3. Submission of Comments. While the revised guidance is effective immediately, comments may be submitted within 30 days of the Federal Register publication date. Please see the specific instructions contained in the revised guidance. DOL will review all comments and will determine what modifications to the guidance, if any, are necessary.

4. Dissemination of the Revised Guidance and Technical Assistance.Responsibility for informing the Workforce Investment System about LEP requirements and for providing technical assistance rests jointly with the U.S. Department of Labor's Civil Rights Center (CRC) and the Employment and Training Administration (ETA). The CRC is available to provide technical assistance, including training, to recipients of federal financial assistance to ensure compliance with Title VI and Section 188, and will work with ETA to provide stakeholders with tools to develop and implement meaningful service delivery systems for LEP persons. ETA has created a Language Access Steering Committee that has been studying practical solutions that will enable ETA and its stakeholders to accomplish their responsibilities in the most cost-effective manner possible.

The Language Access Steering Committee will act as a clearinghouse for information and best practices. If you have documents, ideas or expertise that you would like to contribute to this effort, please e-mail the Language Access Steering Committee at language.access@dol.gov.

ETA anticipates issuing a Technical Assistance Guide (TAG) on Services to Limited English Proficient Persons before the end of the calendar year. The TAG will bring together in one document, the experiences and promising practices of our grantees. Documents and translations related to LEP service delivery will also be included and many will be accessible in an electronic format. ETA also intends to provide opportunities for discussing promising practices at Workforce Innovations 2003 (http://www.workforceinnovations.org) and at other regional and national conferences. ETA also plans to develop a Peer Expert Directory by the end of the calendar year. In the interim, many useful technical assistance tools can be found on the Website of the Interagency Working Group on LEP (www.lep.gov). A particularly valuable tool is the "Language Assistance Self-Assessment and Planning Tool for Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance." It can be found at http://www.lep.gov/selfassesstool.htm.

During August 13-15, 2003, the U.S. Department of Labor's Civil Rights Center will host the 14th Annual National Equal Opportunity Conference. The general plenary session will focus on the Department's LEP guidance. Invited presenters include officials from the U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Justice, and National Association of State Workforce Agencies. There will also be numerous panel presentations highlighting strategies for developing, improving, and implementing programs that ensure meaningful access for LEP persons. More information can be found at the following Web site: http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/crc/2003conference.htm

5. Action Required.State Workforce Agencies are requested to disseminate this revised guidance to all of their grantees and sub-grantees with instructions to disseminate it further. In addition, each recipient of federal financial assistance must take reasonable steps to ensure LEP persons receive, free of charge, the language assistance necessary to afford them meaningful access to their programs, services, and information. Any comments on the Federal Register publication must be submitted by June 30, 2003.

6. Inquiries. For further information contact your ETA Regional Office.

7. Attachments.

Revised Guidance Regarding the Title VI Prohibition Against National Origin Discrimination Affecting Limited English Proficient (LEP) Persons