Jul 25, 2008   | COMMENTS     

Ending workforce discrimination for public employees will be the top goal in the next legislative session for Equality Virginia, the largest non-partisan gay advocacy group in the state.

The organization named such legislation as its top priority among other bills planned for next year at a conference in Richmond on July 12.

Equality Virginia makes these plans as it begins its search for a replacement for its executive director, Dyana Mason, who announced July 17 her plans to leave the organization by the end of this year.

Mason, a 37-year-old lesbian and Richmond resident, was hired to take the reins of the group in early 2003. Equality Virginia is launching a nationwide search this fall to find her replacement. She didn’t say why she’s resigning.

If Virginia’s General Assembly enacts the non-discrimination law proposed at the conference, it would reinforce an executive order issued by Gov. Tim Kaine (D) in 2006 prohibiting discrimination for state and public employees. The order renewed a policy initiated under former Gov. Mark Warner (D).

Mason said her organization identified a non-discrimination law as a top priority because it’s “something that is becoming more and more urgent” as Virginia prepares for its 2009 gubernatorial election.

“There’s no guarantee that the next governor will implement a similar policy that will include everyone in the state equally,” she said.

Mason said codifying Kaine’s executive order would also give more teeth to the policy. At least one former Virginia public employee is claiming that he was fired for his sexual orientation, even with the executive order in place.

Former Martinsville, Va., resident Michael Moore, who is gay, said he was forced to resign from his position at the Virginia Museum of Natural History in 2006 because of his sexual orientation. While Moore filed a petition with the Office of Equal Employment Services in the same year to grieve his termination, the case has not yet been resolved.

Mason said having a law in place to reinforce the executive order “sends a much stronger message to the agencies and others that the state does not condone any sort of discrimination whatsoever.”

The executive director said Equality Virginia supports fully inclusive legislation that would provide protection for both sexual orientation and gender identity.

Del. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) has introduced legislation prohibiting discrimination for Virginia’s public employees in 2007 and 2008. While both bills had more than 50 co-sponsors, they never made it out of the subcommittees to which they’d been assigned.

Ebbin, the only openly gay lawmaker in the Virginia General Assembly, plans to introduce the legislation again in the next session.

The lawmaker said he was pleased to hear that his bill would be the No. 1 priority for Equality Virginia. Ebbin said he had no idea that the organization intended to make the bill a priority before he heard the announcement at the convention.

Ebbin said the legislation “may stand a better chance” of being passed in the next legislative session because Republican lawmakers are beginning to see that being hostile to gay-friendly bills could be an impediment to re-election.

“I think it’s becoming more clear that Republicans realize that being seen as unfair by the public regarding gays and lesbians would not give them any sort of advantage,” he said.

A Republican majority controls the Virginia House.

Mason acknowledged that getting the bill passed in the next legislative session would be tough. She said Equality Virginia is considering a “dual strategy” where lawmakers would introduce a version of the bill in both the House and the Senate. The organization will also encourage municipalities to pass ordinances recommending passage of the bill, she said.

Ebbin said that getting gay-friendly legislation passed in the next session will be more difficult if Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling (R) replaces Kaine as Virginia’s governor.

Many political pundits identify Kaine as someone on the short list of running mate candidates for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. If Obama selects Kaine as his running mate and wins the White House, the governorship would be vacant and Bolling would take the position.
Ebbin predicted doom for gay efforts in Virginia if such events were to unfold.

“I think that if Bill Bolling were to become the governor, we could not expect any pro-gay legislation to be signed,” Ebbin said. “The bottom line is Kaine is a friend and Bolling is an enemy to fairness.”
While Equality Virginia makes plans for bills that would positively benefit Virginia’s gay community, there is also an expectation that lawmakers will introduce anti-gay bills.

Board member Dan Bouchard said he expects “a very tough legislative year” in 2009 because it is an ...