A bill that seeks to broaden
Massachusetts laws banning discrimination in public accommodations to
include gender identity is headed to the desk of Massachusetts
Governor Charlie Baker.
The Democrat-controlled House and
Senate approved a final version of the bill on Thursday.
The Republican governor has previously
said that he would sign the House version of the bill, which included
language that sought to address some privacy concerns, including
requiring the creation of guidelines for business to follow and
instructing the state's attorney general to advise law enforcement on
how to deal with people who assert gender identity for “an improper
purpose.” Most of that language made it into the final
legislation.
A spokesman for Baker said that he is
looking forward “to carefully reviewing the final bill.”
LGBT rights advocates have sought such
protections in Massachusetts for nearly a decade.
“This is a huge victory,” Arline
Isaacson, a lobbyist, told The
Boston Globe. “It's been a long time in coming.
And it's phenomenally important to the trans community, and
phenomenally important to making us a better state, a more fair
state.”
Baker has ten days to veto or sign the
measure.