Bill Text: NJ AR32 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Condemns Trump Administration's policies towards transgender individuals.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-14 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Human Services Committee [AR32 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-AR32-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2020 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman NICHOLAS CHIARAVALLOTI
District 31 (Hudson)
Assemblywoman MILA M. JASEY
District 27 (Essex and Morris)
Assemblywoman VALERIE VAINIERI HUTTLE
District 37 (Bergen)
SYNOPSIS
Condemns Trump Administration's policies towards transgender individuals.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Assembly Resolution condemning the Trump Administration's policies towards transgender individuals.
Whereas, New Jersey is committed to the equality and dignity of all persons under the law; and
Whereas, On October 24, 2018, U.S. Solicitor General Noel Francisco of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), filed a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that transgender workers are not protected by civil rights laws prohibiting sex discrimination in the workplace, which contradicts the views of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC); and
Whereas, The EEOC, which has advocated for a broader interpretation of sex discrimination, successfully sued a Michigan funeral home in March 2018 after it fired a transgender worker; and
Whereas, Currently, the Michigan funeral home is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case and the DOJ brief comes as the U.S. Supreme Court is weighing whether or not it will take on this case that would decide whether transgender people are covered under the 1964 Civil Rights Act; and
Whereas, In the brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, the DOJ argues the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals made the wrong decision by ruling in the transgender worker's favor and that the court of appeals misinterpreted the 1964 Civil Rights Act in concluding that Title VII includes discrimination on the basis of gender identity; and
Whereas, The DOJ brief arguing that transgender individuals are not protected from discrimination under federal civil rights law is the most recent action by the Trump Administration to roll back protections of the transgender community; and
Whereas, Along with the DOJ brief, the Trump Administration has sought to ban transgender people from serving in the United States military, proposed a new definition of sex that excludes gender identity, and urged the United Nations Third Committee to remove "gender" from human rights documents and replace it with "woman;" and
Whereas, Excluding transgender individuals from federal civil rights laws prohibiting discrimination would impact an estimated 1.4 million Americans who identify as transgender and make them more susceptible to gender-based discrimination; and
Whereas, According to the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey, an anonymous online survey of over 27,000 transgender adults, 10 percent of respondents who were out to their families reported that they had experienced violence from a family member due to their being transgender, while eight percent of respondents reported that they were forced to leave the family home because of being transgender; and
Whereas, More than 75 percent of the survey respondents experienced some form of mistreatment, including physical or sexual assault, between kindergarten and grade 12, due to their being out or being perceived as transgender and nearly one quarter of respondents who were out or perceived as being transgender in college or vocational school reported being verbally, physically, or sexually harassed; and
Whereas, Instead of protecting transgender people from the verbal, physical, or sexual harassment that is outlined in the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey through the nation's federal civil rights laws, the Trump Administration is furthering the abuse of transgender individuals by arguing that they are not protected by laws prohibiting sex discrimination; and
Whereas, New Jersey's condemnation of the Trump Administration's actions towards transgender people will allow the State to object to discrimination based on gender identity and will illustrate New Jersey's commitment to the equality of all people, including transgender individuals; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The General Assembly condemns the Trump Administration's policies towards transgender individuals.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly to the President of the United States, the United States Attorney General, and each member of Congress elected from this State.
STATEMENT
This resolution condemns the Trump Administration's policies towards transgender individuals. Over the last two years, the Trump Administration has promoted an anti-transgender agenda.
On October 27, 2018, the Department of Justice (DOJ) submitted a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that transgender individuals are not protected by federal civil rights laws, specifically Title XII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The DOJ's actions contradict the views of the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which successfully sued a Michigan funeral home for firing a transgender worker after she came out as transgender. The DOJ's brief argues that the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals made the wrong decision and misinterpreted the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The DOJ brief is the latest example of the Trump Administration promoting an anti-transgender agenda. Prior to the DOJ brief, the Trump Administration sought to ban transgender people from serving in the United States military, proposed a new definition of sex that excludes gender identity, and urged the United Nations Third Committee to remove "gender" from human rights documents and replace it with "woman." To illustrate New Jersey's commitment to the equality of all people, including transgender individuals, the State condemns the actions by the Trump Administration.
