I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3017 

To prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation 

or gender identity. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 24, 2009 

Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts (for himself, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, 

Mr. CONYERS, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. POLIS of Colorado, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. 

SESTAK, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. NADLER of New York, 

Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Ms. 

ROS-LEHTINEN, Mr. CASTLE, Mr. KIRK, Mr. LANCE, Mr. PLATTS, Mrs. 

BIGGERT, Ms. HARMAN, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. MEEK of Florida, Ms. 

SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. TSONGAS, Mr. STARK, Mr. JACKSON

of Illinois, Mr. QUIGLEY, Ms. RICHARDSON, Mr. INSLEE, Mr. DOYLE, 

Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. WU, Mr. 

GRIJALVA, Mr. TIERNEY, Ms. NORTON, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. HONDA, Mr. 

SCHIFF, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey, Mr. GONZALEZ, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. DEFAZIO, 

Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. FOSTER, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. PATRICK

J. MURPHY of Pennsylvania, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. WEINER, Mr. 

PALLONE, Mr. HOLT, Mr. FILNER, Mr. SIRES, Mr. HARE, Mr. WEXLER, 

Mr. MASSA, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. CLAY, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mrs. 

NAPOLITANO, Mr. MURPHY of Connecticut, Mr. CLEAVER, Mrs. CAPPS, 

Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. MITCHELL, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. CARNAHAN, Mr. 

SCHRADER, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Ms. LINDA T. SA ́NCHEZ of California, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. WELCH, Mr. DINGELL, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. 

GUTIERREZ, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. COOPER, 

Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. OLVER, Mr. HIGGINS, Mr. FATTAH, Mr. ISRAEL, 

Ms. MATSUI, Ms. BEAN, Mr. KILDEE, Ms. SCHWARTZ, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. SHERMAN, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON

of Texas, Mr. DELAHUNT, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. 

ENGEL, Mr. PETERS, Ms. KILROY, Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York, Mrs. 

MALONEY, Mr. KUCINICH, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. HIMES, Ms. 

SPEIER, Ms. EDWARDS of Maryland, Mr. HODES, Ms. CLARKE, Mr. 

MOORE of Kansas, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. HEINRICH, and Ms. ZOE LOFGREN

of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committees 

on House Administration, Oversight and Government Reform, and the 


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Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual 

orientation or gender identity. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Employment Non-Dis5 crimination Act of 2009’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

7 The purposes of this Act are— 

8 (1) to address the history and widespread pat9 tern of discrimination on the basis of sexual orienta10 tion or gender identity by private sector employers 

11 and local, State, and Federal Government employers; 

12 (2) to provide a comprehensive Federal prohibi13 tion of employment discrimination on the basis of 

14 sexual orientation or gender identity, including 

15 meaningful and effective remedies for any such dis16 crimination; and 

17 (3) to invoke congressional powers, including 

18 the powers to enforce the 14th amendment to the 

19 Constitution, and to regulate interstate commerce 


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1 and provide for the general welfare pursuant to sec2 tion 8 of article I of the Constitution, in order to 

3 prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of 

4 sexual orientation or gender identity. 

5 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—In this Act: 

7 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

8 means the Equal Employment Opportunity Commis9 sion. 

10 (2) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered en11 tity’’ means an employer, employment agency, labor 

12 organization, or joint labor-management committee. 

13 (3) EMPLOYEE.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—the term ‘‘employee’’ 

15 means— 

16 (i) an employee as defined in section 

17 701(f) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 

18 U.S.C. 2000e(f)); 

19 (ii) a Presidential appointee or State 

20 employee to which section 302(a)(1) of the 

21 Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 

22 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16(a)(1)) applies; 

23 (iii) a covered employee, as defined in 

24 section 101 of the Congressional Account25 ability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301) or secVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:33 Jun 26, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3017.IH H3017

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1 tion 411(c) of title 3, United States Code; 

2 or 

3 (iv) an employee or applicant to which 

4 section 717(a) of the Civil Rights Act of 

5 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16(a)) applies. 

