§ 52:14-43 — State government entity, Executive Branch, direct services to public, develop, publish language access plan, compliance, documentation of progress.

4. a. Each State government entity in the Executive Branch that provides direct services to the public, in consultation with the Department of Human Services, Department of Law and Public Safety, and Office of Information Technology, shall develop and publish a language access plan that shall reflect how the entity will comply with the provisions of this act, P.L.2023, c.263 (C.52:14-40 et seq.), and document all progress since it last submitted a language access plan. The State government entity shall issue the language access plan required by this section within one year of the effective date of this act, and shall update and publish the plan every three years thereafter. The State government entity shall also post the language access plan on the entity's website. The State government entity shall consult with community or stakeholder entities representing limited-English proficient populations in drafting and updating the plan. b. Each language access plan shall set forth, at a minimum: (1) when and by what means the government entity will provide or is already providing language assistance services; (2) how the government entity intends to keep track of the limited-English proficient population requesting interpretation and translation services, and how the government entity determines the need for language assistance services for the limited-English proficient population; (3) a report on the frequency of requests for language assistance services, how the requests were met, whether language assistance services were requested in languages other than the required seven, and how the government entity intends to notify the limited-English proficient populations of the available language assistance services; (4) how the government entity documents the actual provision of language assistance services to individuals with limited-English proficiency; (5) a training plan for government entity employees who will be involved in the implementation of this act which includes, at minimum, annual training on the language access policies of the government entity, how to provide language assistance services, and follow any applicable State and federal confidentially protocols; (6) a plan for how the agency will ensure the provision of language assistance services of the highest quality and in a culturally competent manner; (7) the manner and means by which the public may contact the entity's language access coordinator regarding language access issues; (8) the titles of all available translated documents and the languages into which they have been translated; (9) a website and document content describing the translation services, processes, and documents required by this act; and (10) a plan for annual internal monitoring of the government entity's compliance with this act. c. As part of the development of the initial language access plan required by this section, each State government entity shall assess the interpretation needs of members of the public with limited English proficiency that the entity serves, estimate the cost associated with providing interpretation services to those individuals, and incorporate the provision of interpretation services into the entity's language access plan. d. Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, if a State government entity already has a language access plan on the effective date of this act, the State government entity may continue to use that language access plan and may adjust that plan in accordance with the provisions of this section. A State government entity shall be permitted to retain any additional languages already included in an existing language access plan. e. Each State government entity that provides direct services to the public shall designate a senior-level employee to serve as a language access coordinator to oversee the development and implementation of the entity's language access plan and compliance with the provisions of this act. L.2023, c.263, s.4.