Hawaii DOT Settles Driver’s License Exam Lawsuit
Discrimination against foreign-born residents was alleged when translation of some exams was discontinued.
The Hawaii Department of Transportation and the nonprofit Faith Action for Community Equity (FACE) said Friday that a lawsuit was settled聽regarding the translation of driver’s examinations for vehicle聽licenses.
United States District Court Judge Susan Oki Mollway approved the settlement.
In 2013, FACE said it was concerned听迟丑补迟听蝉辫别补办别谤蝉听辞蹿听Marshallese, Chuukese and Ilocano were being disenfranchised because exams were not available聽in those languages.
Marshallese and Chuukese making their case to the Maui DOT in April 2013.
Faith Action for Community Equity
Translations of the driver’s test began in 2001, but they were later suspended after new state laws led to changes in the test.聽The聽DOT did, however,聽provide translations into eight other languages including Japanese and Tagalog.
贵础颁贰听filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging that the DOT聽discriminated against foreign-born residents of Hawaii “by not offering a translated exam for a period of more than five years after previously existing translations were removed from service when additional questions needed to be added to the exam,” according to a joint press release.
For its part, the聽DOT says it consistently disputed that there was “any discriminatory motive” involved in decision-making about the translated exams.聽In a statement,聽DOT Director Ford Fuchigami said his department is聽committed “to serving all of Hawaii鈥檚 residents regardless of who they are or where they are from.”
The聽DOT currently offers the examination in 13聽languages, said to make Hawaii the only state under聽2聽million people to offer the exam in more than 10聽languages, including Hawaiian.
FACE said it is聽pleased with the outcome of the case.
