Maryland House of Delegates in Session and Scheduled to Vote on Gender Identity Bill Today
The Maryland House of Delegates is scheduled to discuss and vote on the Gender Identity Anti-Discrimination Act, House Bill 235, during the bill’s third and final reading today, Saturday, March 26. The reading may not occur until later this afternoon as the House has many other bills to vote on that are in the “second reading” stage.
If the vote is favorable, the bill will move to a Senate committee for amendments and finally to the Senate floor, expected no later than Monday, March 28, according to the House’s clerk office.
For live coverage of the discussion and vote, follow Yusef Najafi on Twitter. Also, visit Metro Weekly for updates as they develop today.
H.B. 235 went through its second reading on Friday afternoon, March 25, after passing through the Maryland House’s Health and Government Operations Committee with a 15-8 favorable vote earlier that day. The legislation seeks to prohibit discrimination in the areas of housing, employment, licensing and commercial leasing against transgender Marylanders.
Opponents of the legislation include members of the LGBT community who argue that the bill is inadequate because it only provides some, not all, protections by excluding “public accommodations” on a state level. Similar legislation, which included protections for transgender people with regard to Maryland public accommodations, has failed in the past.
Currently, Baltimore City and Montgomery County provide protections against discrimination on the basis of gender identity with regard to housing, employment and public accommodation.
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