Written by: Paul Barnes | May 18, 2021

Brief Overview of the Bill

The bill HB4297 would seek to change Michigan discrimination laws in a variety of ways to protect people from discrimination based on their sexual orientation and their gender identity or expression. 

In short terms, this bill changes many of the laws related to discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity or expression as being protected from discrimination, just like age, race and so on. The bill also adds some minor changes to the laws mostly in changing different phrasing to be more clear. 

The bill has 52 sponsors, of which 51 are Democrats and 1 is Republican. The sponsors include; Abraham Aiyash (D),   Sarah Anthony (D), Kyra Bolden (D),   Felicia Brabec (D),   Tommy Brann (R),   Kelly Breen (D),   Julie Brixie (D),   Sara Cambensy (D),   Darrin Camilleri (D), Brenda Carter (D),   Tyrone Carter (D),   Mary Cavanagh (D),   John Cherry (D),   Cara Clemente (D),   Kevin Coleman (D),   Jim Ellison (D), Alex Garza (D),   Jim Haadsma (D),   Abdullah Hammoud (D),   Kevin Hertel (D),   Rachel Hood (D),   Kara Hope (D),   Cynthia Johnson (D), Matt Koleszar (D),   Padma Kuppa (D),   David LaGrand (D),   Donna Lasinski (D),   Tullio Liberati (D),   Mari Manoogian (D),   Christine Morse (D),   Cynthia Neeley (D),   Amos O’Neal (D),   Ronnie Peterson (D),   Laurie Pohutsky (D),   Ranjeev Puri (D),   Yousef Rabhi (D), Julie Rogers (D),   Terry Sabo (D),   H. Helena Scott (D),   Nate Shannon (D),   Tim Sneller (D),   William Sowerby (D),   Samantha Steckloff (D), Richard Steenland (D),   Lori Stone (D),   Joseph Tate (D),   Shri Thanedar (D),   Regina Weiss (D),   Karen Whitsett (D),   Angela Witwer (D), Tenisha Yancey (D),   Stephanie Young (D).

As of today (May 18, 2021), the bill is currently in committee and has been since 2/23/2021. 

What are Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression?

The two definitions we need to understand to read this bill are:

  • Gender Identity or Expression: having or being perceived as having a gender-related self-identity or expression whether or not associated with an individual’s assigned sex at birth.
  • Sexual Orientation: having an orientation for heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality or having a history of such an orientation or being identified with such an orientation.

These two definitions protect people regardless of if they identify as their birth sex or not and protects people regardless if they are attracted/with someone of the same sex as themselves or not. It should be noted that these do not specifically protect, for example, gay individuals, it protects everyone, even people who are straight, from being discriminated against based on sexual orientation and the same thing applies to gender identity. 

Over the course of this blog, I will use the term “Standard Protections” to save on room, this term is simply being used to refer to the protections that were included in the previous version of the law, those being; religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, or marital status.

What Will this Bill Change?

As stated before the main difference is that Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression is now included in many discrimination protection laws. This means that business and organizations would need to be careful not to discriminate against these groups should the law pass. 

Below is a much more in depth description of all the main parts of the law. Read on if you want a greater/specific description of what the bill is all about. 

Employment Discrimination Protections

  • The bill provides protections to employees/prospective employees from being discriminated against in terms of being hired, fired, compensation, among others, by employers or prospective employers on the basis of being part of the standard protected groups, which now includes, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. 
  • Prevents Employers or prospective employers from limiting, segregating, or classifying an employee or applicant for employment, in such a way to hurts their employment opportunity or would hurt the status of the employee or applicant on the basis of them being part of one of the standard protections, which now include Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. 
  • A contract that includes the state of Michigan, a subdivision, or an agency of the state/a political subdivision, must contain a covenant that the contractor or any of their subcontractors must not committee discrimination in terms of employment (both applicants and current employees) against the standard protected groups and the new groups of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. If they do commit discrimination then they are in breach of the contract. 

