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Capitalization of Governmental Words

When you write about or to a governmental agency, do you wonder when to capitalize? Here are some simple rules to help you.

Rule: When you use the complete names of departments, capitalize. You may also capitalize a shortened form of a department. Do not capitalize when these words are used as adjectives or generically.

Examples:
the United Nations General Assembly
the General Assembly
Congress
a congressional committee

Rule: Capitalize civil titles only when used with the name following or when used in place of a name.

Examples:
Councilman Harris
the councilman
President Obama
the president

Rule: If you are working on government documents or you are representing a government agency, then you may capitalize words like City, County, and District.

Example: The County will implement the plan approved by the voters last June.

Rule: When you refer back to a proper noun using a shortened version of the original name, you may capitalize it.

Example: The District Water Plan allocates… The Plan calls for…

Example: The Federal Bureau of Investigation has taken the case. The Bureau has sent out a bulletin to other federal departments to enlist their help in capturing the fugitive.

Posted on Thursday, May 29th, 2008 at 2:18 am

3 Comments

3 Responses to “Capitalization of Governmental Words”

  1. Jane says:
    October 15, 2008 at 11:48 pm

    I’m so glad! Thanks for writing.

    Reply
  2. Deborah says:
    October 26, 2011 at 12:14 pm

    The full name of a U.S. estate tax form is: Form 706 United States Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return. When referring to an estate tax return and estate tax, what are the rules for capitalization of “federal” and when referring to the Return itself, if never properly named in a paragraph?

    Your spouse’s Federal exemption…
    … a Federal Estate Tax Return.
    … shelter from Federal tax.
    … the Federal exemption.
    … Federal taxes.

    Thank you in advance for your help.

    Reply
    • Jane says:
      October 27, 2011 at 7:45 pm

      The word federal when used generically as an adjective would not be capitalized. If it refers to a governmental body that uses it as part of its name, such as Federal Trade Commission, it would be capitalized. Regarding the tax return, if you are writing the name of a specific tax return form, it is considered a proper noun and would be capitalized.

      Form 706 United States Estate Tax Return
      your spouse’s federal exemption
      a federal estate tax return
      shelter from federal tax
      the federal exemption
      federal taxes

      Reply

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