Benefits.gov (formerly GovBenefits.gov) was launched by the U.S. Department of Labor in April 2002, as a website designed to provide American citizens with access to government benefit eligibility information.
Visitors can complete an on-line questionnaire, and Benefits.gov matches benefit programs with their needs and provides information on how to apply.
Benefits.gov includes information on a variety of benefit and assistance programs for veterans, seniors, students, teachers, children, people with disabilities, dependents, disaster victims, farmers, caregivers, job seekers, prospective homeowners, and more.
[1] This was a result of Executive Order 14058 by President Biden in 2021, which directed the General Services Administration to “develop a roadmap for a redesigned USA.gov website that aims to serve as a centralized, digital ‘Federal Front Door’ from which customers may navigate to all Government benefits, services, and programs, and features streamlined content, processes, and technologies that use human-centered design to meet customer needs, including consolidating content currently appearing on Benefits.gov, Grants.gov, and other appropriate websites […][2]” Key features include:[1] However, there was some opposition to the new design.
The first Federal Chief Information Officer, Mark Forman, told Nextgov/FCW that “A big focus for the original design was finding what you needed within 3 clicks or less […] noting that he was skeptical of USA.gov's new focus on ‘life events’ as a way to organize parts of the website.”[3] Govloans.gov, the sister site of benefits.gov, was launched in 2004, and provides information about government loan programs.