Not including sexual orientation in a nondiscrimination clause riled up state senators debating a bill Thursday.
The bill (LB224), introduced by Sen. Joni Albrecht of Thurston, flew out of the Legislature's Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee after a Monday hearing and was debated Thursday.
It would allow the Nebraska Educational, Health and Social Services Finance Authority to issue tax-exempt bonds for private cultural institutions, in addition to the private not-for-profit colleges, hospitals and social service organizations for which it is already authorized.Â
It probably seemed like a simple addition to state law, until in defining "private cultural institution," someone added that the institution must be one that doesn't violate state or federal law against discrimination "on the basis of race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, age, gender, or disability."
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Omaha Sen. Megan Hunt didn't like the word "creed" and proposed substituting it with "religion." And she didn't like that "sexual orientation" was not on the list of those who could not be discriminated against. She said no bill in 2019 that has a nondiscrimination clause should exclude sexual orientation. Â
Omaha Sen. Sara Howard, a member of the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee, said she had asked Albrecht to bring an amendment making those changes, but Albrecht had not done it. Without adding sexual orientation, Howard said, it would not align with a section of the Nebraska criminal code, creating multiple anti-discrimination requirements in state law.Â
As it was written, bonding authority could be given to a hate group because those groups are considered cultural entities, Howard said.Â
"We want to be very clear about our expectations, and the only clarity that we can provide them with is what we put into law," she said.Â
Howard offered a compromise and Hunt withdrew an amendment she proposed to make the changes. The compromise was to leave out the list of specified protected classes and define "cultural institution" as one that "does not violate any state or federal law against discrimination."
Hunt agreed the change would keep the bill updated for any future additions to Nebraska's nondiscrimination laws.Â
Lincoln Sen. Adam Morfeld broadened the discussion, saying a workplace discrimination bill could be the next anti-discrimination bill to be debated. That bill was advanced from the Judiciary Committee to the full Legislature on Thursday.Â
"LGBT discrimination happens every single day in Nebraska. I have friends everywhere, from fast-food workers all the way up to accomplished attorneys, that have been fired and discriminated against for being gay in this state," he said. "Then we sit around and we wonder why we can't keep young Nebraskans here. We wonder why we can't recruit young Nebraskans here."Â Â
Lincoln Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks said work on nondiscrimination clauses should be done in committee before bills get to the floor for debate.Â
"The fact that we are discussing whether or not we are going to include a certain group of people in our state, when the No. 1 issue for the state chamber is workforce development, is very discouraging," she said.Â
"Please colleagues, it's 2019. Let's move forward, shall we?"Â
The compromise amendment was adopted on a 38-0 vote and the bill advanced by a vote of 37-0.