Posted on by Randy Slovacek

New Mexico Governor Signs LGBTQ Protections Into Law

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has signed into law legislation that will expand LGBTQ protections under the New Mexico Human Rights Act.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (image via official Twitter)

Look – some good news for LGBTQ folks!

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has signed into law legislation that will expand LGBTQ protections under the New Mexico Human Rights Act and remove the requirement that name changes be published in a newspaper.

From the Albuquerque Journal:

Supporters of the two bills say they will strengthen LGBTQ rights by updating requirements that prohibit discrimination against protected classes and allowing people to more easily change their name to match their gender identity.

House Bill 207 — jointly sponsored by five Democratic legislators — adds gender to the list of protected classes in the Human Rights Act and revises some definitions.

It prohibits school districts, government agencies and public contractors from discriminating on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, gender or gender identity, among other categories, when providing services.

House Bill 31 eliminates a newspaper publication requirement for people petitioning the court to change their name, which many trans people do upon transitioning.

“People seeking name changes are often doing so for reasons of personal safety or so they can live authentically as themselves,” said Rep. Christine Chandler, a co-sponsor of HB 31.

Obviously, this will be a big help to transgender people as part of their transition.