I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3793 
To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to provide equal treatment 
of LGBT older individuals, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 21, 2015 
Mr. MURPHY of Florida (for himself, Mr. DEUTCH, and Ms. BONAMICI) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Edu-
cation and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to provide 
equal treatment of LGBT older individuals, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ruthie and Connie 
LGBT Elder Americans Act of 2015’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 102 of the Older Ameri-
cans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (24)— 
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(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(B) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by striking 
the period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(D) status as an LGBT individual.’’; 
(2) by redesignating— 
(A) paragraphs (36) through (54) as para-
graphs (38) through (56), respectively; and 
(B) paragraphs (34) and (35) as para-
graphs (35) and (36), respectively; 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (33) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(34) The term ‘LGBT’, used with respect to 
an individual, means a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or 
transgender individual.’’; and 
(4) by inserting after paragraph (36), as so re-
designated, the following: 
‘‘(37) The term ‘minority’, used with respect to 
an individual, includes a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or 
transgender individual.’’. 
(b) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section 
215(e)(1)(J) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 
U.S.C. 3020e–1(e)(1)(J)) is amended by striking ‘‘minori-
ties’’ and inserting ‘‘minority individuals’’. 
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SEC. 3. ADMINISTRATION ON AGING. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF ADMINISTRATION.—Section 
201 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3011) 
is amended— 
(1) in subsection (d)(3)(J), by inserting before 
the semicolon the following: ‘‘, including the effec-
tiveness of such services in meeting the needs of 
LGBT older individuals’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(g) The Assistant Secretary is authorized to des-
ignate within the Administration a person to have respon-
sibility for addressing issues affecting LGBT older individ-
uals.’’. 
(b) FUNCTIONS OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.—Section 
202 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3012) 
is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) in paragraph (16)(A)(ii), by inserting 
‘‘, and separately specifying the number of such 
individuals who are LGBT individuals’’ before 
the semicolon; 
(B) in paragraph (27)(C), by striking ‘‘; 
and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 
(C) in paragraph (28), by striking the pe-
riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(D) by adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘(29) conduct studies and collect data to deter-
mine the services that are needed by LGBT older in-
dividuals.’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(g)(1) The Assistant Secretary shall, directly or by 
grant or contract, establish and operate the National Re-
source 
Center 
on 
Lesbian, 
Gay, 
Bisexual, 
and 
Transgender Aging (in this subsection referred to as the 
‘Center’). 
‘‘(2) To address the unique challenges faced by 
LGBT older individuals, the Center shall provide national, 
State, and local organizations, including those with a pri-
mary mission of serving LGBT individuals and those with 
a primary mission of serving older individuals, with the 
information and technical assistance the organizations 
need to effectively serve LGBT older individuals. 
‘‘(3) The Center shall have 3 primary objectives, con-
sisting of— 
‘‘(A) educating aging services organizations 
about the existence and special needs of LGBT older 
individuals; 
‘‘(B) sensitizing LGBT organizations about the 
existence and special needs of older individuals; and 
‘‘(C) providing educational resources to LGBT 
older individuals and their caregivers. 
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‘‘(4)(A) To be eligible to receive funds under this sub-
section, an entity— 
‘‘(i) shall have demonstrated expertise in work-
ing with organizations or individuals on issues af-
fecting LGBT individuals; 
‘‘(ii) shall have documented experience in pro-
viding training and technical assistance on a na-
tional basis or a formal relationship with an organi-
zation that has that experience; and 
‘‘(iii) shall meet such other criteria as the As-
sistant Secretary shall issue. 
‘‘(B) To be eligible to receive funds under this sub-
section, an entity shall submit an application to the Assist-
ant Secretary at such time, in such manner, and con-
taining such information as the Assistant Secretary may 
require. 
‘‘(5) The Assistant Secretary shall make available to 
the Center on an annual basis such resources as are nec-
essary for the Center to carry out effectively the functions 
of the Center under this Act and not less than the amount 
of resources made available to the National Resource Cen-
ter on LGBT Aging, existing on the day before the date 
of enactment of the Ruthie and Connie LGBT Elder 
Americans Act of 2015, for fiscal year 2015. 
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‘‘(6) The Assistant Secretary shall develop and issue 
operating standards and reporting requirements for the 
Center.’’. 
(c) REPORTS.—Section 207 of the Older Americans 
Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3018) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(3), by inserting ‘‘LGBT 
individuals,’’ after ‘‘low-income individuals,’’; 
(2) in subsection (c)— 
(A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘, and 
separately specify the number of such individ-
uals who are LGBT individuals’’ before the 
semicolon; 
(B) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and 
(5) as paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively; and 
(C) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 
following: 
‘‘(4) the effectiveness of such activities in as-
sisting LGBT individuals;’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(d) The Assistant Secretary shall ensure that— 
‘‘(1) no individual will be required to provide in-
formation regarding the sexual orientation or gender 
identity of the individual as a condition of partici-
pating in activities or receiving services under this 
Act; and 
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