DALLAS — A Dallas City Council committee on Tuesday voted in favor of a “comprehensive statement of support” for its LGBT employees and residents in an effort to address inequalities in city employment, healthcare and lobbying efforts.
The measure, approved 4-1 by the Budget, Finance & Audit Committee, now goes to the full City Council.
According to Lone Star Q, the resolution itself doesn’t call for specific action, but would direct staff to work on several areas, including disparate treatment of LGBT employees when it comes to pensions and benefits; improving the city’s score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index (MEI); and lobbying for pro-equality state and federal legislation.
The MEI’s author, Cathryn Oakley, testified at the committee meeting about the MEI and the opportunities that Dallas has to increase its score.
Never Miss a Beat
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.
Article continues below
Any specific changes to city policy would still need to be considered by the council, predicated on the full council’s approval of the measure.
Dallas scored an 81 on last year’s second annual MEI, up from a 76 the year before, but still below Austin (100), Fort Worth (91) and San Antonio (86).
