Iowa-2019-HF2558-Introduced

H.F. 2558 Section 1. Section 331.424, subsection 1, paragraph a, 1 subparagraph (6), Code 2020, is amended to read as follows: 2 (6) The maintenance and operation of the courts, including 3 but not limited to the salary and expenses of the clerk of the 4 district court and other employees of the clerk’s office, and 5 bailiffs, court costs if the prosecution fails or if the costs 6 cannot be collected from the person liable, costs and expenses 7 of prosecution under section 189A.17 , salaries and expenses 8 of juvenile court officers under chapter 602 , court-ordered 9 costs in domestic abuse cases under section 236.5 , sexual abuse 10 cases under section 236A.7 , and elder abuse cases under section 11 235F.6 , the county’s expense for confinement of prisoners under 12 chapter 356A , temporary assistance to the county attorney, 13 county contributions to a retirement system for bailiffs, 14 reimbursement for judicial magistrates under section 602.6501 , 15 claims filed under section 622.93 , sign language interpreters’ 16 fees under section 622B.7 , uniform citation and complaint 17 supplies under section 805.6 , and costs of prosecution under 18 section 815.13 . 19 Sec. 2. Section 622A.1, Code 2020, is amended by adding the 20 following new subsection: 21 NEW SUBSECTION . 3. “Limited English proficient” means the 22 inability to adequately understand or effectively communicate 23 in the English language because a person’s primary language is 24 a language other than English. 25 Sec. 3. Section 622A.2, Code 2020, is amended to read as 26 follows: 27 622A.2 Who entitled to interpreter Limited-English-proficient 28 persons —— when entitled to interpreter . 29 Every limited-English-proficient person who cannot speak 30 or understand the English language and who is a party to any 31 legal proceeding or a witness therein, shall be entitled to an 32 interpreter to assist such person throughout the proceeding. 33 Sec. 4. Section 622A.3, subsection 1, unnumbered paragraph 34 1, Code 2020, is amended to read as follows: 35 -1- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 1/ 9

H.F. 2558 An interpreter shall be appointed without expense to the 1 limited-English-proficient person requiring assistance in the 2 following cases: 3 Sec. 5. Section 622A.3, subsection 2, Code 2020, is amended 4 by striking the subsection and inserting in lieu thereof the 5 following: 6 2. The state court administrator shall receive, review, 7 and pay fee claims from an interpreter appointed under 8 subsection 1 and the fees shall be paid from the revolving 9 fund created in section 602.1302, subsection 3, when a 10 limited-English-proficient person is entitled to an interpreter 11 under section 622A.2 and the interpreter services are not 12 provided before an administrative agency. In civil cases, 13 every court shall tax the costs of an interpreter the same as 14 other court costs. In criminal cases, where the defendant is 15 indigent, the interpreter shall be considered as a defendant’s 16 witness under rule of criminal procedure 2.15 for the purpose 17 of receiving fees, except that subpoenas shall not be required. 18 Sec. 6. Section 622A.3, Code 2020, is amended by adding the 19 following new subsection: 20 NEW SUBSECTION . 2A. An administrative agency shall pay 21 an interpreter when a limited-English-proficient person 22 is entitled to an interpreter under section 622A.2 and the 23 interpreter services are provided before an administrative 24 agency. The agency may require that the party to the 25 proceeding pay the expense of the interpreter. 26 Sec. 7. Section 622A.4, Code 2020, is amended to read as 27 follows: 28 622A.4 Fee set by court —— payment or administrative agency . 29 Every interpreter appointed by a court or administrative 30 agency shall receive a fee to be set by the court or 31 administrative agency. If the interpreter is appointed by the 32 court in a civil case for a person who is indigent and unable 33 to secure an interpreter, the fee for the interpreter shall be 34 paid from the revolving fund established in section 602.1302, 35 -2- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 2/ 9

