To our valued Rapport International community,
As you may know, on March 1, 2025 the current administration signed an executive order (EO) designating English as the official language of the U.S. and rescinded EO 13166 from 2000, the standing policy that reinforced existing language access laws across the federal government.
An EO cannot overturn existing statutes that require Congress to pass new laws – federal law still requires certain organizations to provide language assistance to those who need it.
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on “national origin” and requires recipients of federal funding to ensure that limited English proficiency (LEP) individuals have access to programs and services.
Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act prohibits discrimination based on “national origin” and requires health providers to ensure access to programs and services. The Supreme Court interpreted this to include language.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ensures that individuals with disabilities, including those in the Deaf or hard of hearing community, have access to effective communications.
The 2022 Equity Action Plan from the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) specifies HHS’s commitments to upholding language access to ameliorate racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare.
These laws apply to government agencies, law enforcement, school districts, healthcare providers, federally funded programs providing social services or public benefits, financial institutions, businesses or non-profits providing public service, contractors, subcontractors, and vendors to any of the preceding, and any organizations receiving federal funding.
These organizations still need to offer language access, including interpreting and translation services.
In addition to the organizations regulated by the laws, many employers and companies provide language services for the benefit of their employees, customers, and partners. If you have immigrant employees, here’s an excellent webinar on how to handle a visit to your workplace by ICE and advise immigrants of their rights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xA8QW-93l1Y.
The US workforce relies on immigrants; just look at the demographics:
22% of workers in the labor force are immigrants
18% of the US population are immigrants
30% (approximately) of the employees in each of the following industries are immigrants: manufacturing, transportation/warehousing, construction, hospitality, and health aides
Immigration benefits the US by boosting economic growth, filling labor shortages, increasing tax revenue (LEP workers pay billions of dollars in taxes), and fostering innovation. Language access means that immigrants assimilate and become active, tax-paying members of society.
Language access is not just a “nice to have” — it’s essential. At Rapport International, we remain committed to our role in helping people communicate across language barriers to avoid injury, disputes, hiring challenges, miscommunication, and more.
Removing the laws that protect language access for LEP persons does not make sense – it will increase the cost and liability for governmental services, decrease education levels in the US, increase risk and injury to almost 20% of our population, add complexity to daily communication of safety officers, and decrease productivity rates and threaten revenue growth at our employers.
As we watch what happens with the current administration, we will monitor the laws, regulations, and EOs while continuing to provide the high-quality language services that our clients and LEP individuals count on.
And we will continue to educate and provide access to language to those who value it. It’s our vision to connect people across all languages and cultures for a peaceful and prosperous world.
We are here for you, no matter your language.
Sincerely,
Wendy Pease
President
Rapport International
wmpease@rapportintl.com | +1-978-443-2540 x101
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