With the start of the Nebraska Unicameral's 2024 session this week, guarding against the divisiveness experienced last session is top of mind for many.

Bills limiting gender-affirming care for minors and restricting abortion rights led to an acrimonious 2023 session. Considerable support was shown for transgender youths and their families, however, in part because of the work of OutNebraska. The nonprofit's focus is supporting and "uplifting the voices" of LGBTQ+ Nebraskans.

Abbi Swatsworth, executive director of the group, said advocacy is a core part of its mission and they will definitely have a "presence" at the Unicameral again this year.

"Because everyone deserves a voice in the policymaking process," Swatsworth pointed out. "For so long there was very little representation of LGBTQ people in those spaces."

In a 2022 survey of LGBTQ+ adults by the Center for American Progress, half the respondents reported having experienced discrimination in the workplace related to their identity and a third reported discrimination involving housing over the previous year.

Swatsworth noted for another of its missions, education, last year OutNebraska reached more than 1,400 people with educational sessions on ways to improve the workplace, including entities as varied as nonprofits, large banks and agricultural organizations.

Unlike at least twenty states, Nebraska has no statutes expressly prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation. Swatsworth pointed out although OutNebraska does not provide legal representation, it is "definitely about linkage to resources."

"We have assisted people with contacting the Nebraska Equal Opportunities Commission," Swatsworth outlined. "Or perhaps reaching out to ACLU of Nebraska, or the Lincoln Human Rights Commission, or similar kinds of commissions in their municipal areas."

Swatsworth explained supporting Nebraska Pride celebrations is a large part of another of OutNebraska's missions, celebration. She believes the growing number of them -- with twelve across the state in 2023 -- shows OutNebraska's advocacy and education are having an effect.

"I think just the fact that there is an organization making our presence known at the Capitol and in policy spaces really helps people feel seen," Swatsworth stressed. "They can be more visible in their home community."

No new anti-LGBTQ+ legislation has been introduced for the 2024 session. But a priority bill by Sen. Kathleen Kauth, R-Millard, Legislative Bill 575, would restrict transgender youths' participation in school sports and use of restroom facilities. Swatsworth added it is one of several bills carried over which have "the potential to harm the LGBTQ+ community." OutNebraska's 2024 LGBTQ+ Legislative Day will be held Feb. 12.

Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed a measure that removes gender identity protections for LGBTQ+ people from Iowa's civil rights code. Opponents call it "mean spirited."

Senate File 418 makes Iowa the first state in the country to remove civil rights protections for a group of people who have been protected by law, taking the words "gender identity" out of its code.

Anne Discher, executive director of the group Common Good Iowa, said the measure belies Iowa's open-minded reputation and sends the wrong message to the rest of the nation.

"Basically, it is saying that it's OK to discriminate against trans people in the workplace, in housing, in school and in their financial lives," Discher explained.

Supporters of the measure, which was the first bill Reynolds signed in 2025, said including gender identity in Iowa's civil rights code threatens "common sense" laws banning transgender participation in sports and clarify who can use which public restrooms. Iowa passed its Civil Rights Act in 1965.

Hundreds of protesters rallied against the bill at the Statehouse in Des Moines before Reynolds signed it. Discher argued Iowa lawmakers are not representing their constituents.

"I really firmly believe this bill does not reflect the true beliefs of most Iowans," Discher stressed. "I think it's
incredibly more extreme than Iowans truly are in their hearts."

If it is not challenged in court, the measure is scheduled to take effect July 1.


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A coalition of New Mexico groups is supporting a bill this session to require "Comprehensive Human Sexuality Education" for public school students.

New Mexico is among 40 states to require sex-education instruction but according to Planned Parenthood, there is no guarantee the instruction is high quality or covers topics young people need to stay healthy, including information about HIV.

Nathan Saavedra, program manager for Equality New Mexico, said Senate Bill 258 would require sex education curricula is medically accurate.

"Our hope mostly is to save lives," Saavedra emphasized. "We know that sex education does save lives and it improves the health of all youth. It decreases bullying and harassment. Sex education is harm reduction, from our perspective."

In addition to Equality New Mexico, the state's ACLU organization and the New Mexico Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs support the more comprehensive approach. By contrast, last fall the Florida Department of Education ordered local school districts teaching sex education to promote abstinence and exclude discussion of contraception.

Saavedra noted many students, including those who are LGBTQ+, do not know what they should be doing to protect themselves and would benefit from discussions covering sexual orientation and gender identity.

"We're trying to get the point across and the law in place so those students no longer have to feel less than, or know less than, their peers," Saavedra stressed.

New Mexico's current standards for sex education surpass many other states but access is often dependent on where a student lives. As written, the bill would provide resources to rural and smaller districts to launch comprehensive programs. The proposed legislation still would allow parents to exempt their children from the sex-ed portion of required health courses.

Montana lawmakers are considering three bills on gender. They are all versions of previous bills, which either failed or were struck down in court, but some new drafts have higher stakes.

Two bills would determine if or how transgender people can use certain bathrooms and changing rooms and participate in school sports. A third seeks to prohibit access to gender-affirming health care and to criminalize doctors and parents who, according to the bill, "knowingly procure or provide" such care.

Zuri Moreno, state legislative director for the advocacy group Forward Montana, said some lawmakers have described transgender people as "out of compliance."

"It's an overreach of our government to try to force people across our communities to comply with what they think is correct gender presentation," Moreno argued.

Proponents said the bills would "prevent harassment" and protect the "welfare of children." Moreno countered the proposition that lawmakers should have a say in families' private medical decisions or they understand athletes' needs more than teachers and coaches, is a dangerous one.

The bills parallel a January executive order from President Donald Trump defining "sex" and directs federal agencies to rescind materials discussing "gender ideology." Moreno pointed out organizers across Montana have been preparing for the state bills.

"The governor, in his State of the State, did direct the legislature to get these types of bills to his desk," Moreno noted. "But I think it's important for everyone to remember that our legislature doesn't work for the governor. They work for their constituents."

Legislators have referred all three bills to committee after hearings last week. Moreno stressed regardless of the fate of the bills, debates on them are harmful. Among LGBTQ+ youth, 90% said their well-being has been negatively affected by recent politics, according to a 2024 survey from The Trevor Project.