Albany, NY – Assemblyman Nelson L. Castro applauds Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s initiative to increase language access to important government programs and services. "This is of great assistance to numerous of New Yorkers who are facing difficulties to access these programs due to their limited English proficiency," expressed Assemblyman Castro.
The Governor’s Statewide Language Access Policy requires all Executive State agencies that offer public services in New York State, to provide interpretation services between the agency and the individual; and to translate any document that is provided or completed by beneficiaries or participants of government programs or services.
Throughout the years, the number of immigrants in the United States has rapidly grown, bringing new languages to places that are unfamiliar with such cultural diversity. Many of these individuals arrive to this country without knowing English and face a lot of difficulties due to the limited ability to read, speak or understand the language. In fact, these language barriers have limited their access to important government programs and services.
For this reason, Assemblyman Castro introduced bill A.4242 to help in the process of overcoming language barriers in the State of New York. "I want to ensure that government services and programs are accessible to my constituents and that Executive State agencies take reasonable actions to guarantee that all New Yorkers can access and benefit from their programs," added Assemblyman Castro.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at 718-933-6909 or 518-455-5511 or email me at Castronl@assembly.state.ny.us.
