LGBT News

Roll Call reports: The Housing and Urban Development Department recommitted to Obama-era protections that ensure transgender people experiencing homelessness can stay in shelters that correspond with their gender identities. The department on Thursday withdrew a proposal put forward under President Donald Trump last year that would have rolled back the protections in HUD’s 2012 Equal Access rule for transgender and …

The Montana Standard reports: Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte on Thursday signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, bolstering religious beliefs as a claim or defense in court. Democrats and other opponents have decried the new law, arguing it would empower people to freely discriminate against LGBTQ people with beliefs that they are immune in the courts. Democratic lawmakers in both chambers …

Foreign Policy reports: Secretary of State Antony Blinken has issued a blanket authorization for U.S. diplomatic outposts around the world to fly the Pride flag on the same flagpole as the U.S. flag at their embassy or consulate showcasing support for LGBTQ rights. The directive marks a departure from how the Trump administration handled the matter while the State Department …

The New York Times reports: Andrew Yang, the former presidential candidate and leading contender for mayor of New York City, met with a prominent L.G.B.T. Democratic political organization on Wednesday to seek its endorsement. It did not go particularly well. In an interview with the Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City, Mr. Yang cited gay members of his staff …

The Associated Press reports: The city of Scottsdale has voted to approve a non-discrimination ordinance, becoming the eighth city in Arizona to provide protections to members of the LGBTQ community and other groups. The Scottsdale City Council unanimously passed the ordinance on Tuesday protecting residents from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, public places and housing. …

Topeka’s ABC News affiliate reports: Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly announced Thursday she has vetoed a proposed ban on transgender athletes from playing on school sports teams for girls and women. The bill was originally approved by the Republican-controlled House and Senate in early April. “This legislation sends a devastating message that Kansas is not welcoming to all children and their …

The Bismarck Tribune reports: Gov. Doug Burgum on Wednesday vetoed a bill restricting transgender girls in K-12 sports. The bill had passed the House 69-25 and the Senate 27-20 after conference committee amendments. House Bill 1298, brought by Rep. Ben Koppelman, R-West Fargo, sought to prohibit public elementary and secondary schools from “knowingly” allowing a student to participate on a …

The Arizona Republic reports: Gov. Doug Ducey vetoed a controversial sex education bill but issued an executive order requiring public notice of any such curriculum before it can be used in Arizona classrooms. The dual actions appeared to be a compromise between the provisions of Senate Bill 1456 and critics who said it would marginalize LGBTQ children by, among other …

Tallahassee’s CBS News affiliate reports: A proposal that would make it more difficult for transgender athletes to compete on girls’ and women’s high-school and college teams stalled Tuesday in a state Senate panel. With the 2021 legislative session scheduled to end April 30, Senate Appropriations Chairwoman Kelli Stargel, who is sponsoring the Senate’s version of the transgender athlete bill, said …

PBS reports: The rights of transgender Americans has been a growing topic of debate on sports fields, in state capitols and in Congress. The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ advocacy organization, says more than 30 state legislatures have proposed more than 115 bills that would limit transgender rights, from participation on sports teams to access to medical care. But two-thirds …

Tallahassee’s NBC News affiliate reports: The Florida House on Wednesday passed a bill that would ban transgender females from competing girls’ and women’s high school and college sports. The bill passed with a vote of 77-40 after a heated debate. The bill would make participation in athletics contingent on determining a students’ “biological sex,” which is a disputed term that …

NBC News reports: The NCAA Board of Governors released a statement Monday that it will not host championships in places that discriminate against transgender athletes. “The NCAA Board of Governors firmly and unequivocally supports the opportunity for transgender student-athletes to compete in college sports. This commitment is grounded in our values of inclusion and fair competition,” the statement read in …

The Hill reports: Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) said on Sunday that his decision to veto the transgender youth healthcare ban was a “message of compassion and conservatism,” saying it aligned with his conservative belief in limited government. Appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Hutchinson acknowledged the blowback he has received from his party for his veto of the …

NPR reports: ARI SHAPIRO: And so if you were to hear today from one of those transgender minors and their parents who had been getting hormone treatment and will have to stop under this law, like, what would you say to them? ASA HUTCHINSON: Well, I’m sorry, and that’s exactly the reason I vetoed the bill is because we wanted …

The Louisville Courier-Journal reports: On a window outside Aries Tax Service in Radcliff, Kentucky, signs promote how customers can e-file returns for $55 as long as they provide 10 things to Ken Randall, the registered tax return preparer at the Hardin County business. But the last thing Randall lists on his “I Need” placard is something he doesn’t want: “Homosexual …

Little Rock’s CBS News affiliate reports: The Arkansas House and Senate both voted to override Governor Asa Hutchinson’s veto of HB1570, making the bill law. Gov. Hutchinson vetoed HB1570 on Monday. The Arkansas House voted 71-24 to override Hutchinson’s veto, and the Arkansas Senate voted 25-8 to override the veto. Arkansas becomes the first state to ban gender confirming treatments …

Nashville’s ABC News affiliate reports: Tennessee’s Republican-dominant Senate on Monday advanced legislation that would require school districts to alert parents of any instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity, as well as allow them to opt their students out of such instruction. According to the bill, school districts would have 30 days to alert parents or guardians of upcoming instruction …

The Hill reports: The Department of Justice (DOJ) has told federal agencies that gay and transgender students are protected from discrimination under civil rights laws, reversing Trump administration guidance that limited the impact of a landmark Supreme Court decision last year extending employment discrimination protections to LGBT workers. In an memo to federal agencies, Pamela Karlan, the head of the …

Little Rock’s ABC News affiliate reports: Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Monday that he vetoed a bill that would ban gender confirming hormone treatment for trans youths. Hutchinson called the bill “well-intended but off course” and said it was “overbroad.” “We are creating new standards of legislating interference for physicians and parents as they deal with some of the most …

The Associated Press reports: The Pentagon on Wednesday will sweep away Trump-era policies that largely banned transgender people from serving in the military, issuing new rules that offer them wider access to medical care and assistance with gender transition, defense officials told The Associated Press. The new department regulations allow transgender people who meet military standards to enlist and serve …