diff --git a/public/scope-audit.css b/public/scope-audit.css
index 15a281fa..3dd6e36d 100644
--- a/public/scope-audit.css
+++ b/public/scope-audit.css
@@ -60,7 +60,17 @@
    .sa-chip-unobserved below, which stays neutral. Only the observed side is
    coloured: red on every unobserved region would read as an alarm on rows that
    are often just a quiet region over a short window. */
-.sa-chip-observed { background: color-mix(in srgb, var(--status-green) 16%, transparent); color: var(--status-green-text); }
+/* #1996: the chip's own tint darkens whatever is behind it, so
+   --status-green-text (green-700, #15803d) landed at 4.04:1 on --surface-0 and
+   4.38:1 on white — both under the 4.5:1 the #1719 gate requires. Measured, and
+   it reproduces the ratio in the report exactly.
+   Fixed on the TEXT rather than by thinning the tint: 12% tint would reach
+   4.52:1, two hundredths above the line, which is the kind of margin that fails
+   again on the next surface change. green-800 gives 6.23:1 on white and 5.74:1
+   on --surface-0, and keeps the tint that makes the chip read as a chip.
+   Dark is untouched: --status-green-text is the bright #22c55e there and
+   already passes at 6.48:1 / 5.73:1. */
+.sa-chip-observed { background: color-mix(in srgb, var(--status-green) 16%, transparent); color: var(--sa-chip-observed-fg); }
 
 /* Declared but not observed in this window. Deliberately NOT red: absence over
    a short window is weak evidence, which the page header says in words, so it
diff --git a/public/style.css b/public/style.css
index 7f7fb5ee..e91e1e71 100644
--- a/public/style.css
+++ b/public/style.css
@@ -137,6 +137,7 @@
   --palette-green-500: #22c55e;
   --palette-green-600: #16a34a;
   --palette-green-700: #15803d;
+  --palette-green-800: #166534;
 
   --palette-amber-300: #fcd34d;
   --palette-amber-400: #fbbf24;
@@ -256,6 +257,11 @@
      theme overrides keep the bright #22c55e since it reads ≥6:1 on the
      card-bg #232340. */
   --status-green-text: var(--palette-green-700, #15803d);
+  /* #1996: the scope-audit observed/verified chips tint their own
+     background, which darkens it enough that green-700 fails 4.5:1. One
+     step darker clears it with margin (6.23:1 on white, 5.74:1 on
+     --surface-0) without thinning the tint that makes the chip legible. */
+  --sa-chip-observed-fg: var(--palette-green-800, #166534);
   --status-yellow: #eab308;
   --status-red: #ef4444;
   --status-orange: #f97316;
@@ -386,6 +392,8 @@
     /* #1719 — on dark card-bg (#232340) #22c55e gives 6.65:1, AA pass.
        Keep the bright hue for text rather than darkening it. */
     --status-green-text: #22c55e;
+    /* #1996: dark already passes at 6.48:1 — keep the bright hue. */
+    --sa-chip-observed-fg: #22c55e;
     /* #1719 — keep --skew-badge-no-clock-bg dark enough for #fff text. */
     --skew-badge-no-clock-bg: var(--palette-gray-600, #4b5563);
     --status-yellow: #eab308;
@@ -451,6 +459,8 @@
   --status-green: #22c55e;
   /* #1719 — see :root[prefers-color-scheme:dark] block; mirror here. */
   --status-green-text: #22c55e;
+  /* #1996: dark already passes at 6.48:1 — keep the bright hue. */
+  --sa-chip-observed-fg: #22c55e;
   --skew-badge-no-clock-bg: var(--palette-gray-600, #4b5563);
   --status-yellow: #eab308;
   --status-red: #ef4444;
diff --git a/test-all.sh b/test-all.sh
index 24f56e6b..bf52db40 100755
--- a/test-all.sh
+++ b/test-all.sh
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ node tests/unit/test-a11y-1705-subpath-hop-prefix-e2e.js
 node tests/unit/test-a11y-1715-dark-role-swatches.js
 node tests/unit/test-a11y-1716-rf-range-btn-active.js
 node tests/unit/test-a11y-1719-contrast-root-causes-e2e.js
+node tests/unit/test-a11y-1996-scope-audit-chips.js
 node tests/unit/test-a11y-axe-1668-selftest.js
 node tests/unit/test-a11y-axe-routes-coverage.js
 node tests/unit/test-aging.js
diff --git a/tests/unit/test-a11y-1996-scope-audit-chips.js b/tests/unit/test-a11y-1996-scope-audit-chips.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..e26a415f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit/test-a11y-1996-scope-audit-chips.js
@@ -0,0 +1,146 @@
+/* test-a11y-1996-scope-audit-chips.js
+ *
+ * Issue #1996: the Scope Audit observed/verified chips failed light-theme
+ * contrast. They tint their OWN background with
+ * `color-mix(in srgb, var(--status-green) 16%, transparent)`, which darkens
+ * whatever surface is behind them, and the text was --status-green-text
+ * (green-700, #15803d). Measured: 4.38:1 on white and 4.04:1 on --surface-0,
+ * against the 4.5:1 the #1719 gate requires for normal text. The reporter
+ * measured 4.04:1 on the populated page; this reproduces that number exactly,
+ * which is how we know the model here matches the browser's.
