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D.C. Council member Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) (Photo by Aimee Custis Photography via Flickr)

The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club voted unanimously Monday night to urge D.C. Council member Brandon Todd (D-Ward 4) and members of the Council committee he chairs to hold a hearing on a bill calling for anti-discrimination protections and improved services for LGBTQ seniors.

Stein Club members said the bill in question, the Care for LGBTQ Seniors and Seniors with HIV Amendment Act, has been stalled in the Council’s Committee on Government Operations for a year, with no word from Todd on whether he plans to schedule a required hearing on the bill.

The bill’s author, Council member Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3), said during an appearance before the Stein Club’s meeting on Monday that the bill was needed because the city’s comprehensive Human Rights Act does not include specific nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ seniors or seniors with HIV who are living in long-term care facilities.

“This bill would establish a ‘Bill of Rights’ for seniors living in these facilities, ensuring that they are treated respectfully and appropriately,” Cheh said in a statement. She said the bill, among other things, would require LGBTQ-related competency training for caregivers in long-term care facilities to ensure they have the knowledge to provide appropriate care for LGBTQ seniors.

Although Todd’s committee has yet to act on the bill, Council records show that Todd and the other four members of the committee have all signed on as co-introducers of Cheh’s bill, suggesting that the delay in holding a hearing is not based on objections to the legislation. The others on the committee include Council members David Grosso (I-At-Large), Brianne Nadeau (D-Ward 1), Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), and Trayon White (D-Ward 8).

The Stein Club’s resolution states in part, “Be it resolved that: the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club urges Committee Chairman Brandon Todd and his Council colleagues on the Committee on Government Operations to schedule the necessary hearings on B23—37 [Cheh’s bill], allow public testimony and debate, and ensure that this Bill moves out of committee with a recommendation rather than allowing it to die in committee.”

Eric Feldman, a spokesperson for Todd, told the Blade on Wednesday that he would make inquiries to find out the reason for the delay in a hearing on the bill and whether Todd plans to schedule a hearing this year.