Lawmakers warn official on anti-gay bias
Christopher Lisotta, PlanetOut Network


Five House Democrats again warned a Bush administration official in writing that federal workers need to be protected against discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Reps. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., Barney Frank, D-Mass., George Miller, D-Calif., Henry Waxman, D-Calif., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., sent a letter to Scott Bloch, director of the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), asking him to explain why he hasn't taken steps to protect federal employees who are victims of sexual orientation discrimination.

In February Bloch's removal of references regarding sexual orientation discrimination from the complaint form and educational pamphlet on the agency's Web site became public. He then made comments to The Washington Post saying he wasn't sure if federal employees were protected from discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Within a month members of Congress were asking for Bloch's removal, accusing him of flouting an executive order signed by President Clinton and left untouched by Bush that provided protection based on sexual orientation for federal employees. Even the White House distanced itself from Bloch's comments, which forced him to reaffirm the protections in an April announcement.