Washington, DC - Today, Congressman Bruce Braley (IA-01) announced that several provisions of his Plain Writing Act of 2010 are going into effect.
Today is the deadline for agencies to designate a Senior Official for Plain Writing. This individual will be responsible for overseeing each agency's implementation of Braley's law, including:
· creating a plain writing section of the agency website;
· training agency employees;
· ensuring full implementation of the law; and
· publishing a public report on progress towards meeting the plain writing requirements.
"The Plain Writing Act requires some simple changes to business-as-usual that'll make a big difference for anyone who's ever filled out a tax return or received a government document," Rep. Braley said. "Today, some of those changes go into effect and begin the process of making our government agencies moreaccessible. In the long run, writing government documents in plain languagewill increase government accountability and will save Americans time and money."
The Plain Writing Act, authored by Rep. Braley, requires the federal government to write documents, such as tax returns, federal college aid applications, and Veterans Administration forms in simple easy-to-understand language, making government more transparent and saving the government millions of dollars. President Obama signed Rep. Braley's bill into law last October.
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