Source: Dallas Morning News
McKinney -- Gay rights advocates urged Collin County commissioners on Tuesday to adopt a hiring policy that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Collin County is a wealthy and solidly Republican suburban area just north of Dallas. A small part of the city of Dallas and most of Plano lie within the county boundaries.

Commissioners are considering a proposed policy that would ban discrimination based on “sex, race, creed, disability or national origin.” It does not specifically mention sexual orientation.

Officials said the county needs a written equal employment opportunity policy to qualify for some federal law enforcement grants.

“To exclude sexual orientation and gender identity/expression from your policy sends a clear message to the people affected by it,” said Morris Garcia, president of the Collin County Gay and Lesbian Alliance.

He said the suggested policy would allow “bigoted opinions in the workplace that can only equate to a hostile environment, poor productivity, and unfair/unequal treatment.”

The discussion of a non-discriminatory hiring policy comes two weeks after a county employee’s sexual orientation became an issue. Justin Nichols, who is openly gay, heads the county’s teen court program and is running for Plano City Council.

Mr. Nichols alleged that Commissioner Jerry Hoagland had wanted the commissioners’ court to consider firing Mr. Nichols because of his sexual orientation.

Mr. Hoagland has declined comment.

Commissioners were tentatively slated to discuss Mr. Nichols’ job status in open session on Tuesday. But the item was never put on the final agenda.

Mr. Nichols did not attend Tuesday’s meeting.

Log Cabin Republicans, a gay interest group within the GOP, has urged its members to send campaign donations to Nichols, a Republican, who is a candidate in a May 10 election for a city council seat in Plano, the largest city in the county.

Commissioners took no action on the proposed equal employment opportunity policy this week. They said they would talk to other county elected officials and study it further. None of the four commissioners’ court members present discussed adding sexual orientation to the proposed policy.

Full article: Gay rights advocates push Collin County commissioners to adopt hiring policy that bans discrimination | Dallas Morning News