Lynne Dodson on:

The legislative delegation from the 43rd District has a special responsibility to advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues. I'm proud of my record of advocacy for these issues, both as president of my teachers union and as co-chair of Washington State Jobs with Justice. As a legislator, I'll continue to fight for LGBT issues, in consultation with LGBT and allied community leaders reflecting the diversity of our community.

• Washington should create a state commission on sexual minorities, similar to the state commissions for racial/ ethnic minorities and disabled people.

• We need to have domestic partner benefits for all committed unmarried couples, including family and medical leave. I've successfully lobbied the state to provide domestic-partner health benefit to public workers.

• I strongly support the Murray-Anderson nondiscrimination legislation and the Washington Won't Discriminate campaign.  Earlier this year, I was the only candidate in this race to testify before the King County Council in favor of transgender nondiscrimination protection; and, as a statewide officer of the Washington Federation of Teachers, I led my union in urging then-Governor Locke to approve an executive order to extend non-discrimination protection to transgender state workers.

• The LGBT community has unique health concerns. Consequently, I support public funding for non-profits with expertise in outreach to the LGBT community on health care.

• I will continue to support Medicaid funding for transgender health needs. When this issue arose earlier this year, I lobbied in Olympia to protect the funding.

• We must not allow witch-hunts against HIV-positive individuals. I will oppose requiring health providers and agencies to report the names of people who are HIV positive to government officials.

• I strongly support full marriage equality for same-sex couples. My union was one of the first to sign on to the labor friend-of-the-court brief in the Andersen/ Castle marriage equality case before the state supreme court.

• LGBT youth often face hostility. I support full funding for anti-bullying programs in the schools.

• Our youth need understanding and education about sexuality. I will continue to advocate for funding for age-appropriate sex and sexuality education that includes LGBT families, and promotes self-awareness and tolerance.