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How 21st Century IDEA set a higher standard for customer experience

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What: How 21st Century IDEA set a higher standard for customer experience
When: President Donald Trump signed the 21st Century IDEA into law in December 2018.
Why it matters: The legislation pushed agencies to develop a digital-first approach to customer experience that laid down a blueprint for a more modern, digital-first federal government. It became essential at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To celebrate our 25th anniversary in 2025, we’re spotlighting 25 pivotal moments that reshaped the way the government operates. Visit our anniversary page each week as we look back on these defining moments.

For more than a decade, customer experience teams across the federal government have focused on making sure agencies are providing a level of service with the private sector.

Much of that momentum began under the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (IDEA) It gave agencies a blueprint for a more modern, digital-first customer experience in government. The law required agencies to move more of their public-facing services online, make federal websites more mobile-friendly and accept electronic signatures, to help wean agencies off paper-based processes.

“It was bipartisan, and it passed under the first Trump administration as a way to really firm up the importance of how should the government transform,” said Lee Becker, the former chief of staff for the Veterans Experience Office at the Department of Veterans Affairs, now the senior vice president and executive advisor for public sector and health care at Medallia. “The public is getting more used to doing things digitally, but what we’ve learned is that it can’t just be digital-only.”

President Donald Trump signed the 21st Century IDEA into law in December 2018, but without increased funding to roll out new tools, agencies initially stalled on implementation.

“I don’t think, in the first year-and-a-half, we made a ton of progress on 21st Century IDEA,” said Mike Hettinger, president and founding principal of the Hettinger Strategy Group, an early champion of the legislation.

Martha Dorris, a former GSA executive and the founder of Dorris Consulting International, said 21st Century IDEA’s real value was codifying some longstanding CX best practices that were already happening in some parts of the federal government.

The 2010 Plain Writing Act, for example, required federal agencies to set clear government communications that the public can easily understand

“It was rolling up a lot of stuff that had been in place in many places for many, many years,” Dorris said.

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the implementation of the 21st Century IDEA. With many agency offices shuttered and mandatory telework, it forced many federal agencies to change their approach in how they deliver services to citizens.

Add to that Congress approving a windfall of emergency pandemic funds, all of these factors allowed agencies to jumpstart the modernization of their public-facing digital services.

“You throw in the pandemic, a couple of years after the legislation was signed into law, and that really accelerated the reliance on the sorts of things that 21st Century IDEA was all about,” Hettinger said.

The height of the COVID-19 pandemic underscored the need for a digital-first approach to services, as agencies scrambled to move their operations online.

“COVID did put a spotlight on the need for agencies to provide better digital services, and agencies moved in that direction just out of sheer necessity,” said Erica Fensom, vice president of corporate affairs at DocuSign, said in a November 2023 interview. “The pandemic also exposed just how much room there is for improvement for agencies to provide better digital services, and how agile government agencies can be to change.”

The Office of Management and Budget doubled down on the IDEA Act when it laid out a 10-year digital experience roadmap and released long-awaited implementation guidance.

Agencies have about 100 actions to transform, evolve and standardize the citizens’ online experience that will drive the concept of “digital by default.” The 100 actions are broken down across seven broad categories, including branding, analytics, design and content.

While the first Trump administration made public service delivery a priority through the President’s Management Agenda,  which made improved customer experience a cross-agency priority goal, the new administration has yet to lay out its management priorities.

“We haven’t really seen the second Trump administration have its eye on the ball with CX just yet,” Dorris said.

But between the OMB memo to implement the IDEA Act and now the Government Service Delivery Improvement Act (GSDIA), signed into law by former President Joe Biden in January, all this CX work is about to move to a new phase. The new legislation requires OMB and agencies to appoint a senior official to lead service delivery improvements governmentwide.

Dorris raised concerns that the legislation is focused too much on service delivery, rather than a broader focus on customer experience.

“A government service delivery lead is different than a customer experience person. Words matter,” she said. “You can’t have an office that just does voice of the customer or just does design work. It’s a bigger job than that, and I’m not sure people have had the resources or the authority to do it at the level that that law is asking for.”

