Homeless in Arizona

Arizona ‘English only’ document plan touted

  If government is going to exist, it should use the language of the people governed. And in Arizona that includes Spanish. And of course all the languages of the Indian tribes that the government stole most of Arizona from such as Navajo, Hopi, Apache, Pima, and Yavapai.

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Arizona ‘English only’ document plan touted

By Alia Beard Rau The Republic | azcentral.com

Tue Feb 5, 2013 11:05 PM

The debate over providing government documents only in English is re-emerging at the Arizona Legislature, a controversial topic many thought had been resolved seven years ago with a successful ballot measure.

The House Government Committee on Tuesday passed House Bill 2283, which would forbid state agencies from mailing out certain documents in any language but English. It still needs a vote of the full House before moving on. But critics already warn it could violate the federal Civil Rights Act.

Sponsor Rep. Steve Smith, R-Maricopa, who has introduced several anti-illegal-immigration measures this year and in previous years, said this bill is about saving money. He also said it reinforces Proposition 103, passed by voters in 2006 to make English the state’s official language and require that all “official government actions” be conducted in English. Even with its passage, many state documents continue to be printed in Spanish and other languages.

Arizona is among 28 states with laws declaring English their official language.

HB 2283 specifically says any document that a state agency is required to produce in a language other than English must be posted online and a printed copy must be made available in the agency office. Agencies would no longer mail out such documents.

It has an exception for “voting material,” but the new law could apply to documents such as applications for social services, driver’s license manuals and some information from schools.

“We don’t need to print, bind and ship everything an agency does at the taxpayers’ expense,” Smith said. “We’re spending millions of dollars a year on documents that would be fine printed in English only, as our (state) Constitution says.”

Opponents of HB 2283 fear it could take Arizona down a legal path it followed in 1988, when voters passed a much broader “English only” amendment to the state Constitution. That version said state government must “act in English” and was interpreted to cover a wide range of activities. After a decade of litigation, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned it.

The 2006 measure was tailored more narrowly to focus only on official government actions, as opposed to acts that could include a state employee speaking Spanish to a resident.

“The bill as currently drafted is much broader than Rep. Smith suggests,” said attorney Ellen Katz with the William E. Morris Institute for Justice. “It violates Title 6 of the Civil Rights Act. Even in states that have an English-as-their-official-language policy, you still have to follow federal law.”

Title 6 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal funds. Katz said mailing out documents in English but not in other languages would violate that.

Smith dismissed the arguments, saying the information would merely be provided in a less expensive format.

He said the bill follows the people’s will, proven when Prop. 103 passed with more than 70 percent of the vote.

Rep. Michelle Ugenti, R-Scottsdale, agreed.

“There’s already a precedent for it (with Prop. 103), so I don’t think we’ll have another lawsuit,” she said.

Rep. Doug Coleman, R-Apache Junction, voted for the bill but said he had some reservations.

“Why are we excluding English?” he asked. “If we’re going to save taxpayers so much money, why don’t we just put everything online?”

Rep. Martin Quezada, D-Phoenix, called it bad public policy.

“This is not about cost savings,” he said. “It’s about creating a barrier between government and the people we’re supposed to be serving.”

 
Homeless in Arizona

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