level: A (1), AA (641), AAA (123)
  • By Version (A & AA): WCAG 2.0 (1), WCAG 2.2 (641)
  • By Category: axe-strict (215) & Best Practice (11) & Others (811)
  • Total: 1037 across 15 unique rules & 2 accessibility engines

By Severity

Critical
Serious
Moderate
Minor

By Role

UX Designer
Visual Designer
Content Author
Front-End Developer

Issues

🎯 Pages with Most Errors

Focus your efforts on these pages to make the biggest impact. Click any error count to filter the rule list below.
Codebook - NSF by the Numbers | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 32
Growing Research Compliance Support and Service Infrastructure for Nationally Transformative Economic Development | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 24
Birds Follow Army Ants to Find Prey | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 24
Electronic components can self-assemble using new technique | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 24
Researchers Find Trigger for Devastating Digestive Disease and Propose a Possible Treatment | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 24
A Description and Analysis of Best Practice Finding of Programs promoting participation of underrepresented undergraduate student in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 23
NSF provides scholarships for service to support urgent need for cybersecurity professionals | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 23
Biomedical engineers find imaging technique could become treatment for deep vein thrombosis | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 23
Bugs find bats to bite thanks to bacteria | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 23
Charging cars at home in the evening is not the way to go, study finds | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation 23

🔧 Most Common Issues (ALFA)

11 rules
641 Serious alfa SC 2.5.8 AA Motor SIA-R111: Interactive elements have a sufficient target size
42 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: UX Designer, Visual Designer

Blocking: ⚠️ Yes (Task-Blocking)

WCAG: SC 2.5.8 AA

Disabilities affected:
Motor

Affected Pages

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
Target has insufficient size
Mode: light
<button type="button" class="usa-accordion__button usa-nav__link " aria-expanded="false" aria-controls="basic-mega-nav-section-1">...</button>
XPath: /button[@class="usa-accordion__button usa-nav__link "]
Example 2 View on Page
Target has insufficient size
Mode: light
<a class="credit__link" href="#image-caption-credit-block"> View image credit & caption</a>
XPath: /a[@class="credit__link"]
Example 3 View on Page
Target has insufficient size
Mode: light
<a href="/funding/opportunities">Search for Funding</a>
XPath: /a
Example 4 View on Page
Target has insufficient size
Mode: light
<a href="/focus-areas" title="Explore what we support" class="link-button usa-button usa-button--outline "> Explore what we support </a>
XPath: /a[@class="link-button usa-button usa-button--outline "]
Example 5 View on Page
Target has insufficient size
Mode: light
<button id="fba-button" data-id="f0b5f6ee" class="fba-button fixed-tab-button usa-button fba-initialized" name="fba-button" aria-label="Provide feedback" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-controls="fba-modal-f0b5f6ee" data-open-modal="" data-once="tpfeedbackButton">Feedback</button>
XPath: /button[@id="fba-button"]
123 Moderate alfa SC 1.4.6 AAA Visual SIA-R66: Text has enhanced contrast with its background
123 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Visual Designer

Blocking: No

WCAG: SC 1.4.6 AAA

Disabilities affected:
Visual

Affected Pages

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The highest possible contrast of the text is 6.72:1 which is below the required contrast of 7:1
Mode: light
Example 2 View on Page
The highest possible contrast of the text is 6.04:1 which is below the required contrast of 7:1
Mode: light
Example 3 View on Page
The highest possible contrast of the text is 6.04:1 which is below the required contrast of 7:1
Mode: light
Example 4 View on Page
The highest possible contrast of the text is 6.04:1 which is below the required contrast of 7:1
Mode: light
Example 5 View on Page
The highest possible contrast of the text is 6.04:1 which is below the required contrast of 7:1
Mode: light
42 Moderate alfa SIA-R57: Landmarks don't repeat the same content
42 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Front-End Developer

Blocking: No

Affected Pages

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The text is not included in a landmark region
Mode: light
Example 2 View on Page
The text is not included in a landmark region
Mode: light
Example 3 View on Page
The text is not included in a landmark region
Mode: light
Example 4 View on Page
The text is not included in a landmark region
Mode: light
Example 5 View on Page
The text is not included in a landmark region
Mode: light
3 Moderate alfa Best Practice SIA-R85: Paragraphs of text are not all italics
3 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Visual Designer, Content Author

Blocking: No

WCAG: Best Practice

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The text of the paragraph is all italic
Mode: light
<p>This report contains current information that may ...</p>
XPath: /p
Example 2 View on Page
The text of the paragraph is all italic
Mode: light
<p>This report contains archived data that may be of ...</p>
XPath: /p
Example 3 View on Page
The text of the paragraph is all italic
Mode: light
<p> This document contains informatio...</p>
XPath: /p
3 Moderate alfa Best Practice SIA-R61: Documents start with a level 1 heading
3 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Content Author, UX Designer

Blocking: No

WCAG: Best Practice

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The document does not start with a level 1 heading
Mode: light
Example 2 View on Page
The document does not start with a level 1 heading
Mode: light
Example 3 View on Page
The document does not start with a level 1 heading
Mode: light
3 Moderate alfa SIA-R78: Headings of same level have text content between them
2 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Front-End Developer

Blocking: No

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
There is no content between this heading and the next
Mode: light
<h3> </h3>
XPath: /h3
Example 2 View on Page
There is no content between this heading and the next
Mode: light
<h2> </h2>
XPath: /h2
Example 3 View on Page
There is no content between this heading and the next
Mode: light
<h3>Strategic plans</h3>
XPath: /h3
2 Moderate alfa Best Practice SIA-R53: Headings follow a logical hierarchy
2 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Content Author, UX Designer

Blocking: No

WCAG: Best Practice

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The heading skips one or more levels
Mode: light
<h4>Funding Rate</h4>
XPath: /h4
Example 2 View on Page
The heading skips one or more levels
Mode: light
<h4>...</h4>
XPath: /h4
2 Moderate alfa Best Practice SIA-R64: Heading has non-empty accessible name
1 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Content Author, Front-End Developer

Blocking: No

WCAG: Best Practice

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The heading does not have an accessible name
Mode: light
<h3> </h3>
XPath: /h3
Example 2 View on Page
The heading does not have an accessible name
Mode: light
<h2>...</h2>
XPath: /h2
1 Moderate alfa SIA-R73: Text spacing can be adjusted without loss of content
1 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Front-End Developer

Blocking: No

Affected Pages

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The line height of the paragraph is `normal` which will result in a line height of less than 1.5
Mode: light
<p>NSF's Fiscal Year 2024 enacted budget</p>
XPath: /p
1 Moderate alfa Best Practice SIA-R71: Paragraphs of text are not justified
1 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Visual Designer, Content Author

Blocking: No

WCAG: Best Practice

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The text of the paragraph is justified
Mode: light
<p class="text-align-justify">Filters according to the institution type that has...</p>
XPath: /p[@class="text-align-justify"]
1 Critical alfa SC 1.1.1 A Visual SIA-R14: Images have an accessible name or are decorative
1 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: alfa

Roles: Content Author

Blocking: ⚠️ Yes (Task-Blocking)

WCAG: SC 1.1.1 A

Disabilities affected:
Visual

Affected Pages

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
The visible text content of the element is not included within its accessible name
Mode: light
<button class="usa-button" type="submit" aria-label="Subscribe">Go</button>
XPath: /button[@class="usa-button"]

🔧 Most Common Issues (axe)

4 rules
145 Moderate axe region:
42 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: axe

Roles: Front-End Developer

Blocking: No

Affected Pages

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
All page content should be contained by landmarks
Mode: light
<div class="usa-footer__return-to-top" data-once="tpFeedbackRttWrapper"> <div class="usa-footer__return-to-top--inner" data-once="tpFeedbackRtt"> <a class="usa-button usa-button--secondary usa-button__link" href="#" tabindex="-1"><span class="arrow"></span>Top</a> </div> </div>
XPath: .usa-footer__return-to-top
Example 2 View on Page
All page content should be contained by landmarks
Mode: light
<div class="block block-nsf-custom block-nsf-print-block nsf-component"> <div class="print"> <a href="javascript:window.print()" class="print__link">Print<span class="visually-hidden"> this Page</span></a> </div> </div>
XPath: .block-nsf-custom
Example 3 View on Page
All page content should be contained by landmarks
Mode: light
<div class="usa-footer__return-to-top" data-once="tpFeedbackRttWrapper"> <div class="usa-footer__return-to-top--inner" data-once="tpFeedbackRtt"> <a class="usa-button usa-button--secondary usa-button__link" href="#" tabindex="-1"><span class="arrow"></span>Top</a> </div> </div>
XPath: .usa-footer__return-to-top
Example 4 View on Page
All page content should be contained by landmarks
Mode: dark
<div class="block block-nsf-custom block-nsf-print-block nsf-component"> <div class="print"> <a href="javascript:window.print()" class="print__link">Print<span class="visually-hidden"> this Page</span></a> </div> </div>
XPath: .block-nsf-custom
Example 5 View on Page
All page content should be contained by landmarks
Mode: dark
<div class="usa-footer__return-to-top" data-once="tpFeedbackRttWrapper"> <div class="usa-footer__return-to-top--inner" data-once="tpFeedbackRtt"> <a class="usa-button usa-button--secondary usa-button__link" href="#" tabindex="-1"><span class="arrow"></span>Top</a> </div> </div>
XPath: .usa-footer__return-to-top
62 Moderate axe landmark-complementary-is-top-level:
33 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: axe

Roles: Front-End Developer

Blocking: No

Affected Pages

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
Aside should not be contained in another landmark
Mode: light
<aside aria-label="Image credits and captions" id="image-caption-credit-block" class="image-caption-credit-block usa-accordion usa-accordion--bordered">
XPath: #image-caption-credit-block
Example 2 View on Page
Aside should not be contained in another landmark
Mode: light
<aside class="node__sidebar tablet:grid-col-4">
XPath: aside
Example 3 View on Page
Aside should not be contained in another landmark
Mode: dark
<aside class="node__sidebar tablet:grid-col-4">
XPath: aside
Example 4 View on Page
Aside should not be contained in another landmark
Mode: light
<aside class="node__sidebar tablet:grid-col-4">
XPath: aside
Example 5 View on Page
Aside should not be contained in another landmark
Mode: light
<aside aria-label="Image credits and captions" id="image-caption-credit-block" class="image-caption-credit-block usa-accordion usa-accordion--bordered">
XPath: #image-caption-credit-block
4 Moderate axe empty-heading:
1 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: axe

Roles: Front-End Developer

Blocking: No

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
Headings should not be empty
Mode: light
<h3>&nbsp;</h3>
XPath: h3:nth-child(15)
Example 2 View on Page
Headings should not be empty
Mode: light
<h2><a name="_INSTITUTION_PROFILE"></a></h2>
XPath: h2:nth-child(18)
Example 3 View on Page
Headings should not be empty
Mode: light
<h2>&nbsp;</h2>
XPath: h2:nth-child(23)
Example 4 View on Page
Headings should not be empty
Mode: light
<h3><a name="_tree-map"></a><a name="_Awards_by_Managing"></a></h3>
XPath: h3:nth-child(105)
4 Moderate axe heading-order:
2 pages affected

Rule Information

Engine: axe

Roles: Content Author, UX Designer

Blocking: No

Examples

Example 1 View on Page
Heading levels should only increase by one
Mode: light
<h4>Funding Rate</h4>
XPath: h4:nth-child(6)
Example 2 View on Page
Heading levels should only increase by one
Mode: light
<h4>Select Institution Name filter</h4>
XPath: h4:nth-child(16)
Example 3 View on Page
Heading levels should only increase by one
Mode: light
<h4>Institution Profile</h4>
XPath: h4:nth-child(20)
Example 4 View on Page
Heading levels should only increase by one
Mode: light
<h4><a href="https://nsf-gov-resources.nsf.gov/files/NSF-Response-to-Festivus-Report-2023-508c.pdf">Response to Senator Paul's "The Festivus Report 2023"</a></h4>
XPath: li:nth-child(1) > h4