[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 144 (Wednesday, October 15, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12610-S12612]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KOHL (for himself and Mr. Kennedy):
  S. 1733. A bill to authorize the Attorney General to award grants to 
States to develop and implement State court interpreter programs; to 
the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the State Court 
Interpreters Grant Program Act of 2003. This bill would create a modest 
Federal grant program to support the State court interpreter services. 
Currently, court interpreting services vary greatly by State--some 
States have highly developed programs, others are trying to get 
programs running but lack adequate funds, and still others have no 
program at all. This inconsistency creates the potential for poorly

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translated court proceedings, or court proceedings that are not 
translated at all. It is critical that we protect the constitutional 
right to a fair trial by funding State court interpreter programs.
  According to the 2000 Census, 18 percent of the population over age 
five speaks a language other than English at home. As these individuals 
with limited English proficiency come into the court system to seek 
redress or to defend themselves against allegations of civil or 
criminal wrongdoing, it is critical to the fair administration of 
justice that they be able to understand their court proceedings.
  At the Federal level, court interpreting services are provided as 
needed by trained and certified interpreters. Similarly, some States 
have robust and effective court interpreter programs in their State 
courts. These States recruit, train, test and certify individuals in 
all necessary languages. However, many States have limited programs 
which may test and certify interpreters for only one language. Such 
States may have only a small number of interpreters certified to 
interpret courtroom proceedings. Still other States have no program at 
all. We have heard horror stories of ``amateur'' interpreters 
attempting to translate courtroom events. For example, the Philadelphia 
Inquirer reports: ``In one juvenile court, a juvenile defendant had to 
interpret for his parents. In a Monroe County [Pennsylvania] court, a 
member of an anti-domestic violence group was asked to interpret for an 
alleged victim, despite having a clear bias.''
  The skills required of a court interpreter differ significantly from 
those required of other interpreters or translators. Legal English is a 
highly particularized area of the language, and requires special 
training. Although anyone with fluency in a foreign language could 
attempt to translate a court proceeding, the best interpreters are 
those that have been tested and certified as official court 
interpreters.
  A lack of qualified interpreters can create serious problems in the 
justice system. For example, a poorly interpreted trial may be appealed 
on the grounds that justice was not administered fairly. Those appeals 
clog up the courts. In addition, where there are inadequate resources 
available, interpreters may not be able to keep up with the caseload 
and trials may be delayed unreasonably and in violation of a 
defendant's right to a speedy trial.
  This is not just a State issue. First and foremost, the right to a 
fair trial is a federally protected right under the Constitution. The 
Federal Government therefore has a role to play in ensuring that State 
courts are holding fair trials. In addition, State budget crises have 
reduced the ability of the courts to pay for interpreter services. At 
the same time, requests for interpreter services have skyrocketed over 
the past several years all around the country. Although Spanish is by 
far the most requested language to be translated in courtrooms, court 
officials report regular or occasional need for Russian, German, 
French, Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese, Taiwanese, Korean, Vietnamese, 
Afghani, Armenian, Punjabi, Hindi, Arabic, Somali, Polish and many 
other languages. The coincidence of budget cuts and increased demand 
threatens federally-guaranteed due process and justifies Federal 
assistance.
  This legislation addresses this problem by authorizing $15 million 
for each of the next five fiscal years for a grant program to the 
States. Those States that apply would be eligible for a $100,000 base 
grant allotment. In addition, $5 million would be set aside for States 
that demonstrate extraordinary need. The remainder of the money would 
be distributed on a formula basis determined by the percentage of 
persons in that State over the age of five who speak a language other 
than English at home.
  Support for this legislation comes from State court administrators 
across the country. In fact, the Conference of Chief Justices and 
Conference of State Court Administrators this summer adopted a 
resolution urging Congress to establish a national program to assist 
State courts in providing court interpreters services.
  I hope my colleagues will help the court systems in their States to 
provide critical court interpreting services to their constituents.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1733

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``State Court Interpreter 
     Grant Program Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) the fair administration of justice depends on the 
     ability of all participants in a courtroom proceeding to 
     understand that proceeding, regardless of their English 
     proficiency;
       (2) 18 percent of the population of the United States over 
     5 years of age speaks a language other than English at home;
       (3) only qualified court interpreters can ensure that 
     persons with limited English proficiency comprehend judicial 
     proceedings in which they are a party;
       (4) the knowledge and skills required of a qualified court 
     interpreter differ substantially from those required in other 
     interpretation settings, such as social service, medical, 
     diplomatic, and conference interpreting;
       (5) the Federal Government has demonstrated its commitment 
     to equal administration of justice regardless of English 
     proficiency;
       (6) Executive Order 13166, issued August 11, 2000, requires 
     Federal Agencies, including courts, to improve access for 
     persons who have limited English proficiency;
       (7) 29 States have developed, or are developing, court 
     interpreting programs;
       (8) robust, effective court interpreter programs--
       (A) actively recruit skilled individuals to be court 
     interpreters;
       (B) train those individuals in the interpretation of court 
     proceedings;
       (C) develop and use a thorough, systematic certification 
     process for court interpreters;
       (D) have sufficient funding to ensure that a qualified 
     interpreter will be available to the court whenever 
     necessary; and
       (9) Federal funding is necessary to--
       (A) encourage States that do not have court interpreter 
     programs to develop them;
       (B) assist States with nascent court interpreter programs 
     to implement them;
       (C) assist States with limited court interpreter programs 
     to enhance them; and
       (D) assist States with robust court interpreter programs to 
     make further improvements and share successful programs with 
     other States.

     SEC. 3. STATE COURT INTERPRETER PROGRAM.

       (a) Grants Authorized.--
       (1) In general.--The Administrator of the Office of Justice 
     Programs of the Department of Justice (referred to in this 
     section as the ``Administrator'') shall make grants, in 
     accordance with such regulations as the Attorney General may 
     prescribe, to States to develop and implement programs to 
     assist individuals with limited English proficiency to access 
     and understand State court proceedings in which they are a 
     party.
       (2) Technical assistance.--The Administrator shall 
     allocate, for each fiscal year, $500,000 of the amount 
     appropriated pursuant to section 4 to be used to establish a 
     court interpreter technical assistance program to assist 
     States receiving grants under this Act.
       (b) Use of Grants.--Grants awarded pursuant to subsection 
     (a) may be used by States to--
       (1) assess regional language demands;
       (2) develop a court interpreter program for the State;
       (3) develop, institute, and administer language 
     certification examinations;
       (4) recruit, train, and certify qualified court 
     interpreters;
       (5) pay for salaries, transportation, and technology 
     necessary to implement the court interpreter program 
     developed pursuant to paragraph (2); and
       (6) engage in other related activities, as prescribed by 
     the Attorney General.
       (c) Application.--Each State desiring a grant under this 
     section shall submit an application to the Administrator at 
     such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such 
     information as the Administrator may reasonably require.
       (d) State Allotments.--
       (1) Base allotment.--From amounts appropriated for each 
     fiscal year pursuant to section 4, the Administrator shall 
     allocate $100,000 to each State, which has an application 
     approved under subsection (c).
       (2) Discretionary allotment.--From amounts appropriated for 
     each fiscal year pursuant to section 4, the Administrator 
     shall allocate a total of $5,000,000 to the States that have 
     extraordinary needs that must be addressed in order to 
     develop, implement, or expand a State court interpreter 
     program.
       (3) Additional allotment.--In addition to the allocations 
     made under paragraphs (1) and (2), the Administrator shall 
     allocate to each State, which has an application approved 
     under subsection (c), an amount equal to the product reached 
     by multiplying--
       (A) the unallocated balance of the amount appropriated for 
     each fiscal year pursuant to section 4; and

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       (B) the ratio between the number of people over 5 years of 
     age who speak a language other than English at home in the 
     State and the number of people over 5 years of age who speak 
     a language other than English at home in all the States that 
     receive an allocation under paragraph (1), as those numbers 
     are determined by the Bureau of the Census.

     SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated $15,000,000 for 
     each of the fiscal years 2005 through 2008 to carry out this 
     Act.
                                 ______