2017 Compliance Report

I. Senior Agency Official for Plain Writing

Donna Garland, Acting Associate Administrator for Office of Strategic Communications

Names of Plain Language coordinators within the agency:
Katherine Spivey, Plain Language Launcher, katherine.spivey@gsa.gov and plainlanguage@gsa.gov

II. Explain what specific types of agency communications have you released by making them available in a format that is consistent with the Plain Writing guidelines.

  • Press releases
  • GSA blog
  • Great Government through Technology blog
  • GSA.gov webpages
  • Making It Easier to use IT Schedule 70
  • Making It Easier: Multiple Award Schedules

III. Inform agency staff of Plain Writing Act’s requirements

  • Information on the Act is posted on InSite, the agency intranet, with shortcut.
  • Plain Language Group on Salesforce Chatter (formed 1/3/2012) over 60 members.
  • article on ITC Connect
  • article on GSA InSite

IV. Agency provided the following training sessions:

  • Acquisition Gateway content managers - 6 people
  • Chief Information Officer's Communications team - 5 people
  • IT Schedule 70 - 18 people
  • ITC Portfolio Outreach Communications - 8 people
  • Office of the Inspector General - 92 people attended 3 in-person training sessions; 120 people watched session recordings
  • Office of Strategic Communications - 15 people
  • 337 new hires took the online course at GSA Online University

Office Hours

  • 11/16/17
  • 12/21/17

Briefings

  • APG
  • Challenge.gov - Crowdsourcing Competitions
  • Defense Threat Reduction Agency
  • Federal Asian Pacific American Council (FAPAC)
  • Veterans Health Administration (VA)
  • Journalism class at Georgetown University
  • Office of Minority Health (HHS)
  • Senior Officers Advisory Roundtable (SOAR)
  • State Department UX Exponential conference
  • Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Admin (SAMHSA)

V. Ongoing compliance/ sustaining change

Name of agency contact for compliance issues: Katherine Spivey

VI. Agency’s plain writing website

Website address: www.gsa.gov/plainlanguage

VII. Customer Satisfaction Evaluation after Experiencing Plain Writing Communications

In July 2011, we created and posted an email address, plainlanguage@gsa.gov, published on our plain language page, www.gsa.gov/plainlanguage. In 2017, no one contacted us asking to clarify any GSA.gov page. We did get spam.

Last Reviewed: 2023-03-21