skip to content
LGBT E-News Sign-Up




LGBT Business Briefing

March 6, 2009

Caucus Co-Chairs, Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Barney Frank (D-MA), and Jared Polis (D-CO), sponsored a briefing on two business issues relevant to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Americans: the Domestic Partnership Tax Fairness Act and Employment Non-Discrimination Act. Speakers included:

  • James Delaplane, Davis & Harmon, LLC
  • Brian Moulton, Senior Counsel, Human Rights Campaign
  • Orson Porter, U.S. Director, Government and Public Affairs
    Nike, Inc.
  • Meghan Stabler, Director & Strategist, Worldwide Marketing BMC Software Inc. and Member, Human Rights Campaign Business Council

Equal pay for equal work is not only a fundamental American value—it is a core business value. In today’s economy, health benefits, including those for family members, constitute a significant part of employee compensation. Today, almost 60% of the Fortune 500 companies offer equal health benefits to their employees’ same-sex domestic partners. Unfortunately, our tax system does not reflect this advance toward true meritocracy in the workplace: under current federal law, employer-provided health benefits for domestic partners are subject to income tax and payroll tax.

Currently, there is no federal law that consistently protects LGBT individuals from employment discrimination; it remains legal in 30 states to discriminate based on sexual orientation, and in 38 states to do so based on gender identity or expression. As a result, LGBT people face serious discrimination in employment, including being fired, being denied a promotion and experiencing harassment on the job. Hundreds of companies have enacted policies protecting their LGBT employees.

Briefing presenters will discuss these issues in more depth, as well the Domestic Partnership Tax Fairness Act and Employment Non-Discrimination Act. The panel was moderated by Diego Sanchez, Legislative Assistant for Congressman Barney Frank and the first openly transgender person to work on Capitol Hill.

You can see pictures of the briefing here

Handouts from the briefing: