Time to call your legislators again!
Update on the status of Federal and CA State bills that affect the lives of the LGBTQ community.
FEDERAL
- PRO-LGBTQ legislation
- Equality Act (S.1503/H.R.15):This landmark bill seeks to amend existing civil rights laws to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. It would cover areas like employment, housing, education, and public accommodations. “The nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) found that nationally, support for a bill like the Equality Act topped 75 percent, which includes a majority of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents. The bill has been endorsed by more than 600 organizations, including civil rights, education, health care, and faith-based organizations, as well as hundreds of major corporations and business associations.”
- Senate Cosponsors: Padilla and Schiff – YES
- House Cosponsors: Brownley and Carbajal – YES
- Transgender Health Care Access Act (H.R.2487):This bill aims to ensure access to gender-affirming care for transgender individuals. It defines gender-affirming care broadly, encompassing various medical, behavioral, and supportive services related to the treatment of gender dysphoria. This includes improving medical education for gender-affirming care providers, expanding gender-affirming care at community health centers.
- Cosponsors: Brownley – YES, Carbajal – NOT YET
- ANTI-LGBTQ legislation
- Do No Harm in Medicaid Act (H.R.498):This bill proposes to prohibit federal Medicaid funding for gender transition procedures, including hormone therapy, for individuals under the age of 18, with specific exceptions for what they consider genetic disorders. The GOP tried to sneak this legislation into the similarly duplicitously named “Big, Beautiful Bill” but it was stripped out by the Senate parliamentarian. So it’s still lurking out there.
INDIVISIBLE VENTURA 