R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-71-2

This is the official text of R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-71-2, part of Rhode Island’s Gen. Laws — part of the compiled statutory law of Rhode Island, published by the state as "Gen. Laws." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

§ 5-71-2. Declaration of policy and statement of purpose.

Official statutory text

(a) It is declared the policy of the state that the practice of interpreting and the practice of transliterating affects, including, but not limited to, the public health, safety, welfare, civic, economic, social, academic, and recreational aspects of life, and shall be subject to licensure and regulation in the public€™s interest. It is further declared that:

(1) Individuals who are deaf, deaf-blind, hard of hearing, or other individuals with disabilities whose primary language is sign language have a civil right to effective communication;

(2) Consumers and those with whom they communicate require, and are entitled to, competent, reliable interpreting services, and that the availability of competent, reliable, credentialed interpreting services is necessary for consumers to realize their right to full and equal participation in society.

(b) A purpose of this chapter is to provide minimum qualifications for interpreters and to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the public.

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

Need a lawyer in Rhode Island?

Find a Rhode Island lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.