Illinois Lawmakers Send Pro-LGBT Bills to Governor

Illinois legislators have approved two pro-LGBT bills and sent them to Gov. Bruce Rauner for his signature or veto.

One would make it easier for transgender and intersex people to change the gender marker on their Illinois birth certificates. Passed by the state Senate Wednesday night after having approved by the House earlier, it would allow a change in the marker if a medical or mental health professional affirms that the applicant has had "clinically appropriate" treatment, but not necessarily surgery, as currently required, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Fourteen other states and the District of Columbia allow for gender changes on birth certificates, according to the American Civil Liberties Union's Illinois affiliate.

"No one should face the dilemma of being denied a birth certificate that conforms with their gender simply because they are unable -- or cannot afford -- to undergo surgery that the medical community agrees is not necessary for everyone who transitions," said John Knight, sirector of the ACLU of Illinois's LGBT and HIV Project, in a press release. "People who are transgender and intersex should make their own medical decisions with the guidance of medical health professionals -- not politicians. We urge Governor Rauner to sign this bill as soon as possible."

Also, both legislative chambers unanimously passed bills to prevent the use of a victim's sexual orientation or gender identity as a defense against a murder charge. Illinois would be only the second state in the nation to adopt such a measure; California was the first.

Rauner is a deeply conservative Republican, so it's not a given that he'll sign these bills into law. However, in 2015 he did sign a bill banning the use of so-called conversion therapy on minors.