1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to education; modifying requirements for interpreters;amending Minnesota 
1.3 	Statutes 2020, section 122A.31, subdivision 1.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2020, section 122A.31, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
1.6 		Subdivision 1.Requirements for American sign language/English interpreters. (a) 
1.7 	In addition to any other requirements that a school district establishes, any person employed 
1.8 	to provide American sign language/English interpreting or sign transliterating services on 
1.9 	a full-time or part-time basis for a school district after July 1, 2000, must:
1.10 	(1) hold current interpreter and or transliterator certificates awarded by the Registry of 
1.11 	Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), or the general level interpreter proficiency certificate awarded 
1.12 	by the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), or a comparable state certification from 
1.13 	the commissioner of education;, and
1.14 	(2) satisfactorily complete an interpreter/transliterator training program affiliated with 
1.15 	an accredited educational institution.; or
1.16 	(2) hold a certified deaf interpreter certification issued by RID.
1.17 	(b) New graduates of an interpreter/transliterator program affiliated with an accredited 
1.18 	education institution or certified deaf interpreters who hold a certification issued by RID
1.19 	shall be granted a two-year provisional certificate by the commissioner. During the two-year 
1.20 	provisional period, the interpreter/transliterator must develop and implement an education 
1.21 	plan in collaboration with a mentor under paragraph (c).
2.1 	(c) A mentor of a provisionally certified interpreter/transliterator must be an 
2.2 	interpreter/transliterator who has either NAD level IV or V certification or RID certified 
2.3 	interpreter and certified transliterator certification and have at least three years of 
2.4 	interpreting/transliterating experience in any educational setting. The mentor, in collaboration 
2.5 	with the provisionally certified interpreter/transliterator, shall develop and implement an 
2.6 	education plan designed to meet the requirements of paragraph (a), clause (1), and include 
2.7 	a weekly on-site mentoring process.
2.8 	(d) Consistent with the requirements of this paragraph, a person holding a provisional 
2.9 	certificate may apply to the commissioner for one time-limited extension. The commissioner, 
2.10 	in consultation with the Commission of the Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing, must 
2.11 	grant the person a time-limited extension of the provisional certificate based on the following 
2.12 	documentation:
2.13 	(1) letters of support from the person's mentor, a parent of a pupil the person serves, the 
2.14 	special education director of the district in which the person is employed, and a representative 
2.15 	from the regional service center of the deaf and hard-of-hearing;
2.16 	(2) records of the person's formal education, training, experience, and progress on the 
2.17 	person's education plan; and
2.18 	(3) an explanation of why the extension is needed.
2.19 	As a condition of receiving the extension, the person must comply with a plan and the 
2.20 	accompanying time line timeline for meeting the requirements of this subdivision. A 
2.21 	committee composed of the deaf and hard-of-hearing state specialist, a representative of 
2.22 	the Minnesota Association of Deaf Citizens, a representative of the Minnesota Registry of 
2.23 	Interpreters of for the Deaf, and other appropriate persons committee members selected by 
2.24 	the commissioner must develop the plan and time line timeline for the person receiving the 
2.25 	extension.
2.26 	(e) A school district may employ only an interpreter/transliterator who has been certified 
2.27 	under paragraph (a) or (b), or for whom a time-limited extension has been granted under 
2.28 	paragraph (d).
2.29 	(f) An interpreter who meets the requirements of paragraph (a) is "essential personnel" 
2.30 	as defined in section 125A.76, subdivision 1.