6 (B) EXCEPTION.—The provisions of this 

7 Act that apply to an employee or individual 

8 shall not apply to a volunteer who receives no 

9 compensation. 

10 (4) EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘employer’’ 

11 means— 

12 (A) a person engaged in an industry affect13 ing commerce (as defined in section (701)(h) of 

14 the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 

15 2000e(h)) who has 15 or more employees (as 

16 defined in subparagraphs (A)(i) and (B) of 

17 paragraph (3)) for each working day in each of 

18 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or 

19 preceding calendar year, and any agent of such 

20 a person, but does not include a bona fide pri21 vate membership club (other than a labor orga22 nization) that is exempt from taxation under 

23 section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

24 1986; 


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1 (B) an employing authority to which sec2 tion 302(a)(1) of the Government Employee 

3 Rights Act of 1991 applies; 

4 (C) an employing office, as defined in sec5 tion 101 of the Congressional Accountability 

6 Act of 1995 or section 411(c) of title 3, United 

7 States Code; or 

8 (D) an entity to which section 717(a) of 

9 the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applies. 

10 (5) EMPLOYMENT AGENCY.—The term ‘‘em11 ployment agency’’ has the meaning given the term in 

12 section 701(c) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 

13 U.S.C. 2000e(c)). 

14 (6) GENDER IDENTITY.—The term ‘‘gender 

15 identity’’ means the gender-related identity, appear16 ance, or mannerisms or other gender-related charac17 teristics of an individual, with or without regard to 

18 the individual’s designated sex at birth. 

19 (7) LABOR ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘labor 

20 organization’’ has the meaning given the term in 

21 section 701(d) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 

22 U.S.C. 2000e(d)). 

23 (8) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ has the 

24 meaning given the term in section 701(a) of the 

25 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e(a)). 


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1 (9) SEXUAL ORIENTATION.—The term ‘‘sexual 

2 orientation’’ means homosexuality, heterosexuality, 

3 or bisexuality. 

4 (10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean5 ing given the term in section 701(i) of the Civil 

6 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e(i)). 

7 (b) APPLICATION OF DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 

8 this section, a reference in section 701 of the Civil Rights 

9 Act of 1964— 

10 (1) to an employee or an employer shall be con11 sidered to refer to an employee (as defined in para12 graph (3)) or an employer (as defined in paragraph 

13 (4)), respectively, except as provided in paragraph 

14 (2) below; and 

15 (2) to an employer in subsection (f) of that sec16 tion shall be considered to refer to an employer (as 

17 defined in paragraph (4)(A)). 

18 SEC. 4. EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION PROHIBITED. 

19 (a) EMPLOYER PRACTICES.—It shall be an unlawful 

20 employment practice for an employer— 

21 (1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any 

22 individual, or otherwise discriminate against any in23 dividual with respect to the compensation, terms, 

24 conditions, or privileges of employment of the indiVerDate Nov 24 2008 07:18 Jun 25, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3017.IH H3017

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1 vidual, because of such individual’s actual or per2 ceived sexual orientation or gender identity; or 

3 (2) to limit, segregate, or classify the employees 

4 or applicants for employment of the employer in any 

5 way that would deprive or tend to deprive any indi6 vidual of employment or otherwise adversely affect 

7 the status of the individual as an employee, because 

8 of such individual’s actual or perceived sexual ori9 entation or gender identity. 

10 (b) EMPLOYMENT AGENCY PRACTICES.—It shall be 

11 an unlawful employment practice for an employment agen12 cy to fail or refuse to refer for employment, or otherwise 

13 to discriminate against, any individual because of the ac14 tual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity of 

15 the individual or to classify or refer for employment any 

16 individual on the basis of the actual or perceived sexual 

17 orientation or gender identity of the individual. 