H.F. 2558 subsection 3 . 1 Sec. 8. Section 622A.5, Code 2020, is amended to read as 2 follows: 3 622A.5 Oath. 4 Every interpreter in any legal proceeding shall take the 5 same an oath as any other witness consistent with the rules the 6 supreme court adopts under this chapter . 7 Sec. 9. Section 622A.6, Code 2020, is amended to read as 8 follows: 9 622A.6 Qualifications , neutrality, and integrity. 10 Any court or administrative agency may inquire into the 11 qualifications , neutrality, and integrity of any interpreter, 12 and may disqualify any person from serving as an interpreter. 13 Sec. 10. Section 622A.7, Code 2020, is amended to read as 14 follows: 15 622A.7 Rules. 16 The supreme court, after consultation with the commission 17 of Latino affairs of the department of human rights and other 18 appropriate departments, shall adopt rules governing the 19 qualifications and compensation of interpreters appearing in 20 legal proceedings before a court or grand jury under this 21 chapter . However, an administrative agency which is subject 22 to chapter 17A may adopt rules differing from those of the 23 supreme court governing the qualifications and compensation of 24 interpreters appearing in proceedings before that agency. 25 Sec. 11. Section 622A.8, Code 2020, is amended to read as 26 follows: 27 622A.8 Tape Electronic recording of testimony . 28 A tape An electronic recording of the portion of 29 proceedings where non-English testimony is given shall be 30 made and maintained for one year after the entry of the final 31 disposition or sentence or, if the final judgment is appealed, 32 until one year after the final disposition of the appeal . 33 Sec. 12. NEW SECTION . 622A.9 Privileged communications. 34 Communications between a limited-English-proficient person 35 -3- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 3/ 9

H.F. 2558 and a third party which are privileged under chapter 622 in 1 which an interpreter participates as an interpreter shall be 2 privileged with regard to the interpreter. 3 Sec. 13. Section 622B.1, Code 2020, is amended to read as 4 follows: 5 622B.1 Definitions —— rules. 6 1. As used in this chapter , unless the context otherwise 7 requires: 8 a. “Administrative agency” means any department, board, 9 commission, or agency of the state or any political subdivision 10 of the state. 11 b. “Deaf person” means an individual who uses sign language 12 as the person’s primary mode of communication and who may use 13 sign language interpreters to facilitate communication. 14 c. “Hard-of-hearing person” means an individual who 15 is unable to hear and distinguish sounds within normal 16 conversational range and who needs to use speechreading, 17 assistive listening devices, or oral interpreters other 18 reasonable accommodations to facilitate communication. 19 d. “Interpreter” means an oral interpreter or sign language 20 interpreter. 21 e. “Oral interpreter” means an interpreter who is fluent in 22 transliterating, paraphrasing, and voicing. 23 f. d. “Sign language interpreter” means an interpreter a 24 person who is able to interpret from sign language to English 25 and English to into an oral language and from an oral language 26 into sign language. 27 2. The supreme court, after consultation with the 28 department of human rights, shall adopt rules governing the 29 qualifications and compensation of sign language interpreters 30 appearing in a legal proceeding before a court, grand jury, or 31 before an administrative agency under this chapter . However, 32 an administrative agency which is subject to chapter 17A 33 may adopt rules differing from those of the supreme court 34 governing the qualifications and compensation of sign language 35 -4- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 4/ 9

