PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Nov 24, 2020
Lavender Offense Victim Exoneration Act of 2020 or the LOVE Act of 2020
This bill offers a formal apology from Congress for encouraging policies at the Department of State such as the Lavender Scare, which resulted in the wrongful termination of at least 1,000 people for alleged homosexuality.
The State Department must (1) review all employee terminations that occurred as a consequence of the Lavender Scare to identify who was wrongfully terminated for their real or perceived sexual orientation, and (2) issue a public report on the findings.
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The State Department shall establish an independent Reconciliation Board to contact any employee (or a family member of a deceased employee) improperly terminated during the Lavender Scare and offer to change the employee's record to reflect this finding. The board shall accept and review petitions from former employees who believe they were terminated due to sexual orientation.
The State Department shall establish a board of senior-level officials to address issues that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) Foreign Service employees and their families face. The board shall report comments on or recommendations for improving State Department policies to prevent sexual orientation discrimination.
The State Department shall report on (1) countries that do not issue spousal visas for Foreign Service employee spouses due to sexual orientation, and (2) recommendations on how to address this.
People & committees
Rep. Castro, Joaquin [D-TX-20] · D–TX
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
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Source last updated: Jan 3, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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