Pennsylvania House Votes to Make English the Official Language

Keystone State becomes fourth state to affirm official language in 2006

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives became the second state legislative body this week, and fourth this year, to approve official English legislation when Amendment 7999 to House Bill 1959 passed by a vote of 122-70 last night. The measure would make English the official language of Pennsylvania, while permitting the use of non-English languages when necessary to comply with federal law. The action occurred just one day after the Delaware House of Representatives approved a measure to make English the official language of that state.

“I want to congratulate the House leadership in Pennsylvania for their courage to follow the will of the people,” said Mauro E. Mujica, Chairman of U.S. English, Inc., “The majority of Pennsylvania’s legislators have listened to native and immigrant Pennsylvanians. This type of legislation is gaining national headlines because people are realizing that government needs to put its accent on English language acquisition for all new immigrants.”

Passage of HB 1959 marks the first time that an official English bill has passed the House of Representatives in Pennsylvania. The move comes just a few weeks after a Rasmussen Reports poll found that 85 percent of Americans favor making English the official language of the United States. Polls have shown that support for official English carries across all political parties, races, regions, and includes more than four-fifths of first- and second-generation Americans.

So far this year, four state Houses have passed measures to make English the official language of the state: Arizona, Delaware, Michigan and Pennsylvania. In Arizona, the Senate passed the bill late last week, sending it to the voters for their approval in November. Furthermore, the U.S. Senate voted last month to make English the national language of the United States, and a bill pending in the U.S. House of Representatives (H.R. 997) has 161 co-sponsors.

“Americans may be divided when it comes to immigration, but they are nearly unanimous in their belief that government should promote assimilation,” continued Mujica. “As an immigrant myself, I can attest that English is the most important part of assimilation and must continue to unite Americans from across the globe. I look forward to the Pennsylvania Senate approving this matter as soon as possible.”

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.us-english.org) now has more than 2 million members.