As the first openly gay person of color elected to the California State Senate, Ricardo Lara is incredibly proud of his extensive legislative work that has served to help protect, support and advance the LGBT community. 

- In 2017, Ricardo proudly authored SB 396, the Transgender Work Opportunity Act, in order to combat discrimination high unemployment in the transgender workforce through education, training, and workforce investment. The bill requires employers with 50 or more employees to provide training and education regarding harassment based on gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation.

- In 2016, Ricardo authored SB 1146 to protect LGBT students against discrimination and retaliation at religious universities. 

- To protect LGBT youth from mental and physical abuse at conversion therapy camps also masked as “private boarding schools, behavioral reform camps, and wilderness youth camps”, I authored SB594 in 2015, which required licensing, greater oversight and regulation.

- I reintroduced SB 29 in 2017, my Dignity not Detention bill to, among other changes, improve conditions of Immigrant detainees, including LGBT immigrants and refugees in private and public immigration detention facilities. The bill includes provisions to ensure LGBT detainees, including transgender detainees are treated humanely and are afforded access to care, medical treatment and necessary medication and hormones, often denied at these facilities.

- During his tenure in the Assembly, Ricardo authored AB 673, which added LGBT health issues to the mission of the State Office of Multicultural Health and enables the agency to seek funding for health initiatives that target the LGBT community.

- A proven champion for the LGBT community, Ricardo has consistently earned a 100% legislative scorecard from Equality California and Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California. If elected, Ricardo would be the first openly gay statewide elected official in California’s history.