NY State Governor Hochul celebrated the second anniversary of both the expansion of New York State’s language access policy and the launch of the Office of Language Access within the New York State Office of General Services.
State Agencies Will Issue Updated Language Access Plans
Governor Kathy Hochul today celebrated the second anniversary of both the expansion of New York State’s language access policy and the launch of the Office of Language Access within the New York State Office of General Services. Originally proposed by Governor Hochul in her 2022 State of the State agenda and subsequently established as part of the FY 2023 Enacted Budget, OLA has made great strides in ensuring New Yorkers can easily access state government programs and benefits no matter their preferred language. OLA’s accomplishments, in partnership with dozens of Language Access Coordinators overseeing their respective agencies’ provision of language access services, have reinforced New York State’s role as a national leader in providing language access services to the public.
“For centuries, New York State has been called home by people from around the world who immigrate to our country in search of a better life for themselves and their families,” Governor Hochul said. “In only two short years, the Office of Language Access has completely changed how and where we communicate with New Yorkers with limited English proficiency about vital state services and programs that can help them in all aspects of their lives.”
Alongside the creation of OLA, Governor Hochul also proposed and successfully enacted the codification of a nation-leading statewide language access law as part of the FY 2023 Enacted Budget. New York State’s language access law requires that executive state agencies providing direct services or benefits to the public must also provide free interpretation services in any language to members of the public seeking to access those services. In addition, applicable agencies must translate vital agency documents into the top 12 most commonly spoken non-English languages based on data published by the Census Bureau. These languages currently include Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Yiddish, Bengali, Korean, Haitian Creole, Italian, Arabic, Polish, Frenchand Urdu.
New York State Office of General Services Commissioner Jeanette Moy said, “English is not a primary language for millions of people in New York. The Office of Language Access strives to create a multilingual environment where all New Yorkers can interact with their government. As the home of the State’s Office of Language Access, OGS is proud of all we’ve accomplished this past year. We are eager to continue working with our state agency partners to advance Governor Hochul’s commitment to breaking down language barriers that hinder New Yorkers’ access to state programs and initiatives.”
Office of Language Access Executive Director Margarita Larios said, “Just yesterday, the world recognized the vital work of language professionals on International Translation Day. Without the support of dedicated interpreters, translators, and language services providers, we would not have accomplished all we have this past year alongside state language access coordinators and their executive agencies. As we mark two years since OLA’s establishment, I would like to thank all of our partners from state agencies, community-based organizations, state and local government and beyond for embarking with us on this journey to ensure all New Yorkers can easily access state government programs and services, no matter their English proficiency. This is just the beginning, and thanks to Governor Hochul and OGS Commissioner Jeanette Moy’s support, we’re working hard to push the envelope and advance toward our goal of language justice for New Yorkers!”
A part of the NYS Office of General Services (OGS), OLA provides critical support, guidance, oversight and coordination to all 49 state agencies complying with the language access law. The OLA works closely with these agencies that provide direct services or benefits to New Yorkers to ensure they have the tools needed to offer interpretation services in any language and translate vital agency documents into the top 12 non-English languages most spoken by New Yorkers.
Among the many accomplishments made by OLA since October 2023, the Office:
- Held a 13-week-long listening tour that raised awareness about language access rights in New York State and administered a language services community survey in 26 languages. The tour included sessions in Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, Westchester, Long Island and New York City, and attracted state agency partners, community-based organizations and members of the public. The information gathered through this process will be used for future planning.
- Completed an Age Analysis Report, first of its kind, in partnership with the Office of General Services’ Digital, Media Services Center and Data Analytics Office, which analyzes the age groups of New Yorkers with limited English proficiency.
- Created, in partnership with the Governor’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the Governor’s Office of the Chief Disability Officer, the firstNew York State Person-First and Identity-First Language Glossary. This resource is available in 14 languages and aims to encourage using culturally sensitive terms that center the voices of those often marginalized or stereotyped.
- Published its first annual report, capturing the language services state agencies provided under the statewide language access law from October 2022 to March 2023.
- Met regularly with non-profit organizations focused on language access and shared information about the statewide language access law and the OGS centralized language service contract.
- Started programs that provide executive state agencies free equipment and resources to efficiently conduct simultaneous in-person interpretation and tablets for remote video interpretation. To date, these programs have supported the New York State Department of Health, Department of State, Department of Labor, Office of Mental Health, Office for People with Developmental Disabilities and the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance.
- Received 13,000 responses to a NYS Workforce Language Survey to gauge state employees’ linguistic diversity and abilities, which will inform future training.
- Held quarterly language access coordinator meetings that resulted in resources that promote best practices and help with quality assurance of language services.
Last week, OLA published its second annual report, which includes self-reported data on language services provided by executive state agencies between April 1, 2023, and March 31, 2024. The full report is now available on OLA’s website.
Additionally, state agencies will issue updated Language Access Plans, which set forth actions their respective agencies will take over the next two years to ensure New Yorkers with limited English proficiency can access their services. These plans include a list of translated documents and languages available, total staff with language access skills and abilities, a training plan, an annual monitoring plan and outreach strategies. Plans are updated every two years and are published here.
October 1, 2024 Albany, New York
Sources: Midtown Tribune, NY State NY.gov
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