Language Access and Civil Rights: Analyzing the Impact of the Executive Order Claiming to Make English the Official National Language

On March 2, President Trump issued an executive order, “Designating English as the Official Language of the United States.” This commentary reviews preexisting law and policy regarding language access in the United States, how this executive order may or may not affect language access, and what next steps on this order could look like. There are over 25 million people with limited English proficiency (LEP) in the United States, including immigrants who speak diverse languages from all over the world, people who use American Sign Language, people who speak American Indian languages, and millions of multigenerational Spanish speakers in Puerto Rico and across the country. How the federal government communicates and whether or not those communications are accessible to everyone is a matter of civil rights. 

What is Current Language Access Law? 

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits recipients of federal funding from discriminating on the basis of national origin. Such recipients typically include state and local governments, health care providers, school districts, public transportation agencies, colleges and universities, and nonprofits and businesses. In 1974, the Supreme Court ruled in Lau v. Nichols that discrimination against people with limited English proficiency (LEP) is prohibited as a type of national origin discrimination. 

In 2000, President Bill Clinton issued Executive Order 13166, requiring each federal agency to develop a plan to ensure it is providing meaningful access to people with LEP in line with Title VI and to release guidance ensuring their funding recipients do the same. The Department of Justice (DOJ) and other agencies have released guidance and resources over the years in line with this order, which was subsequently renewed by the Bush, Obama, and Biden administrations.  

While Title VI applies to all federal funding, some agencies and programs have their own additional language access obligations under other provisions of federal law. For example, Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) applies Title VI and other antidiscrimination obligations not just to recipients of federal health funding, but also to federal agencies administering health care programs under Section 1557. Section 616 of the Stafford Act also requires FEMA to ensure disaster information is available to individuals with LEP. Both Sections 2 and 203 of the federal Voting Rights Act include language access provisions requiring the translation of all ballots, voter registration information, and election materials in widely-spoken languages and prohibit voting practices or procedures that discriminate on the basis of membership in a language minority group to ensure all U.S. citizens have an equal opportunity to register and vote.    

What Does the English Language Executive Order Do? 

First, the order designates English as the “official” language of the United States. However, no federal law exists that gives the President the authority to “designate” English as the “official language,” nor does the order claim there is. In fact, legislation has been introduced for years attempting to make this “designation,” but it has never passed into law. No entity should alter its compliance with current federal law or its approach to providing information and services in languages other than English simply because the White House has made a symbolic declaration without any statutory authority.  

Second, the order also repeals Executive Order 13166, potentially ending 25 years of work to ensure federal programs and information are equally available to all Americans. It instructs the Department of Justice to rescind and replace any policy guidance issued under that original order. This includes important resources, such as guidance to recipients of federal funding on how to comply with Title VI and directions to agencies to ensure they are meeting the needs of the public, including people with LEP. 

The order does not direct agencies beyond the DOJ to take action. In fact, it instead specifies that agencies are not required to change their services or otherwise remove or stop production of documents in languages other than English. The order also does not change federal regulations requiring language access; any revisions to federal regulations must go through formal public notice-and-comment rulemaking, and agency heads have discretion to make decisions necessary to fulfill their missions in compliance with federal statutes and regulations. 

What Happens Next with Language Access?  

On March 22, the DOJ issued a notice that it was repealing its 2002 guidance on the provision of language access, as required by the order. This notice recognizes, however, that recipients of federal funding have a “continuing obligation to comply with Title VI, all applicable Title VI implementing regulations, all applicable federal civil rights laws and nondiscrimination provisions.” 

As acknowledged by DOJ, the mandate to provide language access under Title VI and other statutes (such as the provisions in the Stafford Act and Affordable Care Act described above) remain unchanged for entities operating with federal funds such as courts, schools, health care providers, transportation agencies, and state and local governments. These entities must continue to provide individuals with LEP with translated documents, interpretation services, and language access at no charge by qualified interpreters and translators.  

While the declaration of English as the “official language” does not change any federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination or that otherwise require language access, it remains to be seen how and when the DOJ will issue new guidance as it previewed in the March 22 notice. The new order provides little direction, though reports that the federal government is canceling translation contracts are deeply concerning.  

NILC urges the DOJ, along with all federal agencies, to minimize disruption to any language services and access provided to the American public and ensure that recipients of federal funding are aware that their Title VI obligations are still in effect. Language and civil rights groups should continue to monitor, report, and mobilize to ensure no changes to federal language access plans or resources provided by the DOJ or any state, local, or federal agencies violate federal civil rights and language access laws or equal protection.  

With 25 million people with LEP in the United States speaking more than 300 languages, language access determines whether community members are able to obtain critical services including health care and housing, and whether they are able to meaningfully participate in democratic institutions. As Congress and the judiciary have recognized in the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, Affordable Care Act, and many others, language access rights are civil rights. Ensuring that information about federal and federally funded programs and services remains accessible to all is central to the future of our democracy.  

Additional Resources 

• Know Your Rights: Executive Order Threatens Access to Federal Programs – Asian Law Caucus, California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc. (CRLA), and Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles 

• Despite New Executive Order, Language Access Is Still the Law! – National Health Law Program 

• Section 1557 Regulations Clarify Nondiscrimination Protections and Access to Language Assistance – NILC 

• Using Federal Opportunities to Expand Health Care Access for Individuals with Limited English Proficiency – NILC