Plain Language Matters
Subscribe to our RSSFDA Celebrates Plain Writing Act
Is your peanut butter safe? Is it safe to order drugs online? The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates products that we use everyday – food, human and animal drugs, dietary supplements, medical devices, vaccines, tobacco – the list sometimes seems endless.
The FDA shares information about these products every day, so it’s essential that they write clearly so you can understand and use their information easily to protect your health.
The FDA Commissioner recognized the second anniversary of the Plain Writing Act by sending a message to all FDA staff.
Read the FDA Commissioner’s Plain Language Email »
Like many FDA commissioners before her, she encourages everyone in the FDA to be “clear, concise and reader-friendly.”
The FDA also provides tips to staff to help them write plainly and clearly. These tips, available online in the FDA’s “Plain Language: An FDA Initiative for Written Communications,” include suggestions like:
- Identify your audience and the point you’re trying to make
- Put the most important point at the beginning
- Use common, easily understood words
View the FDA’s plain language tips page »
We encourage all federal agencies to follow the FDA’s example and support plain language by celebrating the Plain Writing Act.
Report finds mixed progress on plain language
Report finds mixed progress on plain language
The first review since agencies were required to create plans for cutting the “bureaucrat-ese” from their dealings with the public found mixed results at many agencies. The Center for Plain Language, a group that advocates for clear writing in government documents, released a scorecard this week marking agency progress meeting requirements under the 2010 Plain Writing Act.
(more…)
Who makes the grade? Plain language report cards for federal agencies
USDA Gets an “A;” VA Gets an “F” on First Plain Writing Act Report Card Released Today by the Center for Plain Language
Rep. Braley and the Center for Plain Language Release Report Card Grades at Telephone News Briefing
Washington, DC – The U.S. Department of Agriculture received an “A” and the Veterans’ Administration received an “F” on the first Plain Writing Act Report Card released today by the Center for Plain Language, a nonprofit organization dedicated to clear communication in government, business, non-profits, and universities.
The Center gave 12 government agencies two grades—the first grade represents how well the agency followed the requirements of the Act; and the second grade reflects how well the agency followed the “spirit” of the Act.
- National Archives and Records Administration: B/C
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: A/B
- U.S. Department of Defense: B/D
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: C/B
- U.S. Department of Homeland Security: D/D
- U.S. Department of Justice: C/D
- U.S. Department of Labor: B/F
- U.S. Department of Transportation: C/F
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: F/F
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: C/F
- U.S. Social Security Administration: C/C
- U.S. Small Business Association: C/C
The report card was released a year from the date when the first requirement of the Plain Writing Act went into effect–July 2011. Ultimately, the Act asks government agencies to take steps to assure that they are communicating clearly with businesses, consumers and other stakeholders.
The Plain Writing Act Report Card tracks the progress of how well agencies are following the Act. The author of the Act, Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01), spoke on the telephone news briefing today where the report card grades results were released.
“Unless federal agencies are held accountable, they won’t implement the changes required by the Plain Writing Act,” Rep. Braley said. “The mixed results of the first-ever Plain Language Report Card show that we still have a long way to go to make government forms and documents simpler and easier for taxpayers to understand. Some federal agencies have embraced the Plain Writing Act, and others haven’t. Until these grades are all A-plus, we’re going to keep holding bureaucrats’ feet to the fire.”
The report card includes two scores for each agency. The first score is based on the specific requirements in the Plain Writing Act and was determined by the Center for Plain Language. The second score identifies elements that reflect whether agencies are undertaking a variety of supporting activities addressing the “spirit” of the Act. For the second score, the Center worked with PLAIN, the federal plain language group,
“This first Plain Writing Report Card helps ensure that government agencies are following both the letter and the spirit of the Act,” said Annetta L. Cheek, PhD, chair of the Center for Plain Language. “We hope to make this an annual event where we grade different agencies each year.”
Related to the Plain Writing Act, in January 2012, Rep. Braley introduced the Plain Regulation Act. This new Act requires that government rules be written in clear, concise language.
Specific agency report cards and criteria for the grades are available.
Media Contact: Sheri Singer, sheri.singer@verizon.net, 703-346-7111
Mortgage disclosures in plain language
For the past year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, working with Kleimann Communications Group, has run extensive usability testing with consumers throughout the U.S. on the proposed new mortgage disclosure form. This form combines the original Truth in Lending disclosure and the Good Faith Estimate into a single three-page disclosure. Because purchasing a home is likely to be the most expensive and daunting purchase most of us will ever make, it’s critical that we receive clear, usable information that will allow us to compare rates from one lender to another and know exactly the fees we are paying. This new form will help us do that.
The following information appeared on the CFPB website and explains both the process and the results of this research.
The new disclosure – Compare our proposed disclosures to the existing ones.
How we did it – Review a timeline of the project, from the Dodd-Frank Act to today.
The proposed rule – See the full proposed rule, including a version of the first page of the Loan Estimate annotated with the relevant sections of the rule and commentary.
