Tomorrow, Wednesday April 13th, the Texas House Committee on State Affairs will hold a public hearing to consider HB 176, a bill that would make English the official language of the state of Texas.

Introduced by Rep. Jim Jackson (R-115th-Dallas), HB 176 would simply make English the default language of government operations and communications.

 

The legislation states:  "A state agency is not required to provide documents, publish written materials, or provide website content in any language other than the official language of this state."

 

 

 

In a recent survey conducted by the Rasmussen Group in August 2010, 84 percent of likely voters expressed their support for making English the official language of the United States. Other polls taken on a state-by-state basis have indicated a similar threshold of support and thirty-one states have now adopted English as their official language. Texas is among the remaining 19 states that have yet to declare an official language. The latest state to do so was Oklahoma, which voted by a margin of 76% on the November 2010 ballot to amend the state constitution.

 

Having English as our official language simply means that for the government to act officially, it must communicate in English. It means the language of record is the English language, and that no one has a right to demand government services in any other language.

 

Official English, not "English-Only," would also reinforce America's historic message to new immigrants - that we expect them to learn English as the first step in their assimilation -- and that we are committed to ensuring that all Americans share in the economic, social and political benefits of having a common language.

 

 

 

 

The State Affairs Committee will meet on Wednesday, April 13th, so please call and email your state rep. (especially if they sit on the State Affairs Committee) and urge them to support HB 176!

 

(Click on the name below to view their contact info. Please only contact these Members if they are your district representative.)

 

Chair:  Rep. Byron Cook

Vice Chair:  Rep. Jose Menendez

 

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ProEnglish Backgrounders:

 

Dr. Manny Alvarez:  English-only bills are not unfair to immigrants

 

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ProEnglish is a self-governing project of U.S., Inc., a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and the nation's leading advocate of official English. We work through the courts and in the court of public opinion to defend English's historic role as America's common, unifying language, and to persuade lawmakers to adopt English as the official language at all levels of government. You can make a tax-deductible donation here.