the Plain Language Act
Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) recently announced the introduction of a
bipartisan bill called the Plain Language in Government Communications
Act (HR 3584) that would require federal documents such as tax
returns, federal college aid applications, and Veterans Administration
forms to be written in “easy, simple-to-understand language.”
I can’t decide if this is a good thing or if it just means we’re all
getting stupider.
In any case, here’s what Rep. Braley had to say:
“Anyone who’s done their own taxes knows the headache of trying to
understand pages and pages of confusing forms and instructions,” Rep.
Braley said. “There is no reason why the federal government can’t
write these forms and other public documents in a way we can all
understand.
“Writing government documents in plain language will increase
government accountability and will save Americans time and money.
Plain, straightforward language makes it easy for taxpayers to
understand what the federal government is doing and what services it
is offering.
“I’m proud to introduce this bill to make it easier for Americans to
work with and understand their government.”
And here are the Federal Plain Language Guidelines for writing talk
that’s simple-like:
*Use short, simple words
*Use “you” and other pronouns to speak directly to readers
*Use short sentences and paragraphs
*Avoid legal, foreign, and technical jargon
*Avoid double negatives
And just in case you’re dying to see Plain Language in action, go to
plainlanguage.gov to see before-and-after examples.
Yeehaw.
