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Aug. 8, 2002
More than 100 Government Benefits Programs Now on www.GovBenefits.gov
The Department of Labor and the Office of Management and Budget today announced the
latest expansion of www.GovBenefits.gov, a website designed to facilitate the interaction
between individuals and government. The site helps citizens find benefits relevant to
their personal needs.
Twenty-five new Federal benefit programs representing more than $34 billion in annual
benefit dollars have been added to GovBenefits, bringing the total number of programs
featured on the website to over 100.
"GovBenefits continues to make it easier and simpler to get service from the Federal
government as called for in the President's E-Government Strategy," stated Mark
Forman, OMB associate director for information technology and e-government.
"We are enhancing the GovBenefits website through a citizen-centered approach and
maintaining our focus on the end users, the citizens," said D. Cameron Findlay,
deputy secretary of labor.
The addition of the newest benefit programs and system enhancements demonstrates
GovBenefits commitment to delivering real results to the American public. Several new
features have been added to the website to further enhance the user experience and make
finding benefits even easier. With a simple online screening tool that asks basic
questions about income, marital or employment status, and family size, GovBenefits helps
citizens assess their eligibility for government services. Once informed, they may more
quickly and easily apply for and receive benefits. Ultimately, GovBenefits will provide
potential benefits recipients with direct access to information for all government benefit
programs and services through this single portal.
When launched in April 2002, GovBenefits set out to add 20-40 government programs to the
site each month. The 25 programs added this month confirm the collective commitment among
the partner agencies to meet this goal. This most recent release features benefit programs
from the Department of Agriculture (Rural Disaster Housing Assistance), the Department of
Education (Student Support Services), the Department of Health and Human Services
(Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), the Department of Housing and Urban Development
(Mortgage Insurance for Homes in Outlying Areas), the Department of Labor (National
Farmworker Jobs Program), and the Department of Veterans Affairs (Specially Adapted
Housing for Disabled Veterans). For a full list of programs, visit www.govbenefits.gov.
The GovBenefits home page has expanded to include a section highlighting timely news about
specific benefit programs. Visitors to the website can now choose to see a full list of
benefits by category and bypass the questionnaire that provides a personalized list of
benefits. They can also now generate printer-friendly versions of each benefit details
page and email benefit program information to others.
GovBenefits is one of 24 key initiatives that comprise the President's E-Government
Strategy, an integral part of the President's Management Agenda. The project 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.
Web hosting services for GovBenefits are provided by FirstGov, an interagency initiative
administered by the U.S. General Services 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.
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