WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) today introduced bipartisan legislation requiring federal surveys to include data collection on sexual orientation and gender identity. While some federal data on the LGBT community is currently collected, there is no centralized requirement in law ensuring that federal data collection on the LGBT community be a priority. TheLGBT Data Inclusion Act would allow members of the LGBT community to confidentially provide survey data that will ultimately inform policymakers responsible for the public’s wellbeing.
The LGBT Data Inclusion Act is endorsed by the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus and 19 prominent civil rights groups, including Center for American Progress, Williams Institute, Human Rights Campaign, National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund, National Center for Transgender Equality, True Colors Fund, Transgender Law Center, National Center for Lesbian Rights, GLSEN, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, National Black Justice Coalition, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, National Women’s Law Center, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Anti-Defamation League, The Trevor Project, National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, New York City Anti-Violence Project, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
The LGBT Data Inclusion Act has 68 original cosponsors: Reps. Mark Pocan (D-WI), Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY), David Cicilline (D-RI), Mark Takano (D-CA), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Richard Hanna R-NY), Mike Quigley (D-IL), John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI), Jim Langevin (D-RI), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Jim McDermott (D-WA), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Jackie Speier (D-CA), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Alan Grayson (D-FL), José E. Serrano (D-NY), Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD), William R. Keating (D-MA), Tony Cárdenas (D-CA), Dan Kildee (D-MI), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Ted W. Lieu (D-CA), Niki Tsongas (D-MA), Scott Peters (D-CA), Katherine Clark (D-MA), Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Grace Meng (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Frederica S. Wilson (D-FL), Peter Welch (D-VT), Suzan DelBene (D-WA), Brenda L. Lawrence (D-PA), Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), Donna Edwards (D-MD), Adam Smith (D-WA), Brian Higgins (D-NY),Judy Chu (D-CA), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Elizabeth Esty (D-CT), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Matt Cartwright (D-PA), Patrick Murphy (D-FL), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), John Yarmouth (D-KY), Alcee Hastings (D-FL), Jim McGovern (D-MA), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Derek Kilmer (D-WA), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mike Honda (D-CA), Charles Rangel (D-NY), Henry C. “Hank” Johnson (D-GA), Don Beyer (D-VA), Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Ruben Hinojosa (D-TX), Filemon Vela (D-TX), Seth Moulton (D-MA), Betty McCollum (D-MN).
Grijalva is a prominent voice in the effort to expand equal access to opportunities for the LGBT community as a member of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus and Transgender Equality Task Force. In April of this year, he joined forces with Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) to urge for similar data collection on the LGBT community to be included in the American Community Survey (ACS).
The full text of the LGBT Data Inclusion Act is available here.
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