Legislature(2023 - 2024)BARNES 124
03/17/2023 03:15 PM House LABOR & COMMERCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB86 | |
| HB85 | |
| HB99 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 91 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 85 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 63 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 99 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 86 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 87 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 99-DISCRIMINATION: GENDER ID.;SEXUAL ORIENT.
4:25:30 PM
CHAIR SUMNER announced that the final order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 99, "An Act relating to and prohibiting
discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity or
expression."
4:25:53 PM
JENNIE ARMSTRONG, Alaska State Representative, as prime sponsor,
introduced HB 99 and presented the PowerPoint titled "HB 99:
LGBTQ+ Nondiscrimination" [hard copy included in committee
packet]. Pointing to slide 2, she stated that Alaska currently
allows discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender
expression, and gender identity, and the bill would align the
state with a previous Supreme Court decision ruling that
discrimination based on these factors is inherently
discrimination based on sex. She offered that religious
organizations would not be affected by the change, and the
Alaska Commission on Human Rights does not oversee schools or
education. She said that this commission oversees employment,
housing, financing, government practices, and public
accommodation.
4:28:38 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG continued to slide 3 through slide 5
and expressed the opinion that discrimination is bad for
business and the economy. She said that Alaska has seen 10
years of outmigration, and she argued preventing discrimination
would make Alaska a better place to raise a family. She stated
that the proposed legislation would place Alaska into alignment
with major Alaskan employers and Fortune 500 companies. She
stated that a statewide solution is required because not all
communities have the legal authority to pass nondiscrimination
ordinances.
4:31:27 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG continued to slide 6 through slide 9
and stated that Alaska ranks 25th for the number of same-sex
couples per 1,000 households. She said that 73 percent of
people surveyed in Anchorage have reported hiding their sexual
orientation or gender identity. Nearly half of those surveyed
reported workplace harassment due to these factors. She pointed
out the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Bostock v. Clayton County,
590 U.S. 644 (2020), that these forms of discrimination are
discrimination against sex as a whole. She continued to slide
10 and slide 11 and stated that sex is a protected class against
discrimination under the Alaska Commission for Human Rights.
She stated that HB 99 would codify these protections, aligning
with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling. She explained that the
attorney general and Alaska Department of Law held that
legislation would be necessary to enact those changes in Alaska.
4:36:22 PM
TRISTAN WALSH, Staff, Representative Armstrong, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of Representative Armstrong, prime
sponsor, co-presenting the PowerPoint, moved to slide 12. He
stated that HB 99 would update the definition of "sex" [found]
in AS 18.80.300 to include "sexual orientation, gender, [and]
identity or gender expression." He explained that the proposed
legislation would align the state with the U. S. Supreme Court's
ruling. He also pointed out other similar cases and laws in the
county. He explained how the definitions in the proposed
legislation would be expanded, directing attention to the
complications concerning sexual orientation and gender, as it is
"innate and can't be changed." He stated that the proposed
legislation also would make conforming changes to the definition
of "blockbusting" in reference to real estate.
[HB 99 was held over.]