Plain Language Checklist and Review Sheet
ocument number Catalog num ber ocument title ate reviewed
Email addressTelephone numberOriginator name
Part I - Structural Elements In The Document You Are Evaluating
Yes No
1 Are organized to serve th e reader's needs - The most im portant material is first and the exceptions are last. O r
the materia! is chronological
2. Have useful headings - One or more descriptive headings on each page help the reader find the way through the
material
3. Have short sentences, paragraphs and sections - There is little dense text with few headings and no white
space. There are no run-on sentences
4. Use lists and tables to sim plify complex material - The w riter has shortened and ciarified complex material with
lists and tables
5. Use no m ore than tw o or three sub ordin ate levels - T he top level may have to be sub-divided if m ore parts are
needed
Yes No
Part II - Language Elements In The Document You Are Evaluating
1. Are w ritten for the averag e reader - The writer has addressed the expertise and interest of the average reader,
not experts or management unless they are the intended audience
2. Use active voice - Active sentences put the actor first (as the subject), then the verb, then the object of the action.
"Fred mailed th e check. " instead of "The check was m ailed by Fred"
3. Contain you and other pronouns that speak to the reader - You is for the reader, and we is for the agency
4. Use th e simplest tenses possible - This shows clarity and straightforw ardness. It says, for example, “We issue a
report every quarter,
”
not “We will be issuing a report every quarter
”
5. Contain base verbs, not nom inalizations (hidden verbs) - This show s strength and brevity. It says, for example,
“We m anage the program
”
and “We analyze data
”
not “We are responsible for managem ent of the program" or “We
conduct an analysis of the data"
6.
D
o not have excess words - Check to see if the writer has challenged every word - do you find any that aren’t
needed
?
Pronouns, active voice and base verbs help elim inate excess words. So does elim inating unnecessary
modifiers (such as really)
7. Use con tractions like w e ’ll, can ’t and don’t - This helps reduce w ords and make th e m essage more
straightforward. You should see w ords like “H ere’s" instead of “Enclosed please find”
8. Use fam iliar words - Abbreviations are defined (and limited). You should not see jargon, foreign terms, Latin term s
or legal terms. There are no noun strings
9. Use must to express requirements - Using must avoids the ambiguous word shall
10. Place w ords carefully - There are no large gaps between the subject, the verb and the object. Exceptions are last.
Modifiers are in the correct place
From http: /
/w w w .p lain la ng uag e.gov/h o w to /q u ic k re fere n c e /ch e c k lis t.c fm
Form 14481 (4-2013)
Catalog Number 62624M
publish. no. irs. gov
epartment of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service
Appendix - Plain Language Checklist and Review Sheet
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