Barney Frank Brings Back Wider-Ranging ENDA

6/23/09

U.S. Rep. Barney Frank is taking another shot at passing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) – complete with special protections for the transgendered.

The bill – H.R. 2981 – has been changed from the "gay-only" version the House passed in 2007 to include language banning job discrimination based on "gender identity" as well as sexual orientation.

Frank told the Washington Blade that prospects for passing a wider-ranging ENDA have improved significantly since 2007, when he and other House Democratic leaders said the measure would be defeated if a gender-identity clause were kept in the bill.

"Things have gotten better," Frank told the newspaper. "The transgender community is lobbying hard." the rest