San Francisco Declares Vietnamese an Official City Language

San Francisco, The Gulf Observer: The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously to formally declare Vietnamese an official city language, mandating the provision of translation services in Vietnamese by city authorities. This decision is part of a broader effort to enhance language access and ensure that residents can engage with city services in their preferred language.

As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, this move accompanies other amendments to the city’s language access ordinance, which was originally enacted in 2001. The ordinance previously required city departments to translate services into any language spoken by at least 10,000 residents with limited English proficiency. The recent amendment lowers this threshold to 6,000 residents, thereby including Vietnamese in the list of official city languages, which already includes Chinese, Spanish, and Filipino.

According to the city’s language data dashboard, 6,791 San Francisco residents primarily speak Vietnamese. Consequently, the city will now be required to provide telephonic interpretations, website translations, written notices, and other official services in Vietnamese.

The legislation was introduced last year by District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton. “The city needed to expand language access to ensure its immigrant communities can participate in the government process,” Walton stated, emphasizing the importance of inclusive civic engagement.

This significant update to San Francisco’s language access ordinance aims to better serve the diverse linguistic needs of its population, fostering greater inclusivity and ensuring that all residents can fully participate in the city’s governmental processes.