AN ACT To remove the exemption for educational interpreters or transliterators from the licensure requirements of the North carolina interpreter and transliterator licensure act.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.(a)  G.S. 90D‑3 reads as rewritten:

§ 90D‑3.  Definitions.

The following definitions apply in this Chapter:

…

(3)        Educational interpreter or educational transliterator. – A person who provides accessible communication, using the most understandable language model, to individuals in prekindergarten through grade 12 or in any institution of higher education.

(4)        Interpreter. – A person who practices the act of interpreting as defined in this section. The term includes an educational interpreter as defined in subdivision (3) of this section.

…

(9)        Transliterator. – A person who practices the art of transliterating as defined in this section. The term includes an educational transliterator as defined in subdivision (3) of this section.

SECTION 1.(b)  G.S. 90D‑4(b) reads as rewritten:

(b)      The provisions of this Chapter do not apply to:

…

(5)        Educational interpreters or transliterators.

….

SECTION 1.(c)  G.S. 90D‑7 reads as rewritten:

§ 90D‑7.  Requirements for licensure.

(a)        Upon application to the Board and the payment of the required fees, an applicant may be licensed as an interpreter or transliterator if the applicant meets all of the following qualifications:

(1)        Is 18 years of age or older.

(2)        Is of good moral character as determined by the Board.

(3)        Meets one of the following criteria:

a.         Repealed by Session Laws 2023‑137, s. 45(a), effective December 1, 2023, and applicable to licenses and provisional licenses issued or renewed by the North Carolina Interpreter and Transliterator Licensing Board after that date.

b.         Is nationally certified by the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Inc., (RID), or another nationally recognized body that issues certificates or assessments for interpreting approved by the Board by rule.

c.         Holds a valid Testing, Evaluation and Certification Unit, Inc., (TECUnit) national certification in cued language transliteration.

d.         Repealed by Session Laws 2023‑137, s. 45(a), effective December 1, 2023, and applicable to licenses and provisional licenses issued or renewed by the North Carolina Interpreter and Transliterator Licensing Board after that date.

e.         Holds a current Cued Language Transliterator State Level Assessment (CLTSLA) level 3 or above classification.

f.          Holds a current Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA) level 4.0 or above classification and passed the EIPA written test.

(b)        Repealed by Session Laws 2014‑115, s. 42(b), effective August 11, 2014.

(c)        The Department of Public Safety may provide a criminal record check to the Board for a person who has applied for a new, provisional, or renewal license through the Board. The Board shall provide to the Department of Public Safety, along with the request, the fingerprints of the applicant, any additional information required by the Department of Public Safety, and a form signed by the applicant consenting to the check of the criminal record and to the use of the fingerprints and other identifying information required by the State or national repositories. The applicant's fingerprints shall be forwarded to the State Bureau of Investigation for a search of the State's criminal history record file, and the State Bureau of Investigation shall forward a set of the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history check. The Board shall keep all information pursuant to this subdivision privileged, in accordance with applicable State law and federal guidelines, and the information shall be confidential and shall not be a public record under Chapter 132 of the General Statutes.

The Department of Public Safety may charge each applicant a fee for conducting the checks of criminal history records authorized by this subsection.

SECTION 1.(d)  G.S. 90D‑8 reads as rewritten:

§ 90D‑8.  Provisional license.

(a)        Upon application to the Board and the payment of the required fees, an applicant may be issued a one‑time provisional license as an interpreter or transliterator if the applicant meets all of the following qualifications:

(1)        Is at least 18 years of age.

(2)        Is of good moral character as determined by the Board.

(3)        Completes two continuing education units approved by the Board. These units must be completed for each renewable year.

(4)        Holds at least a two‑year associate degree in interpreting from an accredited institution and satisfies one of the following:

a.         Holds a quality assurance North Carolina Interpreter Classification System (NCICS) level C classification.

b.         Holds a valid National Association of the Deaf (NAD) level 2 or 3 certification.

c.         Holds a current Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA) level 3.5 or above classification.classification and passed the EIPA written test.

d.         Repealed by Session Laws 2005‑299, s. 2, effective August 22, 2005.

e.         Repealed by Session Laws 2023‑137, s. 45(b), effective October 10, 2023.

f.          Holds any other certificate or assessment issued by a nationally recognized body approved by the Board by rule.

(a1)      Upon application to the Board, payment of the required fees, and meeting the requirements for a provisional license under subdivisions (1) and (2) of subsection (a) of this section, the Board may also issue a provisional license to any of the following categories of persons seeking a provisional license:

(1)        A deaf interpreter who completes 16 hours of training in interpreting coursework or workshops, including role and function or ethics, and 20 hours in the 12 months immediately preceding the date of application in the provision of interpreting services.

(2)        An oral interpreter who completes a total of 40 hours of training in interpreting coursework or workshops related to oral interpreting.

(3)        A cued language transliterator who holds a current TECUnit Cued Language Transliterator State Level Assessment (CLTSLA) level 2 or above classification.

(4)        A person providing interpreting or transliterating services who has a recognized credential from another state in the field of interpreting or transliterating.

(5)        An interpreter or transliterator who meets both of the following:

a.         has Has accumulated 200 hours per year in the provision of interpreting or transliterating services, in this State or another state, totaling 400 hours for the two years immediately preceding the date of application. An applicant must provide documentation of hours when applying for a provisional license under this category, subject to verification by the Board.

b.         Holds any certificate or assessment issued by a nationally recognized body approved by the Board by rule.

(b)        A provisional license issued under this section shall be valid for one year. Upon expiration, a provisional license may be renewed for an additional one‑year period in the discretion of the Board. However, a provisional license shall not be renewed more than three two times. The Board may, in its discretion, grant an extension after the third second time the provisional license has been renewed under circumstances to be established in rules adopted by the Board.

(c)        Repealed by Session Laws 2014‑115, s. 42(b), effective August 11, 2014.

SECTION 1.(e)  G.S. 115C‑110.2 reads as rewritten:

§ 115C‑110.2.  Interpreters/transliterators.

Each interpreter or transliterator employed by a local educational agency to provide services to hearing‑impaired students must annually complete 15 hours of job‑related training that has been approved by the local educational agency. Continuing education hours completed in compliance with licensure renewal requirements adopted by the North Carolina Interpreter and Transliterator Licensing Board pursuant to G.S. 90D‑11 may be applied toward the 15 hours of job‑related training, to the extent those hours are relevant to the interpreter's or transliterator's job‑based duties and approved by the local educational agency.

SECTION 2.(a)  For an educational interpreter or educational transliterator who was issued a provisional license pursuant to G.S. 90D‑8 and the provisional license expired prior to the effective date of this act, if the educational interpreter or educational transliterator continues to qualify for a provisional license pursuant to G.S. 90D‑8, as amended by Section 1(d) of this act, then the North Carolina Interpreter and Transliterator Licensing Board shall issue a new initial provisional license upon application to the Board and the payment of the required fee for a provisional license. Notwithstanding G.S. 90D‑8(b), the Board shall not grant an extension after a second renewal to a provisional license issued pursuant to this section.

SECTION 2.(b)  This section expires on September 30, 2027.

SECTION 3.  The North Carolina Interpreter and Transliterator Licensing Board and the State Board of Education may adopt rules to implement the provisions of this act.

SECTION 4.  This act becomes effective October 1, 2026.