Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced Saturday that he would lift the state-funded travel ban to Indiana following passage of an amendment to that state’s religious freedom act.
Since the amended legislation now protects lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender individuals, it falls outside the scope of the executive order Malloy signed earlier this week.
“Today I am today lifting to ban on state funded travel to Indiana, because I believe the change enacted by the Indiana legislature sufficiently clarifies, in our interpretation, that the law cannot be used to invite discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity,” Malloy said.
Malloy, who is scheduled to become the head of the Democratic Governors Association in 2016, made national news when he decided to ban state-funded travel to Indiana following passage of the legislation.
Since Indiana did not have statewide nondiscrimination laws that protect sexual orientation and gender identity, Malloy feared that passage of a Religious Freedom Restoration Act would allow for discrimination.
“Unlike Connecticut – which has been a national leader in LGBTQ protections – this is the first time that Indiana has codified any protections for individuals based upon their sexual orientation or gender identity. While the law even in its amended version remains divisive, I believe it is a step in the right direction,” Malloy said Saturday in a statement.
Malloy said he would continue to monitor other state that enact similar reforms because “discrimination in any form is unacceptable.”
