Governor Gretchen Whitmer and legislative Democrats said today that a bill to expand Michigan’s civil rights law to include LGBTQ protections will be voted on next week. A state Senate vote planned for this week was delayed by an ice storm that shut down much of the state.
State Senator Jeremy Moss is the bill sponsor. He says expanding the civil rights law is long overdue.
Senator Moss says, “People have suffered. People have suffered through discrimination. They’ve been fired. They’ve been evicted. They’ve been put out of places. Just because of how they identify. And so to enshrine this protection into state law will truly save lives and liberate a community.”
The Michigan Supreme Court ruled last summer the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act’s protections against discrimination based on “sex” includes sexual orientation. Moss said his bill will ensure that can’t be reversed by future courts.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer said again today that she will sign it when it reaches her desk.
