Tennessee
The Employee Affairs Subcommittee in the Tennessee House of Representatives is scheduled to hear legislation that would protect employers with English-in-the-workplace policies on April 14. The measure, H.B. 480, introduced by Rep. Matthew Hill, is identical to S.B. 469, a bill that passed the Tennessee Senate unanimously on March 30. Both bills are similar to legislation separately approved by the U.S. House and U.S. Senate last session.
In 2008, the Tennessee Senate voted unanimously to protect employers who adopt English-in-the-workplace policies. Despite the complete approval of the Senate, the House did not vote on the bill before the session expired.
Oklahoma
The Oklahoma legislature is expected to continue debate on official English legislation now pending in both chambers. The Senate may take up H.J.R. 1042, a measure that would give the voters of Oklahoma a referendum to make English the official language of the state. This bill passed the House of Representatives in March by a margin of 66-32. The House may take up a separate official English measure within the next week.
Official English legislation has been introduced in 22 states this year. To check if measures are pending in your state, click here. To find legislation pending at the federal level, click here.
U.S. English, Inc. is the nation's oldest and largest non-partisan citizens' action group dedicated to preserving the unifying role of the English language in the United States. Founded in 1983 by the late Sen. S.I. Hayakawa of California, U.S. English, Inc. (www.usenglish.org) now has more than 1.8 million members.
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