Labor Department seeks public comment on Benefits.gov

The Labor Department is reaching out to the public for ideas on how to best collect information on its federal benefits website, according to an Oct. 5 notice in the Federal Register.  

Benefits.gov (formerly GovBenefits.gov) was launched in 2002 to provide citizens with online access to government benefit and assistance programs. The website's main function is the eligibility prescreening tool called the Benefit Finder. Answers submitted in the questionnaire are used to assess a visitor's situation and compare them with the eligibility criteria for more than 1,000 government-funded benefit and assistance programs

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The department's Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management is now asking for comments on how to best evaluate the accuracy of gathered information on the benefits.gov website, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used. The public is also encouraged to submit suggestions on how to improve the quality and clarity of the information that is to be collected. Additionally, DOL is seeking input on how to more easily collect the information, including through the use of automated, electronic, mechanical or other technological collection techniques or other forms of IT.

Written comments are due by Dec. 5, 2011.