ProEnglish: English is discrimination?

Since when is speaking English "discrimination?"

Executive Order 13166 says that any entity which receives federal funds must provide whatever services it offers in any foreign language spoken by anyone likely to receive those services. It says failure to do so is likely to constitute "discrimination on the basis of national origin" as prohibited by Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights law. Signed by President Clinton on August 11, 2000, the order directs all federal agencies to draft plans to "improve access to federally conducted or federally assisted programs for persons who, as a result of national origin, are limited in their English proficiency.”

This executive order gives the United States hundreds of all-but-official languages. We urge President Bush to overturn this order, and rescind the Justice Department guidelines which accompanied it. ProEnglish is fighting this order in every way we can, including in court, and in Congress.

We support H.R. 1228, which declares Executive Order 13166, "Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency," to be null and void.

ProEnglish believes that the executive order must be rescinded for the following reasons:

It uses power that was never delegated by Congress and has been repeatedly denied to the Executive Branch by the courts. When Congress wrote the 1964 Civil Rights Law, language was never considered a basis for determining discrimination. It is self-evident that a person's national origin, which cannot be changed, is not the same as the language someone speaks. Numerous court decisions have rejected attempts to equate language used with discrimination.

The order is another huge un-funded federal mandate. The order directs federal funds recipients to pay for the enormous cost of providing translation and interpreter services from their own funds. There is no federal reimbursement. It covers tens of thousands of state and local government agencies as well as government contractors. It affects schools, libraries, hospitals, unemployment offices, fire and police departments, public health clinics, and countless private agencies that receive direct or indirect support from the federal government. The order says that compliance is not limited to written translations, meaning that oral interpreter services have to be made available unless there were compelling reasons not to do so. This means hiring tens of thousands of additional employees as translators and interpreters. The order’s cost to taxpayers at all levels of government could easily total tens of billions of dollars.

The order has an enormous impact. Although it states that it "does not create any new rights or benefits," the order’s redefinition of "national origins discrimination" as equivalent to language will have an enormous impact. The executive order is already being implemented in the health-care field. The American Medical Association (AMA) warns that the executive order could create serious access problems, even for people with limited English proficiency. [Click here to read the AMA's letter]

The action is certain to result in more litigation. The order will add billions of dollars in legal costs to settle civil rights lawsuits against both government and private agencies, which are found not to be in "meaningful compliance" with the order. It also opens up a whole new field of medical malpractice liability.

The order defies common sense. The requirement to provide services in a multiplicity of languages will introduce confusion and error into government operations, encumber or impede the delivery of government services, and unfairly penalize people who are not bilingual.


Action Urge Congress to defend English Model official English statute Donate Current Legislation State Profiles ProEnglish BLOG Sign up for Twitter Email sign up Issues Official English Bilingual Education English on the Job Citizenship and Immigration Bilingual Ballots Puerto Rican Statehood Ending E.O. 13166, the "Multilingual Mandate" Contact us: 1601 N. Kent St. Suite 1100 Arlington, VA 22209 ph: (703) 816-8821		Since when is speaking English "discrimination?" Executive Order 13166 says that any entity which receives federal funds must provide whatever services it offers in any foreign language spoken by anyone likely to receive those services. It says failure to do so is likely to constitute "discrimination on the basis of national origin" as prohibited by Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights law. Signed by President Clinton on August 11, 2000, the order directs all federal agencies to draft plans to "improve access to federally conducted or federally assisted programs for persons who, as a result of national origin, are limited in their English proficiency.” This executive order gives the United States hundreds of all-but-official languages. We urge President Bush to overturn this order, and rescind the Justice Department guidelines which accompanied it. ProEnglish is fighting this order in every way we can, including in court, and in Congress. We support H.R. 1228, which declares Executive Order 13166, "Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency," to be null and void. ProEnglish believes that the executive order must be rescinded for the following reasons: It uses power that was never delegated by Congress and has been repeatedly denied to the Executive Branch by the courts. When Congress wrote the 1964 Civil Rights Law, language was never considered a basis for determining discrimination. It is self-evident that a person's national origin, which cannot be changed, is not the same as the language someone speaks. Numerous court decisions have rejected attempts to equate language used with discrimination. The order is another huge un-funded federal mandate. The order directs federal funds recipients to pay for the enormous cost of providing translation and interpreter services from their own funds. There is no federal reimbursement. It covers tens of thousands of state and local government agencies as well as government contractors. It affects schools, libraries, hospitals, unemployment offices, fire and police departments, public health clinics, and countless private agencies that receive direct or indirect support from the federal government. The order says that compliance is not limited to written translations, meaning that oral interpreter services have to be made available unless there were compelling reasons not to do so. This means hiring tens of thousands of additional employees as translators and interpreters. The order’s cost to taxpayers at all levels of government could easily total tens of billions of dollars. The order has an enormous impact. Although it states that it "does not create any new rights or benefits," the order’s redefinition of "national origins discrimination" as equivalent to language will have an enormous impact. The executive order is already being implemented in the health-care field. The American Medical Association (AMA) warns that the executive order could create serious access problems, even for people with limited English proficiency. [Click here to read the AMA's letter] The action is certain to result in more litigation. The order will add billions of dollars in legal costs to settle civil rights lawsuits against both government and private agencies, which are found not to be in "meaningful compliance" with the order. It also opens up a whole new field of medical malpractice liability. The order defies common sense. The requirement to provide services in a multiplicity of languages will introduce confusion and error into government operations, encumber or impede the delivery of government services, and unfairly penalize people who are not bilingual.