18 (c) LABOR ORGANIZATION PRACTICES.—It shall be 

19 an unlawful employment practice for a labor organiza20 tion— 

21 (1) to exclude or to expel from its membership, 

22 or otherwise to discriminate against, any individual 

23 because of the actual or perceived sexual orientation 

24 or gender identity of the individual; 


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1 (2) to limit, segregate, or classify its member2 ship or applicants for membership, or to classify or 

3 fail or refuse to refer for employment any individual, 

4 in any way that would deprive or tend to deprive any 

5 individual of employment, or would limit such em6 ployment or otherwise adversely affect the status of 

7 the individual as an employee or as an applicant for 

8 employment because of such individual’s actual or 

9 perceived sexual orientation or gender identity; or 

10 (3) to cause or attempt to cause an employer to 

11 discriminate against an individual in violation of this 

12 section. 

13 (d) TRAINING PROGRAMS.—It shall be an unlawful 

14 employment practice for any employer, labor organization, 

15 or joint labor-management committee controlling appren16 ticeship or other training or retraining, including on-the17 job training programs, to discriminate against any indi18 vidual because of the actual or perceived sexual orientation 

19 or gender identity of the individual in admission to, or em20 ployment in, any program established to provide appren21 ticeship or other training. 

22 (e) ASSOCIATION.—An unlawful employment practice 

23 described in any of subsections (a) through (d) shall be 

24 considered to include an action described in that sub25 section, taken against an individual based on the actual 


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1 or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity of a per2 son with whom the individual associates or has associated. 

3 (f) NO PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT OR QUOTAS.— 

4 Nothing in this Act shall be construed or interpreted to 

5 require or permit— 

6 (1) any covered entity to grant preferential 

7 treatment to any individual or to any group because 

8 of the actual or perceived sexual orientation or gen9 der identity of such individual or group on account 

10 of an imbalance which may exist with respect to the 

11 total number or percentage of persons of any actual 

12 or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity 

13 employed by any employer, referred or classified for 

14 employment by any employment agency or labor or15 ganization, admitted to membership or classified by 

16 any labor organization, or admitted to, or employed 

17 in, any apprenticeship or other training program, in 

18 comparison with the total number or percentage of 

19 persons of such actual or perceived sexual orienta20 tion or gender identity in any community, State, sec21 tion, or other area, or in the available work force in 

22 any community, State, section, or other area; or 

23 (2) the adoption or implementation by a cov24 ered entity of a quota on the basis of actual or per25 ceived sexual orientation or gender identity. 


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1 (g) DISPARATE IMPACT.—Only disparate treatment 

2 claims may be brought under this Act. 

3 SEC. 5. RETALIATION PROHIBITED. 

4 It shall be an unlawful employment practice for a cov5 ered entity to discriminate against an individual because 

6 such individual (1) opposed any practice made an unlawful 

7 employment practice by this Act; or (2) made a charge, 

8 testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an in9 vestigation, proceeding, or hearing under this Act. 

10 SEC. 6. EXEMPTION FOR RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS. 

11 This Act shall not apply to a corporation, association, 

12 educational institution, or society that is exempt from the 

13 religious discrimination provisions of title VII of the Civil 

14 Rights Acts of 1964 pursuant to section 702(a) or 

15 703(e)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 2000e–1(a); 2000e– 

16 2(e)(2)). 

17 SEC. 7. NONAPPLICATION TO MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

18 FORCES; VETERANS’ PREFERENCES. 

19 (a) ARMED FORCES.— 

20 (1) EMPLOYMENT.—In this Act, the term ‘‘em21 ployment’’ does not apply to the relationship be22 tween the United States and members of the Armed 

23 Forces. 


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1 (2) ARMED FORCES.—In paragraph (1) the 

2 term ‘‘Armed Forces’’ means the Army, Navy, Air 

3 Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. 

4 (b) VETERANS’ PREFERENCES.—This title does not 

5 repeal or modify any Federal, State, territorial, or local 

6 law creating a special right or preference concerning em7 ployment for a veteran. 