H.F. 2558 interpreters appearing in proceedings before that agency. 1 Sec. 14. Section 622B.2, Code 2020, is amended to read as 2 follows: 3 622B.2 Interpreter appointed. 4 If a deaf or hard-of-hearing person is a party to, a witness 5 at, or a participant in a proceeding before a grand jury, 6 court, or administrative agency of this state, the court 7 or administrative agency shall appoint an a sign language 8 interpreter without expense to the deaf or hard-of-hearing 9 person to interpret or translate the proceedings to the deaf 10 or hard-of-hearing person and to interpret or translate the 11 person’s testimony unless the deaf or hard-of-hearing person 12 waives the right to an a sign language interpreter. 13 Sec. 15. Section 622B.3, Code 2020, is amended to read as 14 follows: 15 622B.3 Notice of need. 16 When a deaf or hard-of-hearing person is entitled to an a 17 sign language interpreter, the deaf or hard-of-hearing person 18 shall notify the presiding official within three days after 19 receiving notice of the proceeding, stating the disability and 20 requesting the services of an a sign language interpreter. If 21 the deaf or hard-of-hearing person receives notification of an 22 appearance less than five days prior to the proceeding, that 23 person shall notify the presiding official requesting an a sign 24 language interpreter as soon as practicable or may apply for a 25 continuance until an a sign language interpreter is appointed. 26 Sec. 16. Section 622B.4, Code 2020, is amended to read as 27 follows: 28 622B.4 List. 29 The office of deaf services of the department of human rights 30 shall prepare and continually update a listing of qualified 31 and available sign language interpreters. The courts and 32 administrative agencies shall maintain a directory of qualified 33 interpreters for deaf and hard-of-hearing persons as furnished 34 by the department of human rights. The office of deaf services 35 -5- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 5/ 9

H.F. 2558 shall maintain a list of sign language interpreters which 1 shall be made available to a court, administrative agency, or 2 interested parties to an action using the services of an a sign 3 language interpreter. 4 Sec. 17. Section 622B.5, Code 2020, is amended to read as 5 follows: 6 622B.5 Oath. 7 Before participating in a proceeding, an a sign 8 language interpreter shall take an oath that the sign 9 language interpreter will make a true interpretation in an 10 understandable manner to the person for whom the sign language 11 interpreter is appointed and that the sign language interpreter 12 will interpret or translate the statements of the deaf or 13 hard-of-hearing person to the best of the sign language 14 interpreter’s skills and judgment. 15 Sec. 18. Section 622B.6, Code 2020, is amended to read as 16 follows: 17 622B.6 Privileged communications . 18 Communication between a deaf or hard-of-hearing person 19 and a third party which is privileged under chapter 622 in 20 which the sign language interpreter participates as an a sign 21 language interpreter shall be privileged to the sign language 22 interpreter. 23 Sec. 19. Section 622B.7, Code 2020, is amended to read as 24 follows: 25 622B.7 Fee. 26 An A sign language interpreter appointed under this chapter 27 is entitled to a reasonable fee and expenses as determined 28 by the rules applying to that proceeding. This schedule 29 shall be furnished to all courts and administrative agencies 30 and maintained by them. If the sign language interpreter is 31 appointed by the court, the fee and expenses shall be paid by 32 the county and if the sign language interpreter is appointed by 33 an administrative agency, the fee and expenses shall be paid 34 out of funds available to the administrative agency. 35 -6- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 6/ 9

H.F. 2558 Sec. 20. Section 622B.8, Code 2020, is amended to read as 1 follows: 2 622B.8 Disqualification. 3 On motion of a party or on its own motion, a court or 4 administrative agency shall inquire into the qualifications , 5 neutrality, and integrity of an a sign language interpreter. A 6 court or administrative agency may disqualify for good reason 7 any person from serving as an a sign language interpreter 8 in that proceeding. If an a sign language interpreter is 9 disqualified, the court or administrative agency shall appoint 10 another sign language interpreter. 11 Sec. 21. Section 815.11, Code 2020, is amended to read as 12 follows: 13 815.11 Appropriations for indigent defense —— fund created. 14 1. Costs incurred for legal representation by a 15 court-appointed attorney under chapter 229A , 665 , 822 , or 908 , 16 or section 232.141, subsection 3 , paragraph “d” , or section 17 598.23A , 600A.6B , 814.9 , 814.10 , 814.11 , 815.4 , 815.7 , or 18 815.10 on behalf of an indigent shall be paid from moneys 19 appropriated by the general assembly to the office of the 20 state public defender in the department of inspections and 21 appeals and deposited in an account to be known as the indigent 22 defense fund , except as provided in subsection 2 . Costs 23 incurred representing an indigent defendant in a contempt 24 action, or representing an indigent juvenile in a juvenile 25 court proceeding, are also payable from the fund. However, 26 costs incurred in any administrative proceeding or in any 27 other proceeding under this chapter or chapter 598 , 600 , 600A , 28 633 , 633A , 814 , or 915 or other provisions of the Code or 29 administrative rules are not payable from the fund. 30 2. The costs and fees associated with interpreters 31 are not payable from this fund. The costs and fees of an 32 interpreter shall be paid pursuant to section 622A.3 from 33 moneys appropriated by the general assembly to the judicial 34 branch revolving fund created pursuant to section 602.1302, 35 -7- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 7/ 9

