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Pallone Announces Legislation to Improve Access to Federal Websites on Mobile Devices

April 6, 2017

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) and Congresswoman Robin Kelly (IL-02) have released The Connected Government Act as a discussion draft to ensure that Americans are able to access federal websites on their mobile devices.

“The Connected Government Act brings government services to the people where they are,” said Pallone. “Today, lower-income Americans are more likely to access the internet only on a mobile device, and so we need to make sure that the government services they need are easy to access on those devices. By requiring consumer-facing government websites to be mobile friendly, this proposal makes the government more accessible for everyone.”

In January, Pallone published an op-ed calling on Congress “to take a fresh look at how we all connect by focusing on security, opportunity, and access.” As mobile technology continues to progress, the federal government’s mobile websites have lagged behind. With 40 percent of smartphone users accessing information about government services on their phones, and 77 percent of Americans owning smartphones, it is imperative that the government’s websites be reachable to those users.

The Connected Government Act will require updated federal websites to be mobile friendly six months of after the law is passed. It also calls for the Federal Communications Commission and the National Telecommunications & Information Administration to submit a status report to Congress 18 months following the passage of the law to make sure federal agencies are complying.