President Joe Biden failed to enact the Equality Act

President Joe Biden's administration pushed for legislation to codify antidiscrimination protections for LGBTQ+ Americans, but this promise faced insurmountable hurdles.

The Equality Act would have expanded the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity as federally protected categories. The law now applies to national origin, sex, religion and race. 

Biden declared his support for the Equality Act in his 2022 State of the Union address, in which he urged Congress to "finally get the bipartisan Equality Act to my desk." He reiterated his call to action in his 2024 State of the Union speech.

"I want to protect fundamental rights. Pass the Equality Act," he said.

The legislation would have provided protection from discrimination in housing, employment, credit, jury service and other programs that receive federal funding.

Congress in 2022 passed the Respect for Marriage Act, a law requiring states to recognize same-sex marriages and balance religious freedom. But the Equality Act stalled in the Senate in March 2021. 

David Stacy, government affairs director for the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, said, "there's not a chance that (the Equality Act is)  going to come to the (Senate) floor" because of Republican resistance. Stacy said the Biden administration has engaged in "administrative rulemaking" to protect LGBTQ+ people's civil rights after the Supreme Court held in Bostock v. Clayton County that an employer cannot fire an employee based on sexual orientation or gender identity. 

Although Biden tried to secure nondiscrimination provisions for LGBTQ+ people, his promise to pass the Equality Act fizzled amid Republican opposition in Congress. We rate this Promise Broken.