Yesterday in Richmond at the General Assembly, the General Laws Committee passed two crucial bills out of committee, Sen. Adam Ebbin’s SB 202 and Sen. Jennifer Wexton’s SB 423 with bipartisan support.
SB 202 prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity in public employment, and SB 423 updates Virginia’s Fair Housing Law to include sexual orientation and gender identity. Both bills passed by a vote of 12Y – 3N and will now head the full Senate for a vote.
The Senate has passed these bills in previous years only to have them defeated in the House.
However, the 2017 elections created a more LGBT-affirming House of Delegates. With changes in the makeup of House, these bills have a real chance of making it to Governor Northam’s desk and becoming law.
Our friends at Equality Virginia are asking constituents that support these bills to contact their Delegates. To do so, visit bit.ly/2018EqualityAgenda.
If you want to meet your legislator(s) in person, you may also participate in Equality Virginia’s Day of Action on February 5. For more information, click HERE.
The LGBT Life Center, PFLAG, HRBOR and others are organizing a bus to Richmond for the EV Day of Action, for more information about getting on the bus, sign up HERE.