8 SEC. 8. CONSTRUCTION. 

9 (a) EMPLOYER RULES AND POLICIES.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act shall be 

11 construed to prohibit a covered entity from enforcing 

12 rules and policies that do not intentionally cir13 cumvent the purposes of this Act, if the rules or 

14 policies are designed for, and uniformly applied to, 

15 all individuals regardless of actual or perceived sex16 ual orientation or gender identity. 

17 (2) SEXUAL HARASSMENT.—Nothing in this 

18 Act shall be construed to limit a covered entity from 

19 taking adverse action against an individual because 

20 of a charge of sexual harassment against that indi21 vidual, provided that rules and policies on sexual 

22 harassment, including when adverse action is taken, 

23 are designed for, and uniformly applied to, all indi24 viduals regardless of actual or perceived sexual ori25 entation or gender identity. 


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1 (3) CERTAIN SHARED FACILITIES.—Nothing in 

2 this Act shall be construed to establish an unlawful 

3 employment practice based on actual or perceived 

4 gender identity due to the denial of access to shared 

5 shower or dressing facilities in which being seen 

6 unclothed is unavoidable, provided that the employer 

7 provides reasonable access to adequate facilities that 

8 are not inconsistent with the employee’s gender iden9 tity as established with the employer at the time of 

10 employment or upon notification to the employer 

11 that the employee has undergone or is undergoing 

12 gender transition, whichever is later. 

13 (4) ADDITIONAL FACILITIES NOT REQUIRED.— 

14 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to require the 

15 construction of new or additional facilities. 

16 (5) DRESS AND GROOMING STANDARDS.—Noth17 ing in this Act shall prohibit an employer from re18 quiring an employee, during the employee’s hours at 

19 work, to adhere to reasonable dress or grooming 

20 standards not prohibited by other provisions of Fed21 eral, State, or local law, provided that the employer 

22 permits any employee who has undergone gender 

23 transition prior to the time of employment, and any 

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1 sition after the time of employment, to adhere to the 

2 same dress or grooming standards for the gender to 

3 which the employee has transitioned or is 

4 transitioning. 

5 (b) EMPLOYEE BENEFITS.—Nothing in this Act shall 

6 be construed to require a covered entity to treat an unmar7 ried couple in the same manner as the covered entity 

8 treats a married couple for purposes of employee benefits. 

9 (c) DEFINITION OF MARRIAGE.—As used in this Act, 

10 the term ‘‘married’’ refers to marriage as such term is 

11 defined in section 7 of title I, United States Code (referred 

12 to as the Defense of Marriage Act). 

13 SEC. 9. COLLECTION OF STATISTICS PROHIBITED. 

14 The Commission shall not collect statistics on actual 

15 or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity from 

16 covered entities, or compel the collection of such statistics 

17 by covered entities. 

18 SEC. 10. ENFORCEMENT. 

19 (a) ENFORCEMENT POWERS.—With respect to the 

20 administration and enforcement of this Act in the case of 

21 a claim alleged by an individual for a violation of this 

22 Act— 

23 (1) the Commission shall have the same powers 

24 as the Commission has to administer and enforce— 


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1 (A) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

2 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.); or 

3 (B) sections 302 and 304 of the Govern4 ment Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42 U.S.C. 

5 2000e–16b and 2000e–16c), 

6 in the case of a claim alleged by such individual for 

7 a violation of such title, or of section 302(a)(1) of 

8 the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42 

9 U.S.C. 2000e–16b(a)(1)), respectively; 

10 (2) the Librarian of Congress shall have the 

11 same powers as the Librarian of Congress has to ad12 minister and enforce title VII of the Civil Rights Act 

13 of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) in the case of a 

14 claim alleged by such individual for a violation of 

15 such title; 

16 (3) the Board (as defined in section 101 of the 

17 Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

18 1301)) shall have the same powers as the Board has 

19 to administer and enforce the Congressional Ac20 countability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) in 

21 the case of a claim alleged by such individual for a 

22 violation of section 201(a)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 

23 1311(a)(1)); 


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1 (4) the Attorney General shall have the same 

2 powers as the Attorney General has to administer 

3 and enforce— 

4 (A) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

5 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.); or 

6 (B) sections 302 and 304 of the Govern7 ment Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42 U.S.C. 

