Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker has
proposed a nondiscrimination bill that includes gay protections.
Becker, a Democrat, began circulating a
public
discussion draft of the proposal on July 21. The mayor is
expected to introduce a final bill to the City Council in
mid-September.
The current language of the bill would
ban discrimination based on race, sex, age, disability, sexual
orientation and gender identity (trangender protections) in the areas
of employment, public accommodations and housing. Religious
organizations and state agencies would be exempt from the law.
Becker, 57, has asked for public
comments on the draft bill, which he says will be taken into
consideration before drafting the final ordinance.
A July discrimination report by the
8-member Salt Lake City Human Rights Commission is being given credit
as the catalyst for the proposed measure. The commission found that
discrimination remains a problem in the city.