Dorris said the legislation set up a clearer chain of command for who leads on customer experience improvements across the federal government.

“It sets up a governance structure that should help to be simplified. You’ve got CIOs, you’ve got digital services leads, digital experience leads and chief customer officers. You’ve got digital services teams. Who’s in charge of the service delivery, and who monitors it, looks at all the data across the agency and determines. Are you meeting the expectations of your customers? This law does that,” Dorris said.

Hettinger said the Government Service Delivery Improvement Act builds on the work of the 21st Century IDEA.

“Things are not going to be successful unless we have full leadership buy-in and leadership structure to support what you’re trying to do,” Hettinger said. “That’s why the Government Service Delivery Improvement Act is so important, because that’s about working with 21st Century IDEA. That’s about a structure at the agencies to ensure they’re paying attention and budgeting for 21st Century IDEA.”

Despite some CX momentum, agencies still have lots to do before meeting all the goals of the 21st Century IDEA and subsequent legislation.

“21st Century IDEA didn’t mandate more use of electronic signatures. It mandated a plan to accelerate the use of electronic signatures,” Hettinger said. “There’s a way to go on all of the things that 21st Century IDEA called for. And that’s why the Government Service Delivery Improvement Act is so important.”

Becker said all CX improvements need to start with ongoing feedback from customers and frontline federal employees who provide services to the public.

“It’s really the biggest risk if we forget the front line and the public,” he said. “It could go off the rails if we forget what made IDEA Act effective in the first place. It’s a relentless focus on the user experience of trust and mission delivery.”

The post How 21st Century IDEA set a higher standard for customer experience first appeared on Federal News Network.

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Politics

President Trump Taps Dr. Ben Carson for New Role — A HUGE Win for America First Agenda

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September 25, 2025

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Dr. Ben Carson is the newest member of the Trump administration.

On Wednesday, former Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Ben Carson, was sworn in as the national adviser for nutrition, health, and housing at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins shared that Carson’s role will be to oversee Trump’s new Big Beautiful Bill law, which aims to ensure Americans’ quality of life, from nutrition to stable housing.

After being sworn in, Carson shared, “Today, too many Americans are suffering from the effects of poor nutrition. Through common-sense policymaking, we have an opportunity to give our most vulnerable families the tools they need to flourish.”

Table of Contents

WATCH:

Per USDA:

Today, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced that Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, Sr., M.D., was sworn in as the National Advisor for Nutrition, Health, and Housing at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

“There is no one more qualified than Dr. Carson to advise on policies that improve Americans’ everyday quality of life, from nutrition to healthcare quality to ensuring families have access to safe and stable housing,” said Secretary Rollins.

“With six in ten Americans living with at least one chronic disease, and rural communities facing unique challenges with respect to adequate housing, Dr. Carson’s insight and experience is critical. Dr. Carson will be crucial to implementing the rural health investment provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill and advise on America First polices related to nutrition, health, and housing.

“As the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the first Trump Administration, Dr. Carson worked to expand opportunity and strengthen communities, and we are honored to welcome him to the second Trump Administration to help lead our efforts here at USDA to Make America Healthy Again and ensure rural America continues to prosper.”

“Today, too many Americans are suffering from the effects of poor nutrition. Through common-sense policymaking, we have an opportunity to give our most vulnerable families the tools they need to flourish,” said Dr. Ben Carson. “I am honored to work with Secretary Rollins on these important initiatives to help fulfill President Trump’s vision for a healthier, stronger America.”

On Sunday, Dr. Carson was one of the many speakers at the memorial service of the late TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk.

During the memorial service, Carson highlighted that Kirk was shot at 12:24 p.m. and then continued to share the Bible verse John 12:24, which reads, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.”

