| Summary |
The bill requires the department of personnel (department), in
collaboration with the office of new Americans, to conduct or contract to
conduct a statewide language access assessment (assessment). The
assessment covers all principal departments except the department of
state, the department of the treasury, and the department of law (principal
departments). The assessment must identify:
•
The needs of principal departments to meet the language
access standards outlined in the language access universal
policy, including requests for guidance, training, and
technical assistance;
•
Relevant language access materials from principal
departments, including language access plans, position
descriptions related to language access, procedures related
to language access, and technical assistance or training
materials;
•
Information on current language services contracts,
expenditures, and funding sources related to language
access;
•
The public-facing responsibilities of principal departments,
including designating which principal departments and
their subcontractors do and do not have frequent contact
with linguistically diverse individuals; and
•
Other covered entities that may be subject to the standards
outlined in the language access universal policy.
The department may enter into an agreement with a third-party entity to
conduct all or part of the assessment. The third-party entity must have
demonstrated expertise in working with state governments on language
access initiatives, such as developing language access policies or plans.
At the conclusion of the assessment and not later than December
31, 2026, the department, the office of new Americans, or the third-party
entity is required to create a report covering the findings of the
assessment and recommendations concerning:
•
Improving efficiency, increasing quality of service,
reducing cost, avoiding duplicative work, building on
existing best practices, and minimizing administrative
burden with respect to the provision of linguistically
accessible government services and programs to
linguistically diverse individuals;
•
Addressing gaps and improving meaningful service
through changes to language access services, practices, and
procedures;
•
Evaluating potential technological options for increasing
language access, such as artificial intelligence; and
•
Determining what infrastructure is needed to ensure full
and sustainable implementation of the standards outlined in
the language access universal policy.
The department must include a summary of the report and assessment in
its January 2027 presentation to legislative oversight committees required
by the State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent
(SMART) Government Act.
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