Jesse Paul/The Colorado Sun
In a year of historic firsts for the LGBTQ community in Colorado politics, Gov. Jared Polis on Friday signed into law a pair of bills years in the making that seek to improve the lives of gay and transgender people in the state.
They mark the most significant LGBTQ rights legislation passed in Colorado since the state’s 2013 law allowing civil unions for same-sex couples and come after the election of Polis, the first openly gay man elected governor in the nation, and the first transgender person in the Colorado legislature.
“To see this legislation go through in a session that I’m here is really a great feeling,” said Rep. Brianna Titone, a transgender woman and Arvada Democrat. “But I’ve been testifying on these bills even before became elected. I’ve been fighting for these two issues for quite awhile.”
Polis signed House BIll 1039 and House Bill 1129 in a ceremony outside of the Colorado Capitol with dozens of supporters flanking him. One of the measures makes it easier for transgender people to change their birth certificates without surgery, a doctor’s note or a court order. The other bans so-called “gay conversion therapy” for minors.
Both pieces of legislation go into effect immediately.
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