Meaningful Language Access Initiatives

Welcome to the City of Charlotte's commitment to meaningful language access. We believe in building a community where every resident has the ability to access city services, engage in civic life, and communicate effectively with city officials, regardless of the language they speak. 

City Language Access Policy

The City of Charlotte is dedicated to ensuring all residents have equitable access to city services and resources. Our Language Access City Policy(PDF, 317KB) outlines our commitment to providing translation and interpretation services across all city departments, ensuring non-English speakers and those with limited English proficiency (LEP) can engage fully with city services.

Charlotte is growing and becoming increasingly diverse, with 30% of tis recent growth attributed to immigrant populations. The Queen City is linguistically diverse: one out of every five residents speak a language other than English at home. Approximately 77,000 people in the city identify as speaking English less than very well. In Charlotte, the languages spoken most often other than English are Spanish, Vietnamese, French, Chinese, Arabic, Tamil, Telugu, Tai languages, Hindi and Russian.

In November 2021, The City of Charlotte approved its language access policy. This policy requires all city departments to provide meaningful access to programs and services for non-English speakers through translation and interpretation services. Improving language access ensures that Charlotte continues to grow as a strong, inclusive and safe community for all.

While many departments offer language services already, this policy requires all departments to evaluate current practices and increase availability of language services. This may include better translation service in written communications, incorporating translation into more events and other tactics.

Key Components of Our Policy

Free Language Services: Translation and interpretation services are available at no cost to the user.

Accessibility: Services are accessible across all city departments and through various platforms, including in person, by phone and online.

Quality Assurance: We work with qualified language services providers to ensure high-quality and accurate translations and interpretations.

Training and Awareness: City staff receive ongoing training to improve cultural competence and awareness of language access services.

Broad Language Services: Offering extensive translation and interpretation services across digital and physical city interactions, ensuring ono one is left behind due to language limitations.

Responsive Services: Implementing a streamlined request process within each department for language services that are responsive to the immediate needs of our community members.

Community Outreach: Actively reaching out to diverse language communities to inform them of their rights to free language assistance services and how to access them.

Feedback Loop: Establishing mechanisms for feedback from users of our language services to continually refine and improve our offerings.

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