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NY, USA: Assembly Passes Transgender Protection Bill for Fifth Time

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

The Assembly at the New York state legislature has passed an anti-discrimination bill to protect transgender citizens for the fifth time, but the senate may yet stall progress.

The lower house passed the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act yesterday to mend what Pride Agenda called a “patchwork” of protections, but the senate has consistently failed to pass the Act.

The law would protect citizens from discrimination based on their gender identity and expression.

Full Story from Pink News

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Tags: anti discrimination, assembly, bill, new your, transgender

TN, USA: Don’t Say Gay Bill Dead For Now?

Monday, April 30th, 2012

The Tennessee House will not take a final vote on a proposed bill which would outlaw the discussion of sexual minorities in Tennessee’s public schools before the ninth grade.

The measure – dubbed the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill – will likely die with the Legislature’s adjournment, the News Sentinel reported.

The bill’s chief sponsor in the House, Republican Rep. Joey Hensley, said he pulled the measure after officials of the Department of Eduction and the state Board of Education pledged to inform all state schools that “they cannot teach this subject in grades kindergarten through eight.”

Full Story from On Top Magazine

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Tags: bill, don't say gay, tennessee

CO, USA: Civil Unions Bill Clears Senate, Heads to House

Friday, April 27th, 2012

A bill which would recognize gay and lesbian couples with civil unions tentatively cleared the Colorado Senate on Wednesday.

According to The Associated Press, the bill, sponsored by Democratic Senator Pat Steadman, cleared the chamber on an unrecorded voice vote. Senators overwhelmingly approved the measure last year before it died in a Republican-controlled House committee.

Steadman shared his perspective on the issue as a gay man. “Why is this important?” Steadman asked colleagues. “It’s because life happens to people. People have babies. People adopt children. People have accidents. People end up in the hospital.”

Full Story from On Top Magazine

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Tags: bill, civil unions, colorado, house, passed, senate

CO, USA: Civil Unions Bill Clears Senate Committee

Tuesday, April 17th, 2012

This year’s legislation to recognize same-sex civil unions is on its way to the Senate floor.

Senate Bill 2 cleared the Senate Appropriations Committee Tuesday morning on a 5-4 party-line vote, with all Democrats on the panel voting yes and all Republicans voting no. It will be debated and voted on by the full Senate some time next week.

With Democrats holding a 20-15 edge in the chamber, the bill is assured of passing and heading onto the GOP-controlled House, where the same proposal died last year in a committee hearing before ever reaching the House floor.

Full Story from KDVR

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Tags: bill, civil unions, colorado, senate committee

IL, USA: Sponsor of Marriage Equality Bill Thinks Passage Unlikely This Year

Monday, April 16th, 2012

Despite a push by gay lawmakers, the effort to legalize gay marriage in Illinois is unlikely to get off the ground this year, the chief sponsor of a marriage proposal said.

State Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago) told the Chicago Sun-Times that reeling in Medicaid and pensions programs as well as approving an overall budget would take precedence during the homestretch of the General Assembly’s spring session.

“I never say never,” Harris quipped. “[But] I don’t think there will be a push before the end of this session.” His bill, HB 5170, would delete a provision outlawing marriage between individuals of the same sex.

Full Story from the Sun Times

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Tags: bill, civil unions, Gay Marriage, illinois, legislature

RI, USA: Bill Would Legalize Divorce for Gay, Lesbian Couples

Friday, April 6th, 2012

First John Fazzino went to Massachusetts to marry his husband. Then the Rhode Island man had to go back to get divorced. Rhode Island does not recognize same-sex marriage, and it does not allow resident gay couples married in states like Massachusetts to file for divorce. That means people like Fazzino must move across the state line before obtaining a divorce — for a year, in Fazzino’s case.

“I was told the only way was to leave Rhode Island,” said the 60-year-old Providence artist, yoga instructor and garden designer, whose legal address is now a friend’s home just over the state line. “I didn’t have a choice. So now I’m basically a roommate.”

Legislation in the Rhode Island General Assembly would allow same-sex couples who have been legally married outside Rhode Island to file for divorce without leaving the state. Supporters said it’s wrong to force residents to leave to sever the marital knot, even if their union isn’t recognized in their home state. But opponents of gay marriage said divorce could be the first step down a slippery legal road to full marriage rights for gays.

Full Story from Boston.com

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Tags: bill, gay divorce, rhode island

Russia Considering “Gay Propaganda” Bill

Thursday, March 29th, 2012

A controversial bill that is likely to fuel discrimination against Russia’s embattled gay community has been submitted to Russia’s lower house of parliament.

The bill calls for fines of up to 500,000 rubles ($16,500) for “spreading homosexual propaganda” among minors.

The legislation was submitted Thursday to the State Duma by lawmakers from the central Novosibirsk region who blamed media for promoting gay lifestyles as “normal behavior.”

Full Story from Edge Boston

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Tags: bill, gay propaganda, russia

Finland: Parliament Debating Marriage Equality Bill

Thursday, March 22nd, 2012

Finnish Parliament held a preliminary debate on Wednesday on a legislative initiative for a law that would give equal marriage rights to same-sex couples. The initiative will now go before the Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee, where its passage is uncertain.

Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade Alexander Stubb (Nat. Coalition Party), the first signatory of the initiative, defended it passionately in the debate.

“This initiative is aimed at dismantling a system that causes inequality, in which couple relationships are divided into A and B categories”, Stubb said.

Full Story from Helsing Sanomat

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Tags: bill, finland, Gay Marriage, marriage equality, parliament

NH: House to Vote on Marriage Equality Repeal Today

Wednesday, March 21st, 2012

As we’ve been reporting over the past couple of weeks, the New Hampshire House is scheduled to vote today on a hideous bill (HB 437) from Rep. David Bates that would repeal the state’s marriage equality law.

The AP explains:

The bill, scheduled for a House vote on Wednesday, calls for repealing gay marriage in March 2013 and replacing it with a civil unions law that had been in place in 2008 and 2009. Gay marriages occurring before the repeal took effect would still be valid, but future gay unions would be civil unions. The bill also would allow voters could weigh in through a nonbinding November ballot question.

If the House passes the repeal measure, it would go to the Senate; both houses are controlled by Republicans. Democratic Gov. John Lynch has promised to veto the bill if it reaches his desk.

Full Story from Towleroad.com

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Tags: bill, Gay Marriage, house, marriage equality, new hampshire, repeal, vote

AK: Opponents of Gay Rights Bill Claim It Will Result in Jail Time

Monday, March 19th, 2012

Opponents of Anchorage’s Proposition 5, which would bar discrimination based on sexual orientation, say if approved offenders could be jailed.

If approved on April 3, Proposition 5 would add sexual orientation and gender identity to the Anchorage Equal Rights Initiative. Religious organizations would be exempted from the law. The Anchorage Assembly approved a similar ordinance in 2009, but it was vetoed by Mayor Dan Sullivan.

In a radio ad released this week by the group against Proposition 5, listeners are told employers “will be forced to change their hiring practices or face steep fines and up to 30 days in prison.”

Full Story from On Top Magazine

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Tags: alaska, bill, gay rights