8 2000e–16b and 2000e–16c); 

9 in the case of a claim alleged by such individual for 

10 a violation of such title, or of section 302(a)(1) of 

11 the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42 

12 U.S.C. 2000e–16b(a)(1)), respectively; 

13 (5) the President, the Commission, and the 

14 Merit Systems Protection Board shall have the same 

15 powers as the President, the Commission, and the 

16 Board, respectively, have to administer and enforce 

17 chapter 5 of title 3, United States Code, in the case 

18 of a claim alleged by such individual for a violation 

19 of section 411 of such title; and 

20 (6) a court of the United States shall have the 

21 same jurisdiction and powers as the court has to en22 force— 

23 (A) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

24 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) in the case of 


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1 a claim alleged by such individual for a viola2 tion of such title; 

3 (B) sections 302 and 304 of the Govern4 ment Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42 U.S.C. 

5 2000e–16b and 2000e–16c) in the case of a 

6 claim alleged by such individual for a violation 

7 of section 302(a)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

8 2000e–16b(a)(1)); 

9 (C) the Congressional Accountability Act 

10 of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) in the case of 

11 a claim alleged by such individual for a viola12 tion of section 201(a)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 

13 1311(a)(1)); and 

14 (D) chapter 5 of title 3, United States 

15 Code, in the case of a claim alleged by such in16 dividual for a violation of section 411 of such 

17 title. 

18 (b) PROCEDURES AND REMEDIES.—The procedures 

19 and remedies applicable to a claim alleged by an individual 

20 for a violation of this Act are— 

21 (1) the procedures and remedies applicable for 

22 a violation of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

23 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) in the case of a 

24 claim alleged by such individual for a violation of 

25 such title; 


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1 (2) the procedures and remedies applicable for 

2 a violation of section 302(a)(1) of the Government 

3 Employee Rights Act of 1991 (2 U.S.C. 1202(a)(1)) 

4 in the case of a claim alleged by such individual for 

5 a violation of such section; 

6 (3) the procedures and remedies applicable for 

7 a violation of section 201(a)(1) of the Congressional 

8 Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1311(a)(1)) in 

9 the case of a claim alleged by such individual for a 

10 violation of such section; and 

11 (4) the procedures and remedies applicable for 

12 a violation of section 411 of title 3, United States 

13 Code, in the case of a claim alleged by such indi14 vidual for a violation of such section. 

15 (c) OTHER APPLICABLE PROVISIONS.—With respect 

16 to a claim alleged by a covered employee (as defined in 

17 section 101 of the Congressional Accountability Act of 

18 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301)) for a violation of this Act, title 

19 III of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 

20 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) shall apply in the same manner as 

21 such title applies with respect to a claim alleged by such 

22 a covered employee for a violation of section 201(a)(1) of 

23 such Act (2 U.S.C. 1311(a)(1)). 


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1 SEC. 11. STATE AND FEDERAL IMMUNITY. 

2 (a) ABROGATION OF STATE IMMUNITY.—A State 

3 shall not be immune under the 11th amendment to the 

4 Constitution from a suit brought in a Federal court of 

5 competent jurisdiction for a violation of this Act. 

6 (b) WAIVER OF STATE IMMUNITY.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

8 (A) WAIVER.—A State’s receipt or use of 

9 Federal financial assistance for any program or 

10 activity of a State shall constitute a waiver of 

11 sovereign immunity, under the 11th amendment 

12 to the Constitution or otherwise, to a suit 

13 brought by an employee or applicant for em14 ployment of that program or activity under this 

15 Act for a remedy authorized under subsection 

16 (d). 