+ *
+ * Why this is a separate suite rather than a case in
+ * test-a11y-1719-contrast-root-causes-e2e.js: that suite's parseColor handles
+ * hex and rgb() only. Teaching it color-mix() is a larger change than the fix,
+ * and these chips are the only current user of the function on a contrast-
+ * critical surface. If a second one appears, move this in there.
+ *
+ * The default Scope Audit fixture renders no chips at all, which is why the
+ * existing browser coverage missed this. Deriving the values from the
+ * stylesheets rather than from a rendered page keeps that gap from mattering.
+ */
+'use strict';
+
+const REPO_ROOT = require('path').resolve(__dirname, '..', '..');
+const fs = require('fs');
+const path = require('path');
+const assert = require('assert');
+
+let passed = 0, failed = 0;
+function test(name, fn) {
+  try { fn(); passed++; console.log('  ✓ ' + name); }
+  catch (e) { failed++; console.error('  ✗ ' + name + ': ' + e.message); }
+}
+
+const STYLE = fs.readFileSync(path.join(REPO_ROOT, 'public/style.css'), 'utf8');
+const AUDIT = fs.readFileSync(path.join(REPO_ROOT, 'public/scope-audit.css'), 'utf8');
+
+const REQUIRED = 4.5;
+
+// --- colour maths ----------------------------------------------------------
+
+function hex(s) {
+  const m = String(s).trim().match(/^#([0-9a-f]{6})$/i);
+  if (!m) return null;
+  const n = parseInt(m[1], 16);
+  return [(n >> 16) & 255, (n >> 8) & 255, n & 255];
+}
+function lum(rgb) {
+  const f = (c) => { c /= 255; return c <= 0.03928 ? c / 12.92 : Math.pow((c + 0.055) / 1.055, 2.4); };
+  return 0.2126 * f(rgb[0]) + 0.7152 * f(rgb[1]) + 0.0722 * f(rgb[2]);
+}
+function contrast(fg, bg) {
+  const a = lum(fg), b = lum(bg);
+  return (Math.max(a, b) + 0.05) / (Math.min(a, b) + 0.05);
+}
+// color-mix(in srgb, C p%, transparent) over a surface is a plain alpha
+// composite of C at p% onto that surface.
+function mixOver(colour, pct, surface) {
+  return [0, 1, 2].map((i) => Math.round(colour[i] * pct + surface[i] * (1 - pct)));
+}
+
+// --- reading the stylesheets ----------------------------------------------
+
+// Variable values per theme. The light values come from the first :root block,
+// the dark ones from the prefers-color-scheme block, which is what a visitor on
+// the default setting gets.
+function varValue(name, theme) {
+  const scope = theme === 'dark'
+    ? STYLE.slice(STYLE.indexOf('prefers-color-scheme: dark'))
+    : STYLE;
+  // Follow one level of var(--x, #fallback) indirection, which is how the
+  // palette is referenced.
+  const re = new RegExp('--' + name + '\\s*:\\s*([^;]+);');
+  const m = scope.match(re);
+  if (!m) return null;
+  const raw = m[1].trim();
+  const direct = hex(raw);
+  if (direct) return direct;
+  const via = raw.match(/var\(\s*--([\w-]+)\s*(?:,\s*(#[0-9a-f]{6})\s*)?\)/i);
+  if (!via) return null;
+  return varValue(via[1], theme) || (via[2] ? hex(via[2]) : null);
+}
+
+function chipTintPct() {
+  const m = AUDIT.match(/\.sa-chip-observed\s*\{[^}]*color-mix\(in srgb,\s*var\(--status-green\)\s*(\d+)%/);
+  assert.ok(m, '.sa-chip-observed must still tint with color-mix on --status-green');
+  return Number(m[1]) / 100;
+}
+
+function chipFgVar() {
+  const m = AUDIT.match(/\.sa-chip-observed\s*\{[^}]*[^-\w]color\s*:\s*var\(\s*--([\w-]+)/);
+  assert.ok(m, '.sa-chip-observed must set its colour from a variable, never a literal');
+  return m[1];
+}
+
+console.log('\n=== #1996: Scope Audit chip contrast ===');
+
+test('the chip still tints its own background, so this test is testing something', () => {
+  const pct = chipTintPct();
+  assert.ok(pct > 0 && pct < 1, 'tint percentage: ' + pct);
+});
+
+test('the chip takes its colour from a variable, not a literal', () => {
+  // A literal would not follow the customizer and would sidestep every theme
+  // check in this repo.
