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President-elect Barack Obama has tapped Nancy Sutley, deputy mayor of Los Angeles for energy and environment, to head the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Sutley is an open lesbian. (Photo by AP)
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HOME > NEWS > NATIONAL NEWS
By: CHRIS JOHNSON COMMENTS
 
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cabinet-level appointment would demonstrate that they did not hear us.”
Wolfe said “there’s no doubt” that the Obama White House would include more gay people than earlier administrations, but added that with the number of cabinet positions that are already filled, “the day for [Obama’s team] to demonstrate that America’s promise is open to LGBT people are dwindling at that level.”
Non-legislative changes urged
Solmonese said his role at the meeting was to discuss non-legislative changes that Obama’s administration could make to improve the lives of gay and transgender Americans.
He said he presented the transition team an 80-page document of proposed changes to consider.
A coalition of gay activist groups compiled the recommendations, Solmonese said, and HRC was responsible for drafting proposed executive orders that would make the changes.
A 12-page executive summary of the document outlines the recommendations, which include expanding President Clinton’s executive order barring discrimination in the federal workplace on the basis of sexual orientation to include gender identity. Additionally, the document calls on Obama to develop a national HIV/AIDS strategy and to fund scientifically based programs to confront diseases affecting the gay community.
Other recommendations include:
• Changing rules in the State Department so that the partners of gay Foreign Service officers can receive the same benefits as the spouses of their straight counterparts. The partners of gay Foreign Service officers are currently denied access to certain medical facilities, language training and emergency evacuation.
• Expanding an existing executive order to require that the federal government only hire contractors that have non-discrimination provisions for sexual orientation and gender identity categories.
• For transgender people, allowing the Internal Revenue Service to provide reimbursements for medical expenses incurred in the gender-transition process through tax-preferred flexible spending accounts. Also, allowing transgender people to change their gender markers on federal documents and records, including passports.
• Developing a plan to guide Congress in repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which prohibits openly gay people from serving in the military.
• Having the Justice Department issue a ruling to clarify that interstate domestic violence and stalking provisions under the Violence Against Women Act apply in situations where the offen
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