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Senate committee hears push for state funding to sustain multilingual emergency communications
Summary
Witnesses told the Senate Committee on Government Operations April 4 that S.111 would help replace federal CDC funding and keep the Vermont Language Justice Project able to produce timely videos and other materials in many languages for emergencies and public-health guidance.
The Senate Committee on Government Operations heard testimony April 4 on S.111, a bill to provide state funding to support multilingual emergency communications handled through the Vermont Department of Emergency Management and the Vermont Department of Health, witnesses said the funding is needed after a federal CDC grant ended.
Supporters told the committee the Vermont Language Justice Project (VLJP) has produced hundreds of short videos and audio resources in dozens of languages during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent emergencies, and that sudden federal funding cuts have left the project unable to pivot during new crises.
“Allison Segar, director of the Vermont Language Justice Project, said she launched the project five years ago in response to COVID-19 after seeing that emergency communication and accurate health information were not reaching people with language access needs. Segar told the committee VLJP produced more than 90 distinct videos (some items in multiple languages) and that the project’s CDC award totaled about $550,000. She said the CDC grant ended in March and left the project without new discretionary funds.
Segar described VLJP’s rapid response during the July 2023 flooding, saying the group produced five subject-matter videos over two weeks in multiple languages and recorded more than 7,000 views during that period. “As a state that welcomes all people here to Vermont, we need to have an infrastructure that is able to adequately reach out to all peoples when there is an emergency that is life threatening,” Segar said.
Weiwei Wong, co-executive director of the Vermont Professionals of Color Network, told senators the project’s videos are faster to produce than many official translations and carry added weight because presenters are trusted community leaders. “The benefit of having a organization like VLJP is that they are quick. They’re timely. They know the relevant community members,” Wong said, noting that state document translation can take months.
Paul Soren, communications director for the City of Winooski, said his city depends on VLJP for multilingual updates on infrastructure projects, boil-water notices, elections and public-safety guidance that local offices lack the resources to produce. “The city of Winooski supports S.111 and the reliable funding of this important service,” Soren told the committee.
Committee members and witnesses discussed the limits of federal funding, the practical cost of producing multilingual materials, and models for sustaining the work, including state budgeting and shared subscription models among municipalities. Several senators urged exploring state support because VLJP provides statewide benefit, including American Sign Language and audio-visual formats that reach people with limited literacy in their own language.
No formal vote on S.111 was recorded during the hearing. Committee members said they will continue to work on the bill and explore options for incorporating language-access funding into upcoming vehicles.
The testimony underscores the committee’s central question: whether the state should supplant lost federal funds to maintain a time-sensitive, multilingual emergency communications capability that advocates say reduces misinformation and can be lifesaving.
