The state is failing to meet the needs of incarcerated adults and children who speak languages other than English, according to an Oregon Secretary of State audit looking into the Department of Corrections and Oregon Youth Authority released Wednesday.
Correctly identifying a person’s language needs, the audit points out, is important to successful participation in rehabilitative treatment, such as substance abuse or violence prevention programs.
The Department of Corrections oversees 12 state prisons with more than 12,000 people across the state. The Oregon Youth Authority is part of the state’s juvenile justice system, it operates five youth correctional facilities and four transitional facilities. The largest is MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility in Woodburn.
The main building of the MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility in Woodburn, Ore., on Nov. 6, 2025.
Saskia Hatvany / OPB
“Ultimately, these agencies can’t meet their missions of increasing public safety and reducing recidivism, comply with legal requirements, or maintain the safety of people in custody and staff without effectively addressing language barriers,” the audit notes.
The audit found neither state agency has documented expectations for staff to identify and record a person’s language needs during the intake process. If language needs other than English are identified, the information is not always consistently documented or shared. Some of that gap is due to not clearly assigning this responsibility to a certain person or people.
“When ‘everyone’ is responsible for identifying and communicating language needs, the practical result is no one is clearly accountable,” the audit states. “Neither agency has clearly designated individuals or roles responsible for identifying and verifying the full range of spoken and signed language needs are met at each intake facility.”
From 2022 to 2025, more than 20% of incarcerated adults had a primary language listed as “unknown,” and it was nearly 50% at the Oregon Youth Authority.
The top five languages in use, after English, are currently: Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, Russian and Korean.
One counselor at the youth authority told auditors about a youth whose isolation was exacerbated because of the language barriers.
“These guys live here and can’t initiate communication when they have needs, or even when they just want some normalcy,” the counselor, who wasn’t named, told auditors. “That’s harmful to mental health … English-speaking kids line up at my door to talk to me — this guy can’t. I can’t check in on him and see how he’s doing. He can’t express basic things that the others can, things like ‘I’m hungry,’ or ‘I don’t like this…' He can’t even come to me just to say, ‘I miss my mom.’”
Auditors offered a range of recommendations from better training to ensure electronic filing systems are accurately capturing the needs of inmate populations. They also recommend designating staff to monitor whether language needs are being identified and met for both those incarcerated and family members hoping to visit them.
Leaders from both the Oregon Department of Corrections and the Oregon Youth Authority agreed with the recommendations.
“For as long as the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) has been in existence, individuals with limited English proficiency have been sentenced by the courts to our custody. Although they make up a very small percentage of the overall incarcerated population, their ability to complete assessments, understand processes, and participate in programs are no less important,” Mike Reese, the agency’s director, wrote. “Because individuals sentenced to DOC custody live, work, and learn within the institutions, the ability to communicate is essential.”
