Limited English Proficiency

Good customer service is welcome in any language

Idaho is home to a growing number of refugees and immigrants. Refugees are pushed from their homes by war, genocide, political or religious persecution or famine. For them Idaho is a welcome refuge. Immigrants (legal or otherwise) are pulled to this country by economic opportunity, political or religious freedom or a chance to reunite with family members. Whatever the reasons for relocation, most face the challenge of learning English as a second, third or sometimes fifth language. Whether they worked as engineers, doctors, artists or in some other profession in their home countries, all have an uphill struggle to master the basics of a new language in order to better engage our culture and society.

Federal law requires any recipient of federal resources to provide equal access to programs, services, facilities and/or housing, regardless of race, ethnicity, or national origin (among other protected classes). What this means to federal funding recipients is that you must have a Language Assistance Plan in place to accommodate persons with Limited English Proficiency (LEP). This may mean offering translation or interpretive services, expanding outreach efforts to include other significant language groups in your jurisdiction, or other changes in policies and procedures.

Beyond the legal requirements, it is helpful to think of your Language Assistance Plan as an extension of your existing customer service efforts. Wherever a customer, tenant or constituent is from, we all deserve and appreciate service that addresses our needs and respects us as individuals. Idaho is a great state full of wonderful people; it’s up to us all to be the best ambassadors and hosts possible to our new residents and neighbors.

Other related pages and documents

Refugees and Fair Housing Law – What every provider should know TODAY

Fair Housing Forum members representing the City of Boise, Boise City/Ada County Housing Authority and Idaho Legal Aid Services have all contributed to the LEP information contained below and on our Resources and Links page. Special thanks to Gary Hanes of the City of Boise for assembling several resources and for compiling the LEP Checklist, and to Rob Christensen of the Western Idaho Community Action Partnership for sharing the PowerPoint presentation.

LEP Introduction and Slideshow (.pdf)

HUD’s final guidance on LEP (.pdf)

LEP checklist (.doc)

ISpeak Cards (.pdf)

Offer to Translate in 24 Languages, 4 PDF pages in total. (Thanks to the City of Boise)
(24 lang.) page 1 . (24 lang.) page 2 . (24 lang.) page 3 . (24 lang.) page 4

LEP Survey template (.doc)

Primary language spoken at home by Idaho county (18 and over; do NOT speak English very well) (.xls)

Ability to speak English by language at home (5yrs and older) (.xls)