Official English Legislation Introduced in Texas and Michigan

Also, bill to make English the official language of Idaho advances to Senate floor

Legislators in Texas and Michigan introduced measures to make English the official language of those states last week, bringing the number of states with official English legislation pending in 2007 to 18. In other legislative activity last week, the Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee passed official English legislation by a margin of 6-3, sending the measure to the Senate floor.

The official English bills making headlines this month include:

• Texas: Rep. Bill Zedler introduced H.B. 2205 to make English the official language. This is the first official English bill to be introduced in the Texas legislature in more than a decade.

• Michigan: Rep. Jack Hoogendyk introduced H.B. 4406, legislation to make English the official language. Last year, the Michigan House approved an official English bill, but the measure was not considered in the Senate before the end of session.

• Idaho: S.B. 1172, a measure introduced by Senator Mel Richardson to make English the official language.

Residents in all three states have shown strong support for official English legislation, according to recent polls. A 2007 survey by Mason-Dixon polling and research found that 77 percent of Idaho residents want English to be made the official language of the state, while 2006 Mason-Dixon polls in Michigan and Texas found 74 percent and 75 percent support, respectively. All three polls found strong support for the measure across the state and within each political party.

Besides Idaho, Michigan and Texas, legislation to make English the official language has been introduced in Connecticut, Kansas, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington, and West Virginia. In addition, bills to strengthen existing official English laws have been introduced in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and South Carolina. The measures have passed the state House of Representatives in both Kansas and Missouri.

“Assimilation is not just an issue that concerns states with high immigration levels,” said Mauro E. Mujica, Chairman of the Board of U.S. English, Inc. “If we are to truly promote unity among our diverse population, we must continue to focus on the factors that bring us together. By highlighting our common bond of the English language, we can continue to build a successful society and keep the American dream alive.”

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.