This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Sen. Ben McAdams, D-Salt Lake City, has filed a bill that would expand housing and employment protections found in 11 Utah cities and counties statewide. Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck and Sen. Ross Romero, both Salt Lake City Democrats, have filed matching legislation in the House and the Senate that would allow second-parent adoption for unmarried couples, including same-sex pairs.
McAdams' SB148 would prohibit housing and employment discrimination based on a person's sexual orientation or gender identity. To read the text and track the bill's status, click here.
In Utah, individuals who live in cohabiting, unmarried relationships are not allowed to adopt or foster children. HB108 and SB62 would allow someone to adopt the child who is already the legal or biological child of his or her unmarried partner. Similar to a step-parent adoption for spouses, such an adoption would not diminish the legal rights of the first parent.