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Bill requires federal agencies to use clear, concise language in public documents

Washington, DC – U.S. Representative Virginia Foxx (NC-5) today voted in favor of the Plain Language in Government Communications Act in the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The legislation, H.R. 3548, requires federal government agencies to use “plain language” in all public documents.

“If we had a dollar for every constituent who needed help deciphering incomprehensible government documents we’d be well on our way to balancing the federal budget,” Foxx said. “This legislation is a common-sense step towards making the federal government more responsive and open to average Americans. It lets the sunshine into notoriously dense government reports and documents.”

Section two of the ‘Plain Language Act’ states that the bill is intended to “improve the Federal Government's effectiveness and accountability to the public by promoting clear communication that the public can understand and use.” The legislation also requires federal agencies to report to Congress annually on steps that they are taking to make government documents readable.

“This bill moves us in the direction of making government documents more user-friendly,” Foxx said.

Foxx also proposed an amendment to the Plain Language Act that would preserve and enhance the role of the English language in government documents. While it seeks to protect the use of English in federal documents, the amendment does not restrict the use of other languages. The Committee approved the amendment by a unanimous vote.

H.R. 3548 passed the Oversight and Government Reform panel and now heads to the floor for consideration by the full House of Representatives. There is also a companion bill to the Plain Language Act in the Senate, S.2291.

Read more:
Learn more about the Plain Language Act.
Check out the companion bill in the Senate.
Take a look at the English Language amendment.