California would pass law to include accents and 'ñ' of Hispanic names in official documents

A new California bill will allow the use of accents and the letter “ñ” in proper names on government-issued documents, such as birth and death certificates or marriage certificates.

Bill 77 legislation, introduced on March 28 by Commissioner Blanca Pacheco, could finally provide the opportunity for Hispanic residents to make necessary changes to their documents.

"The use of a diacritic mark in an English letter shall be considered an acceptable entry on a certificate of living birth, fetal death or death, and a marriage license by the Registrar of State," the law states.

Currently, Latinos living in California cannot include accent marks in their names on official documents. This is because in 1986 Californians voted to make English the official language of the state.

At first glance it seems like a cursory project, but taking into account that more than 15 million Latinos whose first and last names include accents reside in the state, it is an important step. In addition, it would not only benefit Latinos, but also Californians of Vietnamese, French or Arab descent.

Other states, such as Texas, Illinois, Kansas, Hawaii, North Carolina, Oregon, Alaska, and most recently Utah, have passed laws allowing diacritics.

Despite the proposal, diacritics are not recognized by the US Federal Government on documents such as passports and Social Security cards.

The bill is still in the discussion stage, but will soon go to the Assembly and then to the State Senate. If both approve it, it would only have to be signed by the governor to be applied as of January 2024.