Under proposed legislation, the state will follow new anti-discrimination laws set by the federal government for the military.
Unlike other state agencies, current anti-discrimination laws for the Connecticut Military Department only include race, religion and creed. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s proposed legislation will modify these laws to expand the anti-discrimination guidelines into those statutes to include the following: religion, national origin, color, race, sex, gender identity or expression, and exual orientation.
Malloy called the current lack of protection “archaic, artificial boundaries on the ability to serve.” He previously enacted legislation along similar lines. In 2013, he signed a new law in response to the federal government’s elimination of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” military policy that prohibited homosexuals from openly serving in the Armed Forces.
The Connecticut Military Department has oversight over the Connecticut Army National Guard, the Connecticut Air National guard, and four companies of the state militia. It augments state and local civil authorities in case of emergencies beyond their capabilities and provides assistance to local areas through community service programs. The National Guard also performs its federal mission as the primary augmenter to the active federal military forces.
