Casper voted on Tuesday, Dec. 6, to add protections against discrimination to their municipal code. The council voted 8-1 to pass the policy.
The City of Casper has been looking to add more protections for the LGBTQ+ community for around 18 months. The suggestion originally came from the city’s LGBTQ committee but grew to include more identities.
Casper City Council member Amber Pollock said the legislation includes protection from housing and employment discrimination and protection from violent crimes.
“We wanted to just try to get a comprehensive set of protections out in one fell swoop so it does include both of those elements,” she said.
The law includes protections based on race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin and disability status.
Pollock said these protections go into effect immediately and next steps include educating law enforcement about the updated municipal code.
Pollock said there was a provision including age discrimination in the bill but it was removed before the policy passed.
“It became clear to us that there was additional nuance that would need some consideration there in in federal age discrimination definitions,” she said.
The council plans on making a group in the coming weeks to discuss age discrimination.
Laramie, Jackson, Gillette have similar legislation on the books in their communities. Cheyennehas a biased crime ordinance that was passed earlier this year.
