H.R. 15: Equality Act

H.R. 15—the Equality Act—takes protections that courts and agencies have recognized in some settings and writes them directly into federal statute. The bill says sex discrimination includes sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth, related medical conditions, sex stereotypes, and sex characteristics including intersex traits.

That change would reach far beyond the workplace. H.R. 15 applies those protections across public accommodations, federally funded programs, education, housing, credit, jury service, and several government employment systems.

One of the biggest expansions is public accommodations. The bill would cover not just restaurants and hotels, but also stores, banks, gas stations, shelters, health care providers, legal and accounting services, transportation services, and online retailers and service providers.

The bill also creates an explicit rule for shared facilities. It says people cannot be denied access to restrooms, locker rooms, and dressing rooms that match their gender identity.

Another major flashpoint is religion-related litigation. H.R. 15 says the Religious Freedom Restoration Act could not be used as a claim or defense under the civil rights titles it covers, which would narrow a legal path often raised in these disputes.

Supporters argue the bill creates a clear national standard instead of leaving protections uneven across states and settings. The bill's findings also cite housing disparities, including that transgender people have about half the homeownership rate of non-transgender people and that 82 percent of gender nonbinary people experiencing homelessness lacked access to shelter in one survey.