+  const name = chipFgVar();
+  assert.ok(name.length > 0);
+});
+
+// The surfaces a chip can sit on. --surface-0 is the worse of the two in light
+// and is what the report measured, so both are checked rather than the kinder one.
+for (const theme of ['light', 'dark']) {
+  for (const surfaceVar of ['surface-0', 'card-bg']) {
+    test(`${theme}: chip meets ${REQUIRED}:1 on --${surfaceVar}`, () => {
+      const green = varValue('status-green', theme);
+      const surface = varValue(surfaceVar, theme);
+      const fg = varValue(chipFgVar(), theme);
+      assert.ok(green, 'could not resolve --status-green for ' + theme);
+      assert.ok(surface, 'could not resolve --' + surfaceVar + ' for ' + theme);
+      assert.ok(fg, 'could not resolve --' + chipFgVar() + ' for ' + theme);
+
+      const composited = mixOver(green, chipTintPct(), surface);
+      const ratio = contrast(fg, composited);
+      assert.ok(
+        ratio >= REQUIRED,
+        `got ${ratio.toFixed(2)}:1, need ${REQUIRED}:1 ` +
+        `(text rgb(${fg}) on composited rgb(${composited}))`
+      );
+    });
+  }
+}
+
+test('the regression itself: green-700 on the light chip would still fail', () => {
+  // Guards the fix from being quietly reverted to --status-green-text. If this
+  // ever passes, either the tint changed or the palette did, and the fix above
+  // is no longer doing the work this issue needed.
+  const green = varValue('status-green', 'light');
+  const surface = varValue('surface-0', 'light');
+  const old = varValue('palette-green-700', 'light');
+  const ratio = contrast(old, mixOver(green, chipTintPct(), surface));
+  assert.ok(ratio < REQUIRED,
+    `green-700 now reaches ${ratio.toFixed(2)}:1 — re-check whether this suite still guards anything`);
+});
+
+console.log(`\nTotal: ${passed} passed, ${failed} failed`);
+if (failed) process.exit(1);
diff --git a/tests/unit/test-issue-1470-card-bg-contrast.js b/tests/unit/test-issue-1470-card-bg-contrast.js
index 4a3ab287..52c0dd00 100644
--- a/tests/unit/test-issue-1470-card-bg-contrast.js
+++ b/tests/unit/test-issue-1470-card-bg-contrast.js
@@ -34,12 +34,25 @@ function test(name, fn) {
 
 console.log('\n── #1470 CSS: --card-bg dark-mode variable ──');
 
+// The @media block nests, so `[^}]*` (used for the flat [data-theme="dark"]
+// block below) stops at the first inner rule. Match braces instead. This used
+// to be a fixed `slice(mediaIdx, mediaIdx + 2000)`, which sat one character
+// from the end of the block: adding a single variable above --card-bg pushed it
+// out of the window and failed this test for a reason unrelated to --card-bg.
+function mediaDarkBlock(css) {
+  const start = css.indexOf('@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark)');
+  assert.ok(start !== -1, '@media dark block not found');
+  let depth = 0;
+  for (let i = start; i < css.length; i++) {
+    if (css[i] === '{') depth++;
+    else if (css[i] === '}' && --depth === 0) return css.slice(start, i + 1);
+  }
+  assert.fail('@media dark block is never closed');
+}
+
 test('@media dark block sets --card-bg to var(--surface-2)', () => {
   const css = read('public/style.css');
-  // Find the @media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) block
-  const mediaIdx = css.indexOf('@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark)');
-  assert.ok(mediaIdx !== -1, '@media dark block not found');
-  const mediaBlock = css.slice(mediaIdx, mediaIdx + 2000);
+  const mediaBlock = mediaDarkBlock(css);
   const m = mediaBlock.match(/--card-bg\s*:\s*([^;]+);/);
   assert.ok(m, '--card-bg not found in @media dark block');
   assert.strictEqual(m[1].trim(), 'var(--surface-2)',