|
April 29, 2003
All Federal Benefit Programs Now Posted on GovBenefits.gov; Milestone Reached By the One-Year Anniversary of President's E-government Initiative
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Labor, in conjunction with the Office of
Management and Budget, today announced the addition of all Federal benefit programs
applicable to citizens on GovBenefits.gov, a website developed as a one-stop resource for
government benefit eligibility information. This addition comes as GovBenefits.gov
celebrates the one-year anniversary of the sites public launch in a ceremony at the
Department of Labor.
In just one year, GovBenefits.gov has expanded from 55 benefit programs to over 400
programs and has attracted over 4 million visitors to the site.
"GovBenefits.gov has vastly improved the connection between citizens
and government. In just one year, the Website has demonstrated tremendous success in
empowering people with information about government benefit programs and services that was
previously spread across millions of Web pages and very difficult to find," said
Elaine L. Chao, U.S. Secretary of Labor.
Programs selected for inclusion on the GovBenefits.gov site were identified by
GovBenefits.gov's 10 Federal partners and from the Catalogue of Federal Domestic
Assistance (CFDA), which contains information on all government benefit and assistance
programs. Benefit programs on GovBenefits.gov were chosen based on several factors
including their ability to provide a benefit to individual citizens, rather than
institutions or businesses, and the availability of key beneficiary eligibility
requirements.
To view all of benefit programs now available on GovBenefits.gov, visit: http://www.govbenefits.gov/.
"In less than one year, through an unprecedented collaborative effort of 10 Federal
agencies, GovBenefits.gov has deployed a single on line source for citizens to find
information about Federal benefits programs making government simpler and easier to
access, a key component of President Bush's E-Government initiative. I commend the
GovBenefits.gov team and all of their partners for their hard work in making it easy for
citizens to find social services. Next, GovBenefits.gov, in conjunction with states, will
make it easier for citizens to apply for Federal and state benefits." said Mark
Forman, Administrator for E-Gov and IT, OMB.
GovBenefits.gov is one of 24 key initiatives that comprise the President's
E-Government Strategy, an integral part of President Bush's Management Agenda, which
focuses on: creating a more accessible government, saving taxpayer dollars, and
streamlining citizen-to-government transactions. GovBenefits.gov is the collaborative
effort of 10 Federal agencies including: Departments of Labor (managing partner),
Agriculture, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development,
State, Veterans Affairs, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Social Security
Administration.
----- U.S. Labor Department news releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The
information in this release will be made available in alternate format upon request (large
print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office. Please specify which news
release when placing your request. Call 202-693-7773 or TTY 202-693-7755.
|