LGBTQ+ businesses will soon get a helpful boost in New Jersey
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/lgbtq-businesses-will-soon-get-a-helpful-boost-in-new-jersey/ar-BB1j85hj?ocid=windirect&cvid=67987e01b097493caebbf89385e71d25&ei=14
Story by Bil Browning (29 Feb 2024)
New Jersey legislators are starting to codify an executive order issued by Gov. Phil Murphy (D) that allows for the certification of LGBTQ+-owned businesses. It would open up opportunities for funding and state contracts reserved for minority-owned companies.
Backers say the bipartisan bill would prevent future governors from removing the certification and also give the certification the power of state law. It would also assist businesses owned by women, people of color, and veterans.
"People have been waiting, not just to be recognized by the state in which they pay taxes and hire employees and provide services and resources, but now they want to make sure that this is not going to go away anytime soon. As we all know, executive orders can be taken away," Gus Penaranda of the New Jersey Pride Chamber of Commerce told legislators.
He said membership in his organization had quadrupled since Murphy issued the executive order.
Businesses would need to be wholly or majority-owned by an LGBTQ+ person to qualify for the status.
All the testimony was in favor of the bill; some Republicans pushed back with questions, but not with the general hostility toward LGBTQ+ people being generated by the GOP lately.