January 7, 2026

FormFest 2025: Building Better Government, One Form at a Time

FormFest 2025 brought together more than 2,000 form fans from 47 states, 24 countries, and three territories, all united by a shared mission to make government forms simpler, clearer, and more human-centered. With 50+ speakers from 26 organizations, the day was a powerful demonstration of what’s possible when people lean into designing better public services.

The day opened with a conversation between Code for America CEO Amanda Renteria and Beeck Center Executive Director Lynn Overmann on why forms matter—not just as documents, but as critical gateways to services. They awarded “Formie Awards” to four governments that exemplify four key pillars of effective form design: accessibility, interoperability, transformation, and collaboration. Award winners included:

 

From there, sessions moved quickly into the practical realities of what better forms require. 

Highlights include:

  • Massachusetts shared how accessible design begins with disciplined, iterative testing by offering live demonstrations of the small fixes that make forms work for everyone.
  • Arizona and Colorado highlighted what it looks like to redesign benefits and complaint processes by centering the people closest to the work. 
  • By centering eligibility workers and helping community members navigate behavioral health systems, these states showed how each round of testing opens new possibilities for improvement.
  • Many speakers emphasized that progress comes not only from better design, but from changing the systems around it. New York demonstrated how moving from “blueprint to browser” with tools like Figma, GitHub Copilot, and Code Connect can dramatically speed up workflows and strengthen collaboration between designers and developers.
  • Others looked beyond individual forms altogether. Philadelphia shared how automatic enrollment is helping eliminate unnecessary paperwork for its Zero Fare program, while California walked through a new disaster recovery model developed by auditing 22 forms across eight agencies to build a unified, more navigable experience. 
  • Innovation also came in the form of new technology and new mindsets. Sessions explored how artificial intelligence (AI) agents are beginning to streamline safety net applications and free up caseworker time.

 

For anyone who missed a session or wants to revisit a favorite, recordings are available on the Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation’s YouTube channel. You can also find in-depth spotlights on some of the FormFest speakers on the Digital Government Hub, as well as individual session recaps.