Existing law requires the head of each agency of the Executive Department of the State Government to designate one or more employees of the agency to be responsible for developing and biennially revising a language access plan for the agency that meets certain requirements. (NRS 232.0081) Similarly, sections 3 and 6 of this bill, respectively, require each board of county commissioners and governing body of a city to: (1) designate one or more employees of the county or city, as applicable, to be responsible for developing and biennially revising a language access plan for the county or city, as applicable, that meets certain requirements; and (2) on or before August 1 of each even-numbered year, submit the language access plan to the Office for New Americans created in the Office of the Governor. Section 4 of this bill requires the Director of the Office for New Americans to, on or before September 30 of each even-numbered year, submit a report to the Director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau for transmittal to the Legislature, or if the Legislature is not in session, the Legislative Commission, setting forth any recommendations for legislation relating to language access plans of state agencies or local governments. Section 4 further requires the Director of the Office to employ a person to serve as the language access coordinator to: (1) coordinate with each governing body required to create a language access plan; (2) provide oversight, central coordination, consultation and technical assistance to any state agency, board of county commissioners and governing body of a city in the implementation of language access plans; (3) provide any state agency, board of county commissioners and governing body of a city with a policy manual containing baseline policies and procedures for compliance with language access requirements; (4) maintain a publicly available roster of language interpreters and translators in positions that regularly have contact with the public and the languages each interpreter or translator speaks; (5) train any state agency, board of county commissioners and governing body of a city to effectively recruit and retain language interpreters and translators and to support the recruitment and retention process; (6) receive and investigate complaints relating to language access against any state agency, board of county commissioners or governing body of a city and work with the Director to resolve such complaints; (7) implement an annual budget and procurement strategy for expenses related to state language access plans; and (8) provide any local government with the demographical information of persons with limited English proficiency who are constituents of the local government. Section 7.5 of this bill makes an appropriation to the Office for personnel, travel, operating, equipment and information technology expenses associated with implementing the provisions of this bill. Sections 2 and 7 of this bill require the board of county commissioners in a county whose population is 100,000 or more (currently Clark and Washoe Counties) and the governing body of a city whose population is 25,000 or more located in such a county (currently the Cities of Henderson, Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Reno and Sparks) to ensure that any public notice which is issued by the planning commission of the county or city, as applicable, sets forth a link to the Internet website of the county or city, as applicable, that includes the public notice in every language in which voting materials are required to be prepared in the county pursuant to federal and state law. Sections 2 and 7 further require such boards of county commissioners and such governing bodies of cities to make a good faith effort to find certified translators to translate such information. Sections 2 and 7 provide that the respective county, county employees, city and city employees are not liable for any such translation.

Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 223.920
Reprint 1: 223.920
Reprint 2: 223.920
As Enrolled: 223.920
BDR: 223.920