H.F. 2558 subsection 3. 1 Sec. 22. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act takes effect October 1, 2 2020. 3 EXPLANATION 4 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 5 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 6 This bill relates to interpreters for 7 limited-English-proficient persons and sign language 8 interpreters for deaf and hard-of-hearing persons. 9 The bill amends Code chapter 622A, which in the bill provides 10 for interpreters for limited-English-proficient persons in 11 legal proceedings. 12 The bill defines “limited English proficient” to mean the 13 inability to adequately understand or effectively communicate 14 in the English language because a person’s primary language is 15 a language other than English. 16 The bill provides that the state court administrator 17 shall receive, review, and pay fee claims for interpreters 18 from the revolving fund created in Code section 602.1302(3) 19 when a limited-English-proficient person is entitled to an 20 interpreter and the interpreter services are not provided 21 before an administrative agency. The bill provides that in 22 civil cases, every court shall tax the costs of an interpreter 23 the same as other court costs. In criminal cases, the bill 24 provides that where the defendant is indigent, the interpreter 25 shall be considered as a defendant’s witness under rule of 26 criminal procedure 2.15 for the purpose of receiving fees, 27 except that subpoenas are not required. The bill provides 28 that an administrative agency shall pay an interpreter 29 when a limited-English-proficient person is entitled to an 30 interpreter and the interpreter services are provided before 31 an administrative agency. The bill provides that the agency 32 may require that the party to the proceeding pay the expense 33 of the interpreter. 34 The bill provides that an interpreter in a legal proceeding 35 -8- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 8/ 9

H.F. 2558 shall take an oath consistent with rules the supreme court 1 adopts under Code chapter 622A. The bill provides that 2 in addition to a court or administrative agency being able 3 to inquire into the qualifications and integrity of an 4 interpreter, the court or administrative agency may also 5 inquire into the neutrality of the interpreter. The bill 6 amends the section of Code chapter 622A that provides the 7 authorization for rulemaking to specify interpreters appearing 8 in legal proceedings. The bill provides that an electronic 9 recording of the portion of proceedings where non-English 10 testimony is given shall be made and maintained for one year 11 after the entry of the final disposition or sentence, or if 12 the final judgment is appealed, until one year after the final 13 disposition of the appeal. 14 The bill provides that communications between a 15 limited-English-proficient person and a third party which are 16 privileged under Code chapter 622 in which an interpreter 17 participates as an interpreter shall be privileged with regard 18 to the interpreter. 19 The bill also amends Code chapter 622B, which provides 20 for sign language interpreters for deaf and hard-of-hearing 21 persons. 22 The bill provides that in addition to a court or 23 administrative agency being able to inquire into the 24 qualifications and integrity of a sign language interpreter, 25 the court or administrative agency may also inquire into the 26 neutrality of the sign language interpreter. 27 Code section 815.11 provides appropriations for indigent 28 defense. The bill provides that costs and fees associated 29 with interpreters are not payable from the indigent defense 30 fund. The result of the bill, in part, is that the judicial 31 branch, through the state court administrator, is to assume 32 responsibility for the review and payment of interpreter and 33 translator claims formerly paid from the indigent defense fund. 34 The bill takes effect October 1, 2020. 35 -9- LSB 5325HV (3) 88 md/jh 9/ 9