White House registers ‘techforce.gov’ domain
The White House appears to be moving forward with plans to redesign federal government websites, registering a new government domain — techforce.gov — this week.
The new URL, which was first discovered Thursday by a bot tracking new government domains, leads to a sign-in page that states “National Design Studio” and “Tech Force” at the top. It includes a form for users to submit their email and receive a code to access the website. Records maintained by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency show the domain was registered Oct. 24 and last changed Wednesday.
The domain registration comes more than two months after President Donald Trump signed an executive order launching an “America by Design” initiative focused on both digital and physical spaces. A new National Design Studio and chief design officer will lead the initiative and coordinate agency actions. Joe Gebbia, a Tesla board member and cofounder of Airbnb, was appointed the chief design officer shortly after Trump signed the executive order.
What this website will be used for was not immediately clear. When asked for comment, the White House sent an automatic reply warning of a delayed response due to the ongoing government shutdown.
Trump’s order, signed in August, stated the National Design Studio will guide agencies on “how to reduce duplicative design costs, use standardized design to enhance the public’s trust in high-impact service providers, and dramatically improve the quality of experiences offered to the American public.”
The administrator of the General Services Administration was also directed to consult with the design official to update the U.S. Web Design System, which is a community of designers who assist with the maintenance of agencies’ digital platforms. The Web Design System was founded by 18F, which was eliminated as part of the Trump administration’s governmentwide cuts earlier this year.
Efforts to improve the federal government’s digital services have been ongoing for years and have received bipartisan support. Under Trump’s order, agencies are required to consult with the design chief to ensure compliance with the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA), which became law in 2018 and requires agencies to modernize websites, improve customer service, and digitize services.