WATCH:

The post President Trump Taps Dr. Ben Carson for New Role — A HUGE Win for America First Agenda appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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Politics

LEAKED MEMO: Deep State Prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia Claim There Isn’t Enough Evidence to Convict Comey Amid Reports of Imminent Indictment

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September 25, 2025

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On Wednesday evening, disgruntled officials in the Eastern District of Virginia leaked contents of a memo explaining why charges should not be brought against James Comey.

As reported earlier, former FBI Director James Comey is expected to be indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia in the next few days.

Comey will reportedly be charged for lying to Congress in a 2020 testimony about whether he authorized leaks to the media.

Officials in the Eastern District of Virginia are still fighting to stop Comey from being charged after Trump fired US Attorney Erik Siebert.

President Trump last week fired Erik Siebert as the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia because he refused to bring charges against Letitia James, Comey, Schiff and others.

On Saturday evening, President Trump announced that he had appointed Lindsey Halligan – his personal attorney who defended him against the Mar-a-Lago raid – as US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Now, with just days to go before the statute of limitations runs out to charge Comey for lying during a September 30, 2020 testimony, Lindsey Halligan is reportedly gearing up to indict Comey.

Prosecutors reportedly gave newly sworn-in Halligan a memo defending James Comey and explaining why charges should not brought against the fired FBI Director.

Per MSNBC’s Ken Dilanian:

Two sources familiar with the matter tell me prosecutors in the EDVA US attorney‘s office presented newly sworn US attorney Lindsey Halligan with a memo explaining why charges should not be brought against James Comey, because there isn’t enough evidence to establish probable cause a crime was committed, let alone enough to convince a jury to convict him.

Justice Department guidelines say a case should not be brought unless prosecutors believe it’s more likely than not that they can win a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt.

The post LEAKED MEMO: Deep State Prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia Claim There Isn’t Enough Evidence to Convict Comey Amid Reports of Imminent Indictment appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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Nearly 8 in 10 Voters Say the United States is in Political Crisis After the Assassination of Charlie Kirk

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September 25, 2025

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Nearly eight in ten voters believe that the United States is in a political crisis in the wake of the assassination of conservative icon Charlie Kirk.

According to a Quinnipiac University national poll of registered voters released on Wednesday, a massive 93 percent of Democrats, 84 percent of independents, and 60 percent of Republicans said the nation is in a political crisis.

“The Kirk assassination lays bare raw, bipartisan concerns about where the country is headed,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy said of the poll results.

Quinnipiac reports:

Seventy-one percent of voters think politically motivated violence in the United States today is a very serious problem, 22 percent think it is a somewhat serious problem, 3 percent think it is a not so serious problem, and 1 percent think it is not a problem at all.

This is a jump from Quinnipiac University’s June 26 poll when 54 percent thought politically motivated violence in the United States today was a very serious problem, 37 percent thought it was a somewhat serious problem, 6 percent thought it was a not so serious problem, and 2 percent thought it was not a problem at all.

Nearly 6 in 10 voters (58 percent) think it will not be possible to lower the temperature on political rhetoric and speech in the United States, while 34 percent think it will be possible.

Over half, 54 percent, of voters believe the US will see increased political violence over the next few years. Another 27 percent said they think it will stay “about the same,” while just 14 percent believe it will ease.

A 53 percent majority also said they are “pessimistic about freedom of speech being protected in the United States.”

Surprisingly, a 53 percent majority also believes the current system of democracy is not working.

“From a perceived assault on freedom of speech to the fragility of the democracy, a shudder of concern and pessimism rattles a broad swath of the electorate. Nearly 80 percent of registered voters feel they are witnessing a political crisis, seven in ten say political violence is a very serious problem, and a majority say this discord won’t go away anytime soon,” Malloy added.

The vast majority, 82 percent, said the way that people discuss politics is contributing to the violence.

“When asked if political discourse is contributing to violence, a rare meeting of the minds…Republicans, Democrats, and independents in equal numbers say yes, it is,” Malloy said.

The survey was conducted from September 18 to 21 among 1,276 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 3.3 percentage points.

The post Nearly 8 in 10 Voters Say the United States is in Political Crisis After the Assassination of Charlie Kirk appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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