Next, IRS – There are few things we dislike more than paying taxes - however, trying to figure how to fill out complicated, frequently indecipherable tax forms only makes it more painful. I'm happy to report that the folks at IRS are starting to recognize they need to be more customer-friendly. A few years ago, they began by having one of our leading Plain Language champions, Melodee Mercer of the Veterans Benefit Administration, work with them on a pilot project to do a major redesign of their official letters. IRS sends out about 110 million annually. The pilot project ended in last year and 7 new letters are out already. 13 more will issue next year.

The catalyst behind this improvement at IRS was outgoing Commissioner Charles Rossotti who was successful in achieving a major turn-around for this once-beleaguered agency because he re-organized it around taxpayers, not chapters of the tax code. This people-orientation was also evident in the more taxpayer-friendly PL notices that resulted from the pilot. Let's look at a notice called We Want to Send you a Refund Check " before & after" the pilot:

Our Plain Language representative from IRS describes the "Before" version as "intimidating and belligerent." Fortunately, even thought Mr. Rossotti is leaving, many IRS decision-makers, including one of the four current Commissioners, are starting to get interested in Plain Language. So, I'm told it's safe to say IRS is at the beginning of a culture shift in accepting Plain Language.