Disclaimer: On March 1, 2025, an Executive Order “Designating English as the Official Language of the United States” revoked Executive Order 13166 and directed the Attorney General to rescind any policy guidance documents issued pursuant to EO 13166 and provide updated guidance consistent with applicable law. The Department is currently reviewing guidance documents for compliance with the new Executive Order. The new Executive Order does not “require[] or direct[] any change in the services provided by any agency.”
The resources below are a sampling of those that may be useful in developing a language access program and are not necessarily endorsed by the Department of Justice or by the Federal Interagency Working Group on LEP.
Related topics: Interpretation | Translation
Program Development
Top Tips from Responses to the Survey of Language Access Strategies Used by Federal Government Agencies, Federally Conducted Committee, Federal Interagency Working Group on Limited English Proficiency
Language Access Plan Worksheet, Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Guide to Developing a Language Access Plan, U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - 2018
Language Access Services Webinar for Wyoming Department of Health (3 Sessions), Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - 2019
- Session II: Civil Rights and Language Access Planning (Recording, Slides) - April 17, 2019
- Sample LEP policy and procedure – OCR’s Sample LEP Policy and Procedure
Procurement of Language Services
Professional Services - Language Services, Translation and Interpretation Services, General Services Administration
Professional Services - Language Services, Linguistic Training and Education, General Services Administration
Translation and Interpretation Procurement Series (TIPS)
Before You Hire - Ask Yourself: “What are my Project’s Language Needs? - TIPS to making language service hiring decisions
TIPS on Hiring the Right Telephonic Interpretation Vendor- TIPS to finding a high-quality telephone interpretation vendor
TIPS for Working with Telephone Interpreters - TIPS for planning, placing, and troubleshooting calls with telephone interpreters
What Does it Mean to be a Certified Linguist? - TIPS to discovering vendor and linguist qualifications
TIPS on Building an Effective Staff Language Service Program - TIPS for recruiting, hiring, assessing, and retaining staff linguists
Other Resources
National Language Service Corps (NLSC)
Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR)
Federal Language Access Survey - 2006
Five Steps to Improving Communications with LEP Populations, Hablamos Juntos, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation - 2009