5514467 Joint Public Hearing on B21-66, Language Access for Education Amendment Act of 2015

Council of the District of Columbia

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, AND COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Notice of Joint Public Hearing

1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20004  

 

Chairman Phil Mendelson,

Committee of the Whole

 

Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie, Chairperson

Committee on the Judiciary

 

and

 

Councilmember David Grosso, Chairperson

Committee on Education

 

Announce a Joint Public Hearing on

 

Bill 21-0066, the “Language Access for Education Amendment Act of 2015”

 

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Room 412, John A. Wilson Building

1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20004

 

On Wednesday, July 1, 2015, Chairman Phil Mendelson will hold a joint hearing of the Committee of the Whole with the Committee on the Judiciary, chaired by Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie, and the Committee on Education, chaired by Councilmember David Grosso, on Bill 21-0066, the “Language Access for Education Amendment Act of 2015”. The hearing will take place in Room 412 of the John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., at 11 a.m.

The stated purpose of the bill is to require the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), the Deputy Mayor for Education (DME), and each local education agency (LEA) to partner with the Office of Human Rights to provide training for staff, teachers, and counselors; require OSSE and each LEA to have at least one English as a Second Language certified member on staff if the percentage of English language learners is ten percent or higher; require that contracts for materials for teachers, students, and parents that OSSE, DME, or each LEA enter into must be published in the top five spoken languages; amend the Language Access Act of 2004 to include the Executive Office of the Mayor, the Council, and any LEA; require that covered entities annually publicize the list of oral language services provided; require that covered entities designate a full-time equivalent whose primary role is language access coordinator; provide persons with limited or no-English proficiency adequate relief for the denial of oral or written language services by the District government; and create a civil penalty fund.

 

The Committees invite the public to testify or to submit written testimony. Anyone wishing to testify should contact Kate Mitchell, Committee Director for the Committee on the Judiciary, at [phone], or via e-mail at [e-mail], and provide their name, telephone number, organizational affiliation, and title (if any) by close of business, June 26, 2015. Representatives of organizations will be allowed a maximum of five minutes for oral testimony, and individuals will be allowed a maximum of three minutes. Witnesses should bring fifteen copies of their written testimony and, if possible, also submit a copy of their testimony electronically to [e-mail].

For witnesses who are unable to testify at the hearing, written statements will be made part of the official record. Copies of written statements should be submitted either to the Committee on the Judiciary or to Nyasha Smith, Secretary to the Council, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 5, Washington, D.C. 20004.  The record will close at the end of the business day on July 8, 2015.