NYC Emergency Management 2024 Language Access Plan

Implementation and Operations

NYCEM’s Language Access Coordinator monitors implementation of the plan and tracks the provision of language access services, while expenditures are tracked jointly by the Language Access Coordinator and NYCEM’s Finance unit. NYCEM uses Census and American Community Survey data, GIS analysis, field information, and consultation with the Department of City Planning when needed to assess language needs before and during emergencies. During incidents, NYCEM works with the incident lead agency and its GIS unit to maintain situational awareness of language needs in the field and share information with agencies responsible for service delivery. Data collected during emergencies informs the Language Access Task Force and other government stakeholders with language access responsibilities. The plan is revised every three years under Local Law 30 and includes FY25–FY28 goals related to Notify NYC outreach, staff language certification, community review of translated materials, and a pilot language testing program for CERT volunteers.

NYCEM provides mandatory online language access training for employees, and all new staff are required to complete it within six months of hire. The training covers NYC demographics, language access legislation, the Citywide Language Access Protocol, NYCEM’s Language Access Plan, agency language access policies and procedures, and tips for working with interpreters. Training completion is maintained in an online database by NYCEM’s Training and Exercise team. Community Engagement staff, who are responsible for language access during emergencies, also receive ongoing language access training during meetings held every three weeks.

Language access complaints may be submitted by emailing NYCEM at languageaccess@oem.nyc.gov or by calling 311. Complaints are monitored and tracked by NYCEM’s Language Access Coordinator, and the agency responds within 14 calendar days of receipt. When NYCEM coordinates the opening of a Service Center during an emergency, a “You Have the Right to Free Interpretation” poster is posted at the facility and directs people to call 311 to submit a complaint.

NYCEM’s language access model is built around emergency preparedness outreach, multilingual alerting, and response coordination. The agency provides Ready New York preparedness guides in 13 languages, audio-format materials, preparedness videos in multiple languages, and presentations in requested languages through interpreters, bilingual/multilingual staff, or CERT volunteers. Notify NYC delivers emergency alerts in 13 languages, ASL, audio, and video, while WEA and EAS alerts are available in English and Spanish. NYCEM also maintains multilingual emergency signage kits for coastal storm shelters and service centers, including “I Speak: Free Interpretation Available” signs, Point Your Language cards, picture communication boards, and translated shelter/service center materials. During emergencies, NYCEM coordinates with lead agencies, External Affairs, Community Engagement, Human Services ESFs, 311, and the interagency Language Access Task Force to monitor language needs and support unified, timely, multilingual public messaging. The plan also highlights human-translated emergency-related websites, multilingual ethnic media outreach, emergency SMS opt-in groups, 24/7 language vendors, bilingual staff and volunteer lists, and community partner networks that help disseminate information through channels such as WhatsApp, KakaoTalk, text messaging, phone banking, newsletters, and social media.

NYCEM uses NYC Local Law 30 languages as a baseline for essential public materials, signage, outreach events, and emergency preparedness resources, and also translates public materials and Notify NYC messages into Italian and Yiddish. Ready New York guides are available in English, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Italian, Korean, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Urdu, and Yiddish, while Notify NYC provides multilingual emergency messages in 13 languages, audio/video formats, and ASL. The plan also notes that during novel operations or emergencies affecting specific populations, NYCEM provides language support based on the languages spoken by affected communities, including examples such as Wolof, Pulaar, Turkish, and Portuguese during the asylum seeker response.