“To establish the Language Access Board, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section establishes the Language Access Board within the Federal Government, composed of 32 members: 16 presidential appointees selected on the basis of professional qualifications and expertise in language access policy, services for individuals with limited English proficiency, or translation and interpretation (including one public member of the Access Board under section 502 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973), and 16 heads (or executive level IV or higher designees) of the Departments of Health and Human Services, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Labor, the Interior, Agriculture, Justice, Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security, Education, and Commerce, as well as the Internal Revenue Service, Office of Management and Budget, Small Business Administration, Social Security Administration, and Department of the Treasury. The Board is charged with enforcing language access standards under section 4, providing technical assistance and training on such standards and related statutory provisions, studying and connecting individuals with limited English proficiency to federal resources, and promoting language access across society. Appointed members serve 5-year terms (with initial terms staggered as 6 for 5 years, 5 for 4 years, and 5 for 3 years), may not be reappointed more than once without a 30-month break in service, receive compensation not to exceed the daily equivalent of Executive Schedule level IV, and are subject to rules governing vacancies, chairperson and vice-chairperson elections (with alternation between member categories and a prohibition on same-party leadership), and travel expenses.
This section directs the Board to complete a study, not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, of Federal language access requirements (including statutory, regulatory, and Executive order provisions and adjustments over time), barriers preventing individuals with limited English proficiency from accessing Federal programs and initiatives, the costs and risks of failing to provide accessible services, agency standards for interpreters and translators (including machine translation and artificial intelligence), and the effects of inaccurate or incomplete translations on agency operations. The Board must submit the study results to Congress and the President and publish them on a publicly accessible website. This section also requires the Board to review language access provisions of law and publish the results on a publicly accessible website within the same 2-year period.
This section requires each federal department and agency to ensure that public-facing resources and materials for programs or initiatives, including vital documents and websites, are accessible to individuals with limited English proficiency in a format and manner comparable to that provided to other members of the public, unless an undue burden would be imposed. It directs the Board, after consultation with appropriate agencies and organizations representing individuals with limited English proficiency, to issue initial standards for implementing these requirements not later than 2 years after the date of enactment, following a 60-day public comment period and review by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (with inaction deemed approval after 30 days). The Board must review and amend the standards as appropriate every 5 years thereafter to account for technological changes, program modifications, demographic shifts, and evolving language access needs. Each agency must incorporate the standards into its language access policies within 6 months of publication or revision. The section also establishes a waiver process under which an agency may request relief from a specific standard by submitting documentation to the Board, which must grant or deny the request within 30 days (or request additional information).
This section defines terms used in the Act, including "agency" (with the meaning given in 5 U.S.C. 551); "federally conducted program or initiative" (any program, activity, or operation directly administered by a Federal agency with day-to-day operational control and involving public contact, benefits, or communication, but excluding those administered by non-Federal entities unless the Federal Government exercises such control); "individual with limited English proficiency"; "language access"; "language access provision of law"; "language assistance services"; "meaningful access"; "public-facing resources or materials"; and "vital document."