Published on March 17, 2026
Franklin County Board of Commissioners
The Franklin County Board of Commissioners approved a contract extension Tuesday to keep language interpretation services available to seniors who depend on them to access county programs.
The Office on Aging's contracts with three vendors, Access 2 Interpreters LLC, Asian American Community Services, and US Together Incorporated, will continue through March 30, 2027, with the total financial obligation not exceeding $200,000. Two optional one-year extensions remain available.
Laurice Cohens, Chief Financial Officer for the Office on Aging, explained the stakes plainly: seniors with limited English proficiency cannot access care, understand their eligibility, or communicate with service providers without language support. Interpretation services are the bridge between those residents and the county programs that help them stay independent in their homes.
Franklin County's older adult population is growing and increasingly diverse. Without this infrastructure in place, a language barrier becomes a service barrier. The contract ensures that barrier does not stand.
Commissioner Crawley asked how many languages the current vendors cover. Cohens did not have the exact figure available at the session but committed to sending that information to the board.
The resolution supports Goal 9 of the Franklin County Rise Together Blueprint. All three commissioners voted yes.