17 (B) DEFINITION.—In this paragraph, the 

18 term ‘‘program or activity’’ has the meaning 

19 given the term in section 606 of the Civil 

20 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d–4a). 

21 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—With respect to a par22 ticular program or activity, paragraph (1) applies to 

23 conduct occurring on or after the day, after the date 

24 of enactment of this Act, on which a State first re25 ceives or uses Federal financial assistance for that 

26 program or activity. 


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1 (c) REMEDIES AGAINST STATE OFFICIALS.—An offi2 cial of a State may be sued in the official capacity of the 

3 official by any employee or applicant for employment who 

4 has complied with the applicable procedures of section 10, 

5 for equitable relief that is authorized under this Act. In 

6 such a suit the court may award to the prevailing party 

7 those costs authorized by section 722 of the Revised Stat8 utes of the United States (42 U.S.C. 1988). 

9 (d) REMEDIES AGAINST THE UNITED STATES AND

10 THE STATES.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 

11 this Act, in an action or administrative proceeding against 

12 the United States or a State for a violation of this Act, 

13 remedies (including remedies at law and in equity, and 

14 interest) are available for the violation to the same extent 

15 as the remedies are available for a violation of title VII 

16 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) 

17 by a private entity, except that— 

18 (1) punitive damages are not available; and 

19 (2) compensatory damages are available to the 

20 extent specified in section 1977A(b) of the Revised 

21 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a(b)). 

22 SEC. 12. ATTORNEYS’ FEES. 

23 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, in 

24 an action or administrative proceeding for a violation of 

25 this Act, an entity described in section 10(a) (other than 


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1 paragraph (4) of such section), in the discretion of the 

2 entity, may allow the prevailing party, other than the 

3 Commission or the United States, a reasonable attorney’s 

4 fee (including expert fees) as part of the costs. The Com5 mission and the United States shall be liable for the costs 

6 to the same extent as a private person. 

7 SEC. 13. POSTING NOTICES. 

8 A covered entity who is required to post notices de9 scribed in section 711 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 

10 U.S.C. 2000e–10) shall post notices for employees, appli11 cants for employment, and members, to whom the provi12 sions specified in section 10(b) apply, that describe the 

13 applicable provisions of this Act in the manner prescribed 

14 by, and subject to the penalty provided under, section 711 

15 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

16 SEC. 14. REGULATIONS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsections 

18 (b), (c), and (d), the Commission shall have authority to 

19 issue regulations to carry out this Act. 

20 (b) LIBRARIAN OF CONGRESS.—The Librarian of 

21 Congress shall have authority to issue regulations to carry 

22 out this Act with respect to employees and applicants for 

23 employment of the Library of Congress. 

24 (c) BOARD.—The Board referred to in section 

25 10(a)(3) shall have authority to issue regulations to carry 


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1 out this Act, in accordance with section 304 of the Con2 gressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1384), 

3 with respect to covered employees, as defined in section 

4 101 of such Act (2 U.S.C. 1301). 

5 (d) PRESIDENT.—The President shall have authority 

6 to issue regulations to carry out this Act with respect to 

7 covered employees, as defined in section 411(c) of title 3, 

8 United States Code. 

9 SEC. 15. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS. 

10 This Act shall not invalidate or limit the rights, rem11 edies, or procedures available to an individual claiming 

12 discrimination prohibited under any other Federal law or 

13 regulation or any law or regulation of a State or political 

14 subdivision of a State. 

15 SEC. 16. SEVERABILITY. 

16 If any provision of this Act, or the application of the 

17 provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be in18 valid, the remainder of this Act and the application of the 

19 provision to any other person or circumstances shall not 

20 be affected by the invalidity. 

21 SEC. 17. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

22 This Act shall take effect on the date that is 6 

23 months after the date of enactment of this Act and shall 

24 not apply to conduct occurring before the effective date. 

Æ 


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