LGBTQ Data Inclusion Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1980 To improve Federal population surveys by requiring the collection of vol- untary, self-disclosed information on sexual orientation and gender iden- tity in certain surveys, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JUNE 26, 2019 Ms. BALDWIN (for herself, Mr. MARKEY, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. MENEN- DEZ, Mr. CARPER, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mrs. MURRAY, Ms. SMITH, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. HIRONO, Ms. HARRIS, Mr. BOOKER, Ms. ROSEN, and Mr. BROWN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Govern- mental Affairs A BILL To improve Federal population surveys by requiring the col- lection of voluntary, self-disclosed information on sexual orientation and gender identity in certain surveys, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘LGBTQ Data Inclu- 4 sion Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:40 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1980.IS S1980 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 1980 IS SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT TO COLLECT DATA ON SEXUAL ORI- 1 ENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY. 2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 3 (1) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ has the 4 meaning given the term in section 551 of title 5, 5 United States Code. 6 (2) DEMOGRAPHIC DATA.—The term ‘‘demo- 7 graphic data’’ means information about the race or 8 ethnicity, sex, and age of a survey participant or 9 population. 10 (3) GENDER IDENTITY.—The term ‘‘gender 11 identity’’ means an individual’s sense of being male, 12 female, transgender, or another gender, as distinct 13 from the individual’s sex assigned at birth. 14 (4) SEXUAL ORIENTATION.—The term ‘‘sexual 15 orientation’’ means how a person identifies in terms 16 of their emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions, 17 and includes identification as straight, heterosexual, 18 gay, lesbian, or bisexual, among other terms. 19 (5) SURVEY.—The term ‘‘survey’’ means a data 20 collection activity involving observation or question- 21 naires for a sample of a population and includes the 22 decennial census. 23 (b) SURVEY REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 180 24 days after the date of enactment of this Act, each agency 25 that collects information through a survey that includes 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:40 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1980.IS S1980 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 1980 IS demographic data where subjects self-report information 1 or a knowledgeable proxy provides information about the 2 subject or responds for all persons in a household shall 3 establish data standards that require, with regard to such 4 a survey, the following: 5 (1) REVIEW.—The review of existing data sets 6 to determine in which data sets information about 7 sexual orientation and gender identity is not in- 8 cluded. 9 (2) METHODS.—An identification of appro- 10 priate methods to include questions on sexual ori- 11 entation and gender identity in surveys that facili- 12 tate categorization, voluntary participation, and pre- 13 serve privacy and confidentiality. 14 (3) DATA COLLECTION.—The use of the appro- 15 priate methods identified in paragraph (2) to gather 16 data on sexual orientation and gender identity. 17 (4) ASSESSMENT.—The implementation of a 18 process to routinely assess needed changes in survey 19 methods related to asking questions on sexual ori- 20 entation and gender identity. 21 (c) DATA REPORTS.—Where appropriate, any report 22 published by an agency that relies on survey demographic 23 data shall include information on sexual orientation and 24 gender identity. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:40 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1980.IS S1980 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 1980 IS (d) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Any information collected 1 relating to the sexual orientation or gender identity of a 2 survey participant shall be maintained in accordance with 3 the confidentiality and privacy standards and policies for 4 the protection of individuals applicable to that survey. 5 (e) APPLICABILITY.— 6 (1) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 7 this section shall be construed— 8 (A) to require an individual to disclose 9 their sexual orientation or gender identity to an 10 agency; or 11 (B) to permit the use of information col- 12 lected under this section in a manner that 13 would adversely affect any individual. 14 (2) EXEMPTION FROM PENALTY.—An indi- 15 vidual shall not be subject to any fine or other pen- 16 alty for refusing to answer, or providing a false an- 17 swer to, any survey question regarding gender iden- 18 tity or sexual orientation, including any fine or pen- 19 alty under subchapter II of chapter 7 of title 13, 20 United States Code. 21 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:40 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S1980.IS S1980 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS