Government Form Asking Whether You've Completed the Form Now Requires Its Own Form

WASHINGTON — The federal Office of Paperwork Reduction unveiled a new document Tuesday, Form 88-C, which citizens must complete to confirm they have completed Form 88-B, which confirms they completed Form 88-A.

"This is about accountability," said Office spokesperson Harold Fenning, 58, from behind a stack of binders that reached the ceiling. "How can we know you filled out a form unless you fill out a form telling us you filled out the form?"

Form 88-C is 14 pages long and must be signed in blue ink, notarized, and submitted in person at an office open Thursdays from 10:15 to 10:40 a.m.

Officials said a fourth form, 88-D, is in development to verify that the instructions for 88-C were read. That form will come with a 30-page instruction booklet, which will require its own confirmation form.

The Office said the initiative is part of a broader goal to reduce paperwork by 40 percent by 2040, a target it reaffirmed in a 600-page report.

Local man Wade Thistlewood, 44, said he has been in line since August. "I just wanted to renew my passport," he said. "Now I'm on Form 88-C, and they told me my pen was the wrong blue."

At press time, the Office had announced a task force to study why people find forms frustrating, with findings due upon completion of the task force's intake form.