
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi agreed Friday to fast-track a transgender-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act once there are enough votes to pass it. Although a version of the bill that covers only sexual orientation will be marked up by committee and move to a floor vote next week, the Democrat from California has promised to hold a floor vote on a fully inclusive ENDA without delay as soon as the political support is there.
The decision comes after Pelosi met with representatives from the Human Rights Campaign, which has led lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill for a trans-inclusive bill.
"Speaker Pelosi's
promise to put a fully-inclusive ENDA to a vote
continues to underline HRC's passionate advocacy on behalf
of the entire GLBT community," HRC president Joe
Solmonese said in a statement. "Our strategy
throughout has been to stay at the table and fight for
the ultimate goal that we all share. Today, that strategy
has proven to be successful. With this commitment, the
inclusive ENDA bill will continue to receive
legislative action as it moves through the committee
hearing process during the time HRC, and other coalition
organizations, continue to advocate directly with
[Congress] members to support this critical inclusive
workplace protection bill."
Pelosi's decision is unusual in that bills that
will be voted on by the full House, as the sexual
orientation-only ENDA will be, are rarely given
additional consideration in another form. (The Advocate)
These comments are reproduced as written by visitors to this Web site. They have not been edited for content, grammar, or spelling. The viewpoints appearing here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or views of advocate.com, The Advocate, or its affiliates.
Be the first to comment on this story.
If you would like to submit a comment for posting, please fill out the form above.
All comments submitted via this form are subject to posting or publication. (To send a private letter to an Advocate editor or writer, please use the e-mail button at the top of the page, or use snail mail.) If you would like your comment considered for publication in The Advocate magazine, please include your full name, your city of residence, and a phone number where you can be reached during business hours so that we can confirm your identity. Your e-mail address and telephone number are strictly confidential and will not be shared or used for any purpose other than to contact you about your comment.
See the Contact page for sending comments for reasons other than responding to Advocate editorial and news stories.
Please note that comments sent by fax or snail mail are unlikely to be posted, although they will be considered for publication along with all letters received via e-mail or via this Web page. Comments that chiefly concern Advocate.com content will be considered for posting only on the Web site. The Advocate reserves the right to edit submitted comments for grammar, spelling, obscenities, or libel; we will, however, do our best to preserve the original comment's style and intent. Comments considered for publication in The Advocate magazine may also be edited for length.