LINCOLN — Among bills introduced last Monday in the Nebraska Legislature are two intended to ensure rights of the LGBTQ community.

Legislative Bill 169, introduced by Sens. Megan Hunt and John Fredrickson, both of Omaha, would prohibit discrimination based upon sexual orientation and gender identity.

The bill would update the state’s nondiscrimination laws to make sure that LBGTQ-plus Nebraskans are treated fairly in employment, Hunt said in a social media post.

She added, “No one should be fired because of who they love.”

The separate LB 179, led by Fredrickson and co-sponsored by Hunt, would prohibit “conversion therapy” on minors and provide for disciplinary sanctions.

The therapy is defined as practice or treatment that seeks to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

Fredrickson said that, as a mental health professional, he has seen the damaging impact that such therapy, which he called archaic and shame-perpetuating, can have on minors.

The freshman senator said adoption of such legislation is important also to Nebraska’s workforce development and talent attraction.

“It sends a clear message: this is a welcoming state,” he said.

This story was originally published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. It is part of the national nonprofit States Newsroom. Find more at nebraskaexaminer.com.