(a) (1) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, each State department, agency, and program shall provide for each website that may reasonably be expected to be available to and used by members of the general public equal access versions of the website in any language that:

(i) is spoken by any limited English proficient population that constitutes at least 0.5% of the overall population within the State, as measured by the most recent United States Census; and

(ii) can be translated free of charge.

(2) If machine translation services are used to carry out the provisions of paragraph (1) of this subsection, the State department, agency, or program may post conspicuously on its website, a disclaimer that the State department, agency, or program:

(i) does not guarantee the accuracy or reliability of the translation; and

(ii) is not liable for any loss or damage arising out of the use of or reliance on the translated content.

(b) A State department, agency, or program is not required to provide equal access to website content if:

(1) the State department, agency, or program determines that an inaccurate translation of the content could lead to a denial of services or benefits; or

(2) the content cannot be translated due to the limitations of machine translation software, including files in PDF format, images, and videos.

(c) A unit of local government is encouraged to provide equal access versions of websites to the same extent State departments, agencies, and programs are required to under subsection (a) of this section, but may not be required to do so.