State agencies help families weather economic emergencies, care for their children, address health problems, stay housed, and much more. But while nearly 1 in 10 Massachusetts residents are best served in a language other than English, our Commonwealth’s services and information are overwhelmingly English-only, effectively denying hundreds of thousands of families the ability to access essential resources.

Governor Healey’s recent Executive Order #615 marks a major step forward in affirming the language access rights of residents and acknowledging the serious harm caused by language barriers. But we can’t stop now.

An Act Relative to Language Access and Inclusion (Sen. DiDomenico, Rep. Madaro, Rep. González) would build on the strong foundation established by Governor Healey by standardizing and enforcing language access policies and practices at public-facing state agencies - ensuring all residents have equal access to the services and information they need.

The Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight is holding a hearing on this bill on October 3, and we need our lawmakers to make this a priority.

We’ve already started a message for you – click “Start Writing” above to add your own details and urge your legislators to support H.3084/S.1990 at the hearing on October 3!

Language access is essential to the safety, stability, and well-being of our communities. Thank you for standing with us!