More resources – Proposal summaries, reports on what we heard in testing and the small business review panel, and more. The proposed rule and forms would have benefits for both consumers and industry:
Simpler than the old forms. Lenders can explain the terms more easily using fewer forms. Consumers, meanwhile, can understand and compare different mortgages more effectively, and compare their estimated and final terms and costs more easily, helping them make the right decisions for themselves and their families.
Highlight information consumers need. Interest rates, monthly payments, the loan amount, and closing costs are all right there on the first page. Also, the first page explains how the interest rates, payments, and loan amount might change over the life of the loan, including the highest they can go. The forms also offer more information about taxes, insurance, and other property costs so consumers can better understand the total cost.
Easier to look out for risks. The forms provide clear warnings about features some consumers may want to avoid, such as adjustable interest rates and payments, prepayment penalties, and loan balances that increase (negative amortization). The proposed rule also contains provisions to make estimates more reliable. And because the proposed rule requires lenders to keep electronic copies of the forms they give to consumers, industry and regulators will be able to address compliance questions more easily.
More time to consider choices. The lender or broker must give the estimate within three business days of applying, and they must receive the closing disclosure at least three business days before closing.
The CFPB has, from their inception, been an advocate for consumers. Check out the new forms and the process. You also can see a side-by-side comparison of the new forms and the old ones, a visual timeline, and what they learned from testing and consumer/industry comments.
We will remind you to comment on the new rule when it’s time. Meanwhile, take a look at the new form and the report. It’s a tribute to the power of usability testing, document design, plain language, and a true focus on consumer needs.
Federal Agencies to Receive Grades on Their Adherence to the Plain Writing Act
How well are federal agencies adhering to the Plain Writing Act? The Center for Plain Language is issuing a “report card” grading several federal agencies on how well they are implementing the Act. The results will be released at a telephone news briefing on Thursday, July 19, 12 noon, featuring Rep. Bruce Braley (IA), the main sponsor of the Act, and Annetta L. Cheek, PhD, chair of the Center for Plain Language, the nonprofit organization grading the federal agencies.
How Much is Plain Language Worth?
Joe Kimble, professor of law at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, has just finished his long awaited new book, Writing for Dollars, Writing to Please: The Case for Plain Language in Business, Government, and Law. Carolina Academic Press, which also published his earlier book Lifting the Fog of Legalese, is the publisher.
The book sets out the elements of plain language, debunks the 10 biggest myths about it, summarizes 40 historical highlights, and summarizes 50 (no less) studies on the benefits of plain language for everyone–readers, writers, businesses, and government agencies.
The cost of fine print? About $3K a year.
If you think America is shifting to a culture of transparency, unfortunately, you’re wrong: consumers are drowning in more fine print and byzantine disclosure language than ever before. Bank contracts and product manuals commonly bloat to hundreds of pages, in type as small as 1/6 of an inch.
Who reads this stuff? Almost nobody. And as this news clip from a CBS affiliate in Alabama reveals, that costs the average household about $3,000 a year.
Lawyers argue that excessive language is necessary to “protect consumers.” But until disclosures are presented in a form people actually read, they’re doing just the opposite: allowing organizations to bury unattractive terms in pages of jargon, while simultaneously shielding them from legal liability.
“Devil in the Details” by Shanisty Myers
Ralph Nader Hints at Plain Language in Contracts
Well, he doesn’t actually use the words “plain language,” but Ralph Nader has started an organization called Fair Contracts in which he warns people about what’s hidden in the fine print. He rails against corporations that hide behind obscure language, tiny fonts, and reams of paper no one can understand. In his usual fashion, he encourages consumers to take action against the “fine print.”
Listen to Ralph Nader.
Re-energising at Clarity2012
Clarity’s conference in Washington DC in mid-May can’t come soon enough. I’m looking forward to the lift in energy, enthusiasm, and knowledge that attending a plain-language conference always provides.
So many people in the plain-language world play dual roles of practitioner and advocate. And that takes a fair bit of energy. Most of us
- either provide plain-language services — document writing and rewriting, training, editing, etc — or work in an academic institution; and
- actively promote plain language in an attempt to “change the world”.
In our practitioner role, we so often have to deal with people who oppose what we’re trying to achieve. Maybe they are a doubter on a training course. Maybe they think plain language is a wonderful thing; it’s just that, in the document they are being asked to sign-off, they are particularly concerned about some of the language used, the style of headings, and the use of graphics.
When we deal with these doubters, we step-up and advocate: burning the precious energy that drives us.
Still Time to Join Plain Language Experts from Around the World
You still have time to register for the 2012 Clarity conference, co-hosted by the Center for Plain Language and Scribes (the American Society of Legal Writers). Clarity is an international organization focusing on legal language. As a member of any of these organizations (as many of you are), you receive a special conference rate.
Here’s a link to the tentative conference schedule. Speakers from around the world will update you on current legal language research, legislation that promotes plain language, the US Plain Writing Act, and much more.
https://sites.google.com/site/claritydc2012/program
Once you’re on the program page, you can access registration. Join us at the National Press Club for two days with other plain language advocates and practitioners.
Did I mention how beautiful Washington, D.C. is in the spring?
Go to the program page, register, join us. You’ll be glad you did.
We write about
Connect with Plain Language
