President Clinton Orders Services for People With Limited English Proficiency (LEP)
President Bill Clinton on this day signed Executive Order 13166 requiring federal agencies to improve their services for people with Limited English Proficiency (LEP).
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) currently has the following policy:
If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating effectively in English, you may need an interpreter or document translation in order to have meaningful access to programs funded by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 requires recipients of Federal financial assistance to take reasonable steps to make their programs, services, and activities accessible by eligible persons with limited English proficiency.
The executive order was one step that the federal government and many states took to accommodate the growing language diversity of American society.
Read Executive Order 13166: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2000-08-16/pdf/00-20938.pdf
Learn more about LEP: http://www.lep.gov/13166/eo13166.html
Review Resources for Serving Persons with Limited English Proficiency here
Learn more about the law of “English-only” requirements: http://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/29/1606.7