State Government - Equal Access to Public Services for Individuals With Limited English Proficiency and Individuals With Disabilities

The document header was updated from 'House Bill' to 'Enrolled Bill' to indicate the legislation has passed both the House and Senate and is ready for the Governor's signature.

The list of sponsoring delegates was slightly reorganized to include 'Sample-Hughes, Simmons, Simpson, Smith, Taveras, Turner, Williams, Woods, Woorman, and Young Young' in the enrolled version, ensuring all sponsors are clearly listed.

The 'Whereas' clauses in the preamble were reordered to explicitly state that over 670,000 Marylanders live with a disability or have limited English proficiency, ensuring the dual focus of the bill is clear from the start.

The definition of 'Equal Access' was retained but the context was reinforced to include accommodations for individuals with disabilities, such as sign languages and Braille, alongside traditional language assistance.

The definition of 'Limited English Proficiency' was retained, maintaining the requirement for accurate and timely communication at no cost to the individual.

The requirement for the Governor's Office of Immigrant Affairs to oversee, monitor, investigate, and enforce compliance with language access laws was preserved and emphasized.

The mandate for the Governor to include a $400,000 appropriation in the Fiscal Year 2027 budget to implement these provisions was retained.

The deadline of July 1, 2027, for the Office to develop an enforcement strategy and designate a compliance program director was preserved.