Legal Requirements to Provide Language Access Services

On August 11, 2000, Executive Order 13166, "Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency, took effect. According to the Order, recipients of federal financial assistance must ensure that their programs are accessible to limited English proficient (LEP) persons and thus do not discriminate on the basis of national origin in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Moreover, the Order requires federal agencies to examine the services they provide, identify any need for services to those with limited English proficiency, and develop and implement a system to provide those services so LEP persons can have meaningful access to them.

The Coordination and Review Section of the Department of Justice is responsible for government-wide coordination with respect to Executive Order 13166. The Section retains the internal implementation plans that each federal agency is required to develop to ensure meaningful access to its own federally conducted programs and activities, and it also reviews and approves each federal funding agency’s external LEP guidance for its recipients.

The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice also maintains a website, www.lep.gov, that provides information, tools, and technical assistance regarding limited English proficiency and language services for federal agencies, recipients of federal funds, users of federal programs, and federally assisted programs.