State lawmakers are once again being asked to consider a ban on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The sponsor of the bill says it may be more important now that ever, but suggests the odds are stacked against it.
Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood) has sponsored the Ohio Fairness Act since it was first introduced under that name in 2016, though similar versions go back to 2003. She's now reintroduced it as Senate Bill 70.
While the anti-LGBTQ discrimination ban passed only once - in the House when Democrats were in the majority in 2009 – there’s been bipartisan support for the idea every session but one since 2011. Now only the Senate’s nine Democrats are on board.
“It's reflective of what's happening at the national level, demonizing transgender people to begin with—everything from the federal attempts at erasing certainly transgender folks, which is really sad because you can't erase people that exist," Antonio said.
A version of a ban on sexual orientation and gender identity has been proposed in every session since 2003. At least one Republican has signed on as a joint or co-sponsor each time except in the 2017-2018 session, when Antonio sponsored House Bill 160 and Sens. Michael Skindell (D-Lakewood) and Charleta Tavares (D-Columbus) brought forward Senate Bill 100. Among the Republicans who have signed on to the bans over the years are former senator and now Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who was a joint sponsor of Senate Bill 125, and Sen. George Lang (R-West Chester), the Senate Majority Whip who co-sponsored Senate Bill 132, as did Sen. Nathan Manning (R-North Ridgeville).
Three years ago, Antonio had a Republican joint sponsor on Senate Bill 119 in then-Sen. Michael Rulli. He was the only Republican senator to sign on as a co-sponsor to Senate Bill 11 in the previous session. Last June, Rulli he won a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson. Rulli recently reshared a post on social media about his support for an executive order from President Trump banning trans athletes in girls’ sports, and posted on Feb. 9: "The culture war is over. We won."
Antonio said she intends to fight for the bill, because she wants to have conversations about why it's needed.
"I think it's incredibly important that we talk about the fact that members of the LGBTQ community contribute every day, on every level, whether it's in business, in education, in religious practice. We are part of the fabric of society.," Antonio said. "The members of the LGBTQ community are determined to continue to push for equality and representation and fairness because that's what they—we—are entitled to. Nothing less."
SB 70 has been assigned to the Senate Government Oversight and Reform Committee. No hearings have been set yet.