Employers, Labor Organizations, and Related Groups

  • The law prohibits any employment agency from failing to or refusing to procure, refer, recruit, or place for employment someone based on them being part of the standard protections and the new additions of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. It also does the inverse by preventing them from referring people only on the basis of them being part of one of the standard protections groups or the new additions of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. 
  • Under this law, Labor Organizations are prohibited from unfairly excluding, expelling, segregating, limiting, not referring someone for employment, failing to represent them adequately, among other things, simply because that individual is one of the standard protections groups or the new additions of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. 
  • Prohibited employers, labor organizations, joint labor committees, job training programs, apprenticeships and retraining programs, from discriminating against applicants or participants on the sole basis of them being part of one of the Standard Protections groups or the new additions in Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity or Expression. 
  • Prohibits employers, labor organizations and joint labor committees from posting, circulating, mailing or otherwise publishing something that states a preference, limitation, specification or discrimination, for a specific standard protected group, including the new additions of Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity or Expression. 
  • Additionally the above organizations are not allowed to use written/oral forms to ask for the above protected information or that states a preference for specific standard protected group including the new additions of Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity or Expression. Rules by the commission or Federal law that contradict this law, allow this part of the law to be ignored in those cases only. 

Individuals

  • Prohibits individuals from publishing to an employer something that specifies themselves as being part, or not part of, one of the Standard Protected groups, including the two new additions of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. It also prohibits them from stating a preference for their employer to be part of or not part of one of the standard protected groups, again, including Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression.

Public Businesses, Services, and Educational Institutions

  • Prohibits discrimination against individuals in terms of their enjoyment/access to goods, facilities, services, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of a public place or service because of them being part of one of the standard protections and the new additions of Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity or Expression. Additionally, the printing, circulating posting, mailing and so on of something that indicates a refusal to do the above for a specific group is banned, similarly stating that a certain group is unwelcome (and similar phrasings) is also banned. 
  • Private clubs that offer memberships must make them available to all of the standard protected groups, including the new additions of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. Age is not included as a protected group in this case.
  • Educational institutions are not allowed to discriminate against someone who is part of one of the standard groups, including the new additions of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression (with the exception of age), by preventing them from making full use of the institution, its activities, services and programs. Similar rules also apply to expelling, excluding, limiting or otherwise discriminating against a student or prospective student in terms of their privileges and conditions and the institution.
  • Educational institutions are also prohibited from using discriminatory enrollment practices such as such as using written or oral forms to ask if someone is part of one of the  standard protected groups, including the new additions of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression (unless required by affirmative action programs). They are also not allowed to state a preference, specification or discrimination, for a specific group or to announce some sort of limiting quota meant to deny or limit entry of a specific group. Once again the specific group is one of the standard protected groups, including the new additions, again with the exception of age.

Real Estate Agents and Related Transactions

Real Estate agents or people engaging in real estate may not do any of the following on the basis of an individual or someone with them being part of one of the standard protected groups and the new additions;

  • Refuse to do a transaction.
  • Discriminate in terms, conditions, privileges.
  • Refuse to receive or transmit an offer to have a transaction.
  • Refuse to negotiate for a transaction with someone.
  • Deny the knowledge that a property is available from a person or lie to them saying it is not available when it really is.
  • Cause a statement to be published in any way that indicates a preference, limitation, specification or discrimination for a real estate transaction. 
  • Offer, solicit, accept or use a real estate property, knowing full well that it will result in a discriminatory real estate transaction. 
  • Discriminate against someone in brokering or appraising a property. 
  • Deny access to/membership in a listing service, real estate brokers organization, or some other service relating to real estate or discriminating against them in the terms and conditions of using that membership. 
  • Present to someone in a transaction that they will benefit financially from that change is coming to the neighborhood in the composition of one of the standard protected groups (including the new additions), and that this might cause a rise in crime, lower property values and other negative events. 

A person/organization or their representatives, that gives out loans in connection with real estate transactions or in connection with repair of real estate property (and other similar things) may not do any of the following;

  • Discriminate against them because they (or someone with them) are part of one of the standard protected groups, including the new additions. 
  • Use a form that indicates a preference, limitation, specification, or discrimination against an individual (or someone living with them) on the basis of them being part of one of the standard protected groups, including the new additions. 
  • A business that supplies real estate loans, may not discriminate against someone trying to acquire a loan because they are one of the standard protected groups or the new additions. 

Other Differences

  • Conditions, restrictions or prohibitions that limit an occupants use of property on the basis of them being part of the standard protected groups or the new additions are void. Some religious and charitable organizations are exempt from this rule. 

My Conclusion 

Personally, I think the changes to these laws are for the better. People will always find someone to hate and discriminate against and hence, responsible governments of the world need to take action to protect said people from that hatred and discrimination. The changes put forth in this bill are a great step in the right direction of providing greater protections to people with differing Sexual Orientations and Gender Identities or Expressions. By providing these increased protections the state of Michigan will perhaps become a safer and more welcoming place.