The Massachusetts state flag flies in front of the State House. (Jesse Costa/WBUR) State agencies would be required to ensure equal access to services, programs and activities for people with limited English proficiency and an oversight board would provide guidance and technical assistance to those entities under new legislation filed this session. Lawmakers and advocates supporting the bill (H 3199 / S 2040) say requiring state agencies to provide access to non-English speaking residents is a crucial step to helping a large population access taxpayer-funded services. And the issue of language access, those supporters say, existed long before the COVID-19 pandemic dominated the daily news.