Pennsylvania Democrat To Introduce Sweeping Transgender Rights Bills

Rep. Mark Cohen, a Philadelphia Democrat, intends to introduce an extensive package of transgender rights bills this session, saying a conversation must be started around the very real issue of transgender discrimination. LGBT advocates continue to push for a state law that would establish basic protections against discrimination based on “sexual orientation” and “gender identity and expression” in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations.

“Right now our main focus is to pass a nondiscrimination bill through the legislature,” said Ted Martin, executive director of Equality Pennsylvania. “In Pennsylvania, we need to be talking about the most basic protections, really. That’s really most of our focus at the current moment.”

As stated in the summaries of the bills Cohen plans to introduce, the laws would grant transgender people access to transition-related healthcare through Medicaid, provide state employees access to transition-related care, and create a tax credit for private businesses that provide such care to employees.

Another piece of legislation in the package would create protections for transgender students in Pennsylvania public schools. The bill is modeled after legislation passed last year in California, which would allow students to choose facilities and activities that are in accordance with their gender identity, regardless of the sex listed on their student records.

Cohen concedes it may take a long time to garner enough support in the legislature to pass the protections. He plans to introduce the package as he feels he’s brought on an adequate number of co-sponsors. Lawmakers return to the state capitol in Harrisburg May 5.

“I think you have to begin the discussion at some point and I decided to begin it now,” said Cohen. “Right now there are no protections for transgender people. This would, for the first time, create protections for transgender people under Pennsylvania law.”

Martin seems confident that House Bill and Senate Bill 300 will be passed, having reached 96 co-sponsors in the House and 25 in the Senate and the support of Gov. Tom Corbett, a Republican. The bills need 102 votes and 26 votes to pass in each chamber, respectively.

Martin has not read Cohen’s bills in full, but said they’re “a step in the right direction.” The bills are based on the language of an LGBT equality ordinance that was approved in Philadelphia last spring, according to transgender activist Jordan Gwendolyn Davis. Davis said the groundbreaking city-level policy inspired transgender activists to bring similar measures to the state legislature with Cohen’s help.

“These are all bills that up until a few years ago mainstream lawmakers would have ran away from, and that goes to show the transgender community has come a long way and that we still have a long way to go,” Davis said. “This is the first time these types of bills are being introduced in Pennsylvania history.”

Davis also acknowledged the difficulty supporters might have in advancing the legislation, saying, “Unfortunately, Pennsylvania tends to be a very purple state. We have a right-wing state house that is blocking any LGBT bills from going forward.”

If the state’s Republican Party should come out in support of ending discrimination and laws protecting transgender people, Cohen said these bills would “sail through in 24 hours.” Instead, Cohen anticipates it will take a while to get there, saying, “This is a long, long process for transgender rights. I’m not predicting the next couple of months.”

Davis — like Cohen — said supporters must initiate a conversation around these issues now. “We are intruding these because we feel these issues deserve attention,” she said. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to get them through when a sunnier day comes.”

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