Reps. Chu, Meng, Vargas, and Sen. Padilla Introduce Language Access Board Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Rep. Judy Chu (CA-28), Chair Emerita of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), introduced the Language Access Board Act of 2026 with Rep. Grace Meng (NY-06), Chair of CAPAC, and Rep. Juan Vargas (CA-52). This bill would establish an independent board of community leaders and federal agency officials to research, develop, implement, and enforce language access standards across the federal government. Senator Padilla will be leading the Senate companion.

In 2025, President Trump declared English the official language of the United States by signing Executive Order (EO) 14224, revoking a 25-year-old mandate, renewed under Republican and Democratic administrations, that required federal agencies and recipients of federal funding to provide critical language access services to individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP). The Trump Administration's Department of Justice also issued guidance minimizing multilingual services and redirecting resources towards English-language education and assimilation.

This decision is already making it harder for the 25.7 million individuals with LEP in the United States to access basic services. In 2025, HUD announced its going "English-only", the IRS began considering rollbacks to multilingual taxpayer services, the SBA removed non-English webpages from its website, and LEP.gov was removed.

The Language Access Board Act of 2026 will help ensure that all Americans have access to the services and resources their tax dollars pay for, without barriers based on English proficiency. The bill would:

• Establish an independent Board of community experts and federal agency officials to enforce language access guidance and regulations across federal agencies and departments.
• Require the Board to establish, maintain, and provide technical assistance and training on language access standards for public-facing resources and materials for federally conducted programs.
• Ensure individual complaints related to federal agencies' or departments' failure to adhere to language access requirements are processed and investigated.
• Conduct a study on existing language access laws and best practices that help individuals with limited English proficiency access federal resources and programs.

"Being able to access federal services, regardless of the language you speak, is a civil right," said Rep. Judy Chu, Chair Emerita of CAPAC. "Millions of Americans, especially in our immigrant communities, depend on translation support to apply for a loan, enroll in Medicare, or even access disaster relief resources. Trump's English-only policies are a direct attack on immigrant families and an attempt to shut people out of the very services their tax dollars fund. I am proud to lead the Language Access Board Act to fight back against these hateful policies, ensure impacted communities have a seat at the table, and guarantee that language access protections are enforced."

"Every American should be able to access federal services and programs in a language they can understand. Yet President Trump is determined to make life harder for millions of immigrants by declaring English as the official language of the United States and rolling back multilingual resources," said Rep. Grace Meng, Chair of CAPAC. "CAPAC will not stand for this. The Language Access Board Act of 2026 will help combat these discriminatory policies and protect translation services for individuals with limited English proficiency, including millions of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders."

"For decades, federal language access services have helped millions of people file taxes, get emergency alerts, apply for loans, and access health care. Trump's decision to designate English as our country's official language and attempt to scrap these critical services is absolutely wrong," said Rep. Juan Vargas. "No one should be locked out of federal programs because of the language they speak. This legislation is critical to keeping in place the services our communities rely on, without barriers based on English proficiency."

"This Administration's effort to illegally and unilaterally declare English the national language of the United States is fundamentally un-American and will disenfranchise tens of millions of hardworking citizens and immigrants with limited English proficiency," said Senator Padilla. "Access to critical government programs and services must never be dependent on your ability to speak a language. The Language Access Board Act would ensure language accessibility standards across federal agencies and federally administered programs to serve all Americans."

Asian Americans have among the highest language access needs of any racial group, with 32 percent having LEP. Twelve percent of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders also have significant language access needs, and nearly 40 percent of Spanish-language speakers report speaking English "less than very well," according to the most recent U.S. Census.

This bill builds upon Congressmember Chu's longstanding commitment to ensuring language accessibility, beginning with her work as a City Councilmember fighting against an ugly "English-only" movement in her hometown of Monterey Park. In 2025, Rep. Chu led more than 50 House Democrats in multiple oversight letters to the Administration opposing the implementation of EO 14224. Earlier this month, Reps. Chu, Meng, Espaillat, and Sen. Padilla introduced a resolution recognizing April as "National Language Access Month", to bring attention to the millions of individuals in the U.S. with LEP and the importance of language access services.

The bill is also cosponsored by Reps. Dan Goldman, Frederica Wilson, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Ted Lieu, Rashida Tlaib, Al Green, Darren Soto, Tim Kennedy, and Lou Correa.

The Language Access Board Act of 2026 is endorsed by the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA); National Immigration Law Center (NILC); UnidosUS; National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA); National CAPACD; Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO); Asian Americans Advancing Justice - AAJC; OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates; NAKASEC TX; Empowering Pacific Islander Communities (EPIC); Missouri Asian American Youth Foundation; Colorado Interpreters and Translators; Jeenius,inc; Many Languages One Voice; South Asian Public Health Association (SAPHA); AREAA; Hmong National Development, Inc; Hmong American Partnership; Thai Community Development Center (Thai CDC); Chinatown Service Center; Pacific Asian Counseling Services; National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA); Ethnic Communities Opioid Response Network - Missouri (ECORN-MO); Learning Lab for Resiliency; Coalition for Sign Language Equity in Technology (CoSET S.A.F.E AI); Deaf Equality; Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum; Californians Together; Spring Institute for Intercultural Learning; MasterWord Services, Inc.; Japanese American Citizens League; Association of Language Companies; Kathleen Diamond & Co; ChineseinUS; The Sikh Coalition; American Association of Interpreters and Translators in Education (AAITE); Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters; and Simplify Language.

"AANHPI communities often face substantial obstacles to obtaining meaningful language access. Our community is diverse, spanning across 50 ethnicities with more than 100 languages and dialects, and language access services should reflect that. When language access services fall short, individuals and families are unable to obtain vital services. Ensuring culturally appropriate resources in people's primary languages is necessary for meaningful participation in key programs. We applaud Representative Chu's introduction of the Language Access Board Act to establish an independent board that will lean on the experience and expertise of community leaders to inform and determine critical language access guidance and regulations." said Jo Ann Paanio, Policy Director, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA).

Priya Purandare, Executive Director of NAPABA said, "The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) is grateful for the leadership of Rep. Judy Chu, Rep. Grace Meng, Rep. Juan Vargas, and the sponsors of the Language Access Board Act of 2026. This bill, along with the Language Access for All Act of 2026, are important steps to ensuring that every federal agency meet the needs of individuals with limited English proficiency. Language access is particularly important for the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) community, where most are immigrants. Nearly 32% of the community is limited English proficient and speaks over 100 different languages. NAPABA has long championed linguistic access for AANHPI communities in the legal system. We look forward to working with the bill's sponsors and stakeholders to ensure that every individual can access critical, federally funded services."

Click here to see the full bill text.