News
Final rule announced for LGBT workplace executive order
No comment period prior to final rule on directive
Labor Secretary Thomas Perez announced the rule is final for an executive order barring LGBT workplace discrimination. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
A new rule for an executive order signed by President Obama prohibiting federal contractors from engaging in anti-LGBT workplace discrimination is now final, the Labor Department announced Wednesday.
Following years of pressure from LGBT advocates, Obama signed the order on July 21, but the process wasn’t yet final because the Labor Department and the Office of Management & Budget had to draft a rule to implement the measure.
Once the final rule is published in the Federal Register, it will become effective 120 days later and apply to federal contracts entered into or modified on or after that date, according to the Labor Department.
After its announcement, the Labor Department published Frequently Asked Questions for the final rule, which can be found here. The final rule itself is set to be online at 4:30 pm, according to the Labor Department. UPDATE: The final rule is here.
Labor Secretary Thomas Perez said in a statement the final rule for the executive order, known as Executive Order 13672, is a step in the path to ending anti-LGBT discrimination in the workforce.
“Americans believe in fairness and opportunity,” Perez said. “No one should live in fear of being fired or passed over or discriminated against at work simply because of who they are or who they love. Laws prohibiting workplace discrimination on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity are long overdue, and we’re taking a big step forward today to fix that.”
No explicit protections exist in federal code prohibiting companies from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, although the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has interpreted existing protections for gender to protect transgender workers.
The executive order is considered the first federal action to ensure LGBT employment non-discrimination in the public sector. However, in April the Obama administration interpreted the LGBT non-discrimination provisions in reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act to extend to employment at organizations accepting federal grants for domestic violence programs.
Charged with enforcing the executive order is the Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which is headed by Patricia Shiu.
“We are building on the work of presidents and members of Congress from both parties who have expanded opportunities for America’s workers,” Shiu said in a statement. “This rule will extend protections to millions of workers who are employed by or seek jobs with federal contractors and subcontractors, ensuring that sexual orientation and gender identity are never used as justification for workplace discrimination by those that profit from taxpayer dollars.”
In October, the Labor Department had submitted its proposed rule for the executive order to the Office of Management & Budget. No comment period took place for the proposed rule.
Laura McGinnis, a spokesperson for the Labor Department, said the administration didn’t allow for a comment period because of the nature of the executive order.
“In cases where an Executive Order is very clear about the steps the department needs to take and leaves no discretion regarding how to proceed, agencies may publish final rules without notice and comment,” McGinnis said. “So this one was sent to OMB as a final rule.”
Virginia
VIDEO: LGBTQ groups march in Va. inaugural parade
Abigail Spanberger took office on Saturday
The inaugural ceremonies for Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger were held in Richmond, Va. on Saturday. Among the groups marching in the parade were Diversity Richmond and the Virginia Pride project of Diversity Richmond.
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Virginia
Va. Senate approves referendum to repeal marriage amendment
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin introduced SJ3
The Virginia Senate on Friday by a 26-13 vote margin approved a resolution that seeks to repeal a state constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) introduced SJ3. The Senate Privileges and Elections Committee on Wednesday approved it by a 10-4 vote margin.
Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.
A resolution that seeks to repeal the Marshall-Newman Amendment passed in the General Assembly in 2021. The resolution passed again in 2025.
Two successive legislatures must approve the resolution before it can go to the ballot. Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates have said the resolution’s passage is among their 2026 legislative priorities.
“It’s time for Virginia’s Constitution to reflect the law of the land and the values of today,” said Ebbin after Friday’s vote. “This amendment, if approved by voters, would affirm the dignity of all committed couples and protects marriage equality for future generations.”
Florida
DNC slams White House for slashing Fla. AIDS funding
State will have to cut medications for more than 16,000 people
The Trump-Vance administration and congressional Republicans’ “Big Beautiful Bill” could strip more than 10,000 Floridians of life-saving HIV medication.
The Florida Department of Health announced there would be large cuts to the AIDS Drug Assistance Program in the Sunshine State. The program switched from covering those making up to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level, which was anyone making $62,600 or less, in 2025, to only covering those making up to 130 percent of the FPL, or $20,345 a year in 2026.
Cuts to the AIDS Drug Assistance Program, which provides medication to low-income people living with HIV/AIDS, will prevent a dramatic $120 million funding shortfall as a result of the Big Beautiful Bill according to the Florida Department of Health.
The International Association of Providers of AIDS Care and Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo warned that the situation could easily become a “crisis” without changing the current funding setup.
“It is a serious issue,” Ladapo told the Tampa Bay Times. “It’s a really, really serious issue.”
The Florida Department of Health currently has a “UPDATES TO ADAP” warning on the state’s AIDS Drug Assistance Program webpage, recommending Floridians who once relied on tax credits and subsidies to pay for their costly HIV/AIDS medication to find other avenues to get the crucial medications — including through linking addresses of Florida Association of Community Health Centers and listing Florida Non-Profit HIV/AIDS Organizations rather than have the government pay for it.
HIV disproportionately impacts low income people, people of color, and LGBTQ people
The Tampa Bay Times first published this story on Thursday, which began gaining attention in the Sunshine State, eventually leading the Democratic Party to, once again, condemn the Big Beautiful Bill pushed by congressional republicans.
“Cruelty is a feature and not a bug of the Trump administration. In the latest attack on the LGBTQ+ community, Donald Trump and Florida Republicans are ripping away life-saving HIV medication from over 10,000 Floridians because they refuse to extend enhanced ACA tax credits,” Democratic National Committee spokesperson Albert Fujii told the Washington Blade. “While Donald Trump and his allies continue to make clear that they don’t give a damn about millions of Americans and our community, Democrats will keep fighting to protect health care for LGBTQ+ Americans across the country.”
More than 4.7 million people in Florida receive health insurance through the federal marketplace, according to KKF, an independent source for health policy research and polling. That is the largest amount of people in any state to be receiving federal health care — despite it only being the third most populous state.
Florida also has one of the largest shares of people who use the AIDS Drug Assistance Program who are on the federal marketplace: about 31 percent as of 2023, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
“I can’t understand why there’s been no transparency,” David Poole also told the Times, who oversaw Florida’s AIDS program from 1993 to 2005. “There is something seriously wrong.”
The National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors estimates that more than 16,000 people will lose coverage
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