USAGov's product principles

We welcome people by:

• Building experiences that work on every screen, on every channel, in English and in Spanish
• Using assistive technologies to create complete, easy-to-navigate experiences for users
• Prioritizing the needs of people who have to rely on interacting directly with the government

We demonstrate empathy for our users by:

• Helping people access our services in less-than-ideal situations, such as during financial hardship or after a natural disaster
• Stating clearly when USAGov cannot provide direct assistance
• Valuing and improving the experience of USAGov staff, so we can remain empathetic as we serve people who need help from the government

We empower people by:

• Helping users complete their tasks without taking away their decisions or independence
• Explaining what happens next, especially when users leave the USAGov environment
• Educating without patronizing, confusing, or minimizing

We ensure accountability by:

• Collaborating across agencies to ensure the accuracy and consistency of content and advice. It is better to be incomplete than incorrect.
• Respecting the cultural differences between speakers of different languages, and never relying solely on literal translation to achieve the intent of a piece of content
• Accounting for the experience of every USAGov staff role that makes our service possible so they can be responsive to the needs of the public

We respect the people who use our services by:

• Delivering exactly what we say we will in each experience; neither under- nor over-promising 
• Optimizing for the most common and important tasks, which change over time based on world events, policy, and circumstances
• Taking time to understand where we can build for a general audience, and where we should offer different paths for different needs

We display conscientious stewardship by:

• Partnering with other federal agencies to produce the most efficient experience for users
• Pursuing opportunities to make our resources available to other government agencies
• Demonstrating fiduciary responsibility in our choices and valuing staff efficiency