The Office of Personnel Management released a plain language training guide developed by the National Institutes of Health to help federal agencies write most documents in regular language that can be more easily understood by the general public.
“As you know, plain language is communicating with your audience so they understand what you’re saying the first time they read or hear it. It’s worth remembering that language that is “plain” to one set of readers may not be plain to others. So keeping in mind who your audience is will help immeasurably,” wrote Matthew E. Perry on the OPM blog.
The guide gives direction on which documents to write in plain language as:
- Any document that is necessary for obtaining any Federal Government benefit or service or filing taxes
- Provides information about any Federal Government benefit or service
- Explains to the public how to comply with a requirement the Federal Government administers or enforces.
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Read the guide or visit OPM’s Plain Language site.
