Latest news with #AssociatedPress-NORCCenterforPublicAffairsResearch
The Hill
a day ago
- Business
- The Hill
Most think GOP tax bill will help wealthy, harm the poor: Survey
Most Americans think that President Trump's 'big, beautiful bill,' which he signed into law earlier this month, will help those who are wealthy and harm those who are poor, according to a new survey that was released Friday morning. The new Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 64 percent of U.S. adults said the Republican-led tax and spending bill, which Trump signed into law on July 4, will do 'more to help' wealthy people. On the flip side, 7 percent said it would do more to hurt them, while 27 percent said it would not make a difference. Just over a quarter, 26 percent, said the bill would benefit middle-class people. Just over half, 51 percent, said it would hurt them, while 22 percent said it would not make a difference, according to the survey. Similarly, 24 percent of respondents argued the legislation would do more to help 'people like you,' while 51 percent argued it would do more to hurt them, according to the poll. Some 23 percent stated the bill would not make a difference. Just 1-in-5 said the tax and spending law would do more to help low-income people. The majority, 61 percent, said the legislation would do more to hurt those people, while 17 percent argued it would not make a difference, the survey showed. Democratic Party voters are more likely to say the legislation would assist the wealthy and hurt the middle-class and the poor, compared to Republicans. GOP voters are more likely to state the 'big, beautiful bill' will aid rather than harm the middle-class, according to the poll. When it comes to the impact on low-income Americans, the sides are divided. Around four-in-10 Republicans think the bill would do more to help low-income people, while just three percent of Democrats said the same. Some 17 percent of independents argued the legislation would do more to help those who are low-income. Trump's massive spending bill would bring new tax breaks for older adults and overtime workers. The legislation includes funding to help hire border patrol agents and officers. The package also reduces green energy tax credits and cuts Medicaid and food assistance programs. A CNN poll released Wednesday found that 61 percent of Americans oppose the GOP's massive package. Only 11 percent said they 'strongly support' the bill, along with 27 percent who said they 'somewhat support' it. A Harvard CAPS/Harris poll, which was published on Monday, found that Americans were split, with 44 percent saying they supported the 'big, beautiful bill.' Another 44 percent said they did not support it. Some 12 percent were unsure. The poll was conducted from July 10-14 among 1,437 adults. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.
CBS News
02-07-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Gender identity no longer among Iowa's civil rights protections as new law takes effect
Iowa became the first state to remove gender identity from its civil rights code under a law that took effect Tuesday, meaning transgender and nonbinary residents are no longer protected from discrimination in their job, housing and other aspects of life. The law also explicitly defines female and male based on reproductive organs at birth and removes the ability for people to change the sex designation on their birth certificate. An unprecedented take-back of legal rights after nearly two decades in Iowa code leaves transgender, nonbinary and potentially even intersex Iowans more vulnerable now than they were before. It's a governing doctrine now widely adopted by President Donald Trump and Republican-led states despite the mainstream medical view that sex and gender are better understood as a spectrum than as an either-or definition. When Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Iowa's new law, she said the state's previous civil rights code "blurred the biological line between the sexes." "It's common sense to acknowledge the obvious biological differences between men and women. In fact, it's necessary to secure genuine equal protection for women and girls," she said in a video statement. Also taking effect Tuesday are provisions in the state's health and human services budget that say Medicaid recipients are no longer covered for gender-affirming surgery or hormone therapy. Iowa's state Capitol filled with protesters as the law went through the Republican-controlled Legislature and to Reynolds' desk in just one week in February. Iowa Republicans said laws passed in recent years to restrict transgender students' use of bathrooms and locker rooms, and their participation on sports teams, could not coexist with a civil rights code that includes gender identity protections. About two dozen other states and the Trump administration have advanced restrictions on transgender people. Republicans say such laws and executive actions protect spaces for women, rejecting the idea that people can transition to another gender. Many face court challenges. About two-thirds of U.S. adults believe that whether a person is a man or woman is determined by biological characteristics at birth, an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted in May found. But there's less consensus on policies that target transgender and nonbinary people. Transgender people say those kinds of policies deny their existence and capitalize on prejudice for political gain. In a major setback for transgender rights nationwide, the U.S. Supreme Court last month upheld Tennessee's ban on puberty blockers and hormone treatments for transgender minors. The court's conservative majority said it doesn't violate the Constitution's equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same. Not every state includes gender identity in their civil rights code, but Iowa was the first to remove nondiscrimination protections based on gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ rights think tank. Iowans will still have time to file a complaint with the state Office of Civil Rights about discrimination based on gender identity that occurred before the law took effect. State law requires a complaint to be submitted within 300 days after the most recent incident of alleged discrimination. That means people have until April 27 to file a complaint about discrimination based on gender identity, according to Kristen Stiffler, the office's executive director. Sixty-five such complaints were filed and accepted for investigation from July 2023 through the end of June 2024, according to Stiffler. Forty-three were filed and accepted from July 1, 2024, through June 19 of this year. Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat and the state's first openly transgender lawmaker, fears the law will lead to an increase in discrimination for transgender Iowans. "Anytime someone has to check your ID and they see that the gender marker doesn't match the appearance, then that opens up hostility, discrimination as possibilities," Wichtendahl said, naming examples such as applying for a job, going through the airport, buying beer or getting pulled over in a traffic stop. "That instantly outs you. That instantly puts you on the spot." About half of U.S. states include gender identity in their civil rights code to protect against discrimination in housing and public places, such as stores or restaurants, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Some additional states do not explicitly protect against such discrimination, but it is included in legal interpretations of statutes. Five years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled LGBTQ people are protected by a landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace. But Iowa's Supreme Court has expressly rejected the argument that discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on gender identity. The months between when the bill was signed into law and when it took effect gave transgender Iowans time to pursue amended birth certificates before that option was eliminated. Keenan Crow, with LGBTQ+ advocacy group One Iowa, said the group has long cosponsored legal clinics to assist with that process. "The last one that we had was by far the biggest," Crow said. Iowa's Department of Transportation still has a process by which people can change the gender designation on their license or identification card but has proposed administrative rules to eliminate that option. Wichtendahl also said she has talked to some families who are looking to move out of state as a result of the new law. "It's heartbreaking because this is people's lives we're talking about," Wichtendahl added. "These are families that have trans loved ones and it's keeping their loved ones away, it's putting their loved ones into uncertain future, putting their health and safety at risk."
Los Angeles Times
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect
DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa became the first state to remove gender identity from its civil rights code under a law that took effect Tuesday, meaning transgender and nonbinary residents are no longer protected from discrimination in their job, housing and other aspects of life. The law also explicitly defines female and male based on reproductive organs at birth and removes the ability for people to change the sex designation on their birth certificate. An unprecedented take-back of legal rights after nearly two decades in Iowa code leaves transgender, nonbinary and potentially even intersex Iowans more vulnerable now than they were before. It's a governing doctrine now widely adopted by President Trump and Republican-led states despite the mainstream medical view that sex and gender are better understood as a spectrum than as an either-or definition. When Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Iowa's new law, she said the state's previous civil rights code 'blurred the biological line between the sexes.' 'It's common sense to acknowledge the obvious biological differences between men and women. In fact, it's necessary to secure genuine equal protection for women and girls,' she said in a video statement. Also taking effect Tuesday are provisions in the state's health and human services budget that say Medicaid recipients are no longer covered for gender-affirming surgery or hormone therapy. Iowa's state Capitol filled with protesters as the law went through the Republican-controlled Legislature and to Reynolds' desk in just one week in February. Iowa Republicans said laws passed in recent years to restrict transgender students' use of bathrooms and locker rooms, and their participation on sports teams, could not coexist with a civil rights code that includes gender identity protections. About two dozen other states and the Trump administration have advanced restrictions on transgender people. Republicans say such laws and executive actions protect spaces for women, rejecting the idea that people can transition to another gender. Many face court challenges. About two-thirds of U.S. adults believe that whether a person is a man or woman is determined by biological characteristics at birth, an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted in May found. But there's less consensus on policies that target transgender and nonbinary people. Transgender people say those kinds of policies deny their existence and capitalize on prejudice for political gain. In a major setback for transgender rights nationwide, the U.S. Supreme Court last month upheld Tennessee's ban on puberty blockers and hormone treatments for transgender minors. The court's conservative majority said it doesn't violate the Constitution's equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same. Not every state includes gender identity in their civil rights code, but Iowa was the first to remove nondiscrimination protections based on gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ rights think tank. Iowans will still have time to file a complaint with the state Office of Civil Rights about discrimination based on gender identity that occurred before the law took effect. State law requires a complaint to be submitted within 300 days after the most recent incident of alleged discrimination. That means people have until April 27 to file a complaint about discrimination based on gender identity, according to Kristen Stiffler, the office's executive director. Sixty-five such complaints were filed and accepted for investigation from July 2023 through the end of June 2024, according to Stiffler. Forty-three were filed and accepted from July 1, 2024, through June 19 of this year. Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat and the state's first openly transgender lawmaker, fears the law will lead to an increase in discrimination for transgender Iowans. 'Anytime someone has to check your ID and they see that the gender marker doesn't match the appearance, then that opens up hostility, discrimination as possibilities,' Wichtendahl said, naming examples such as applying for a job, going through the airport, buying beer or getting pulled over in a traffic stop. 'That instantly outs you. That instantly puts you on the spot.' About half of U.S. states include gender identity in their civil rights code to protect against discrimination in housing and public places, such as stores or restaurants, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Some additional states do not explicitly protect against such discrimination, but it is included in legal interpretations of statutes. Five years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled LGBTQ people are protected by a landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace. But Iowa's Supreme Court has expressly rejected the argument that discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on gender identity. The months between when the bill was signed into law and when it took effect gave transgender Iowans time to pursue amended birth certificates before that option was eliminated. Keenan Crow, with LGBTQ+ advocacy group One Iowa, said the group has long cosponsored legal clinics to assist with that process. 'The last one that we had was by far the biggest,' Crow said. Iowa's Department of Transportation still has a process by which people can change the gender designation on their license or identification card but has proposed administrative rules to eliminate that option. Wichtendahl also said she has talked to some families who are looking to move out of state as a result of the new law. 'It's heartbreaking because this is people's lives we're talking about,' Wichtendahl added. 'These are families that have trans loved ones and it's keeping their loved ones away, it's putting their loved ones into uncertain future, putting their health and safety at risk.' Fingerhut writes for the Associated Press.
NBC News
01-07-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect
DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa became the first state to remove gender identity from its civil rights code under a law that took effect Tuesday, meaning transgender and nonbinary residents are no longer protected from discrimination in their job, housing and other aspects of life. The law also explicitly defines female and male based on reproductive organs at birth and removes the ability for people to change the sex designation on their birth certificate. An unprecedented take-back of legal rights after nearly two decades in Iowa code leaves transgender, nonbinary and potentially even intersex Iowans more vulnerable now than they were before. It's a governing doctrine now widely adopted by President Donald Trump and Republican-led states despite the mainstream medical view that sex and gender are better understood as a spectrum than as an either-or definition. When Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Iowa's new law, she said the state's previous civil rights code "blurred the biological line between the sexes." "It's common sense to acknowledge the obvious biological differences between men and women. In fact, it's necessary to secure genuine equal protection for women and girls," she said in a video statement. Also taking effect Tuesday are provisions in the state's health and human services budget that say Medicaid recipients are no longer covered for gender-affirming surgery or hormone therapy. A national movement Iowa's state Capitol filled with protesters as the law went through the Republican-controlled Legislature and to Reynolds' desk in just one week in February. Iowa Republicans said laws passed in recent years to restrict transgender students' use of bathrooms and locker rooms, and their participation on sports teams, could not coexist with a civil rights code that includes gender identity protections. About two dozen other states and the Trump administration have advanced restrictions on transgender people. Republicans say such laws and executive actions protect spaces for women, rejecting the idea that people can transition to another gender. Many face court challenges. About two-thirds of U.S. adults believe that whether a person is a man or woman is determined by biological characteristics at birth, an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted in May found. But there's less consensus on policies that target transgender and nonbinary people. Transgender people say those kinds of policies deny their existence and capitalize on prejudice for political gain. In a major setback for transgender rights nationwide, the U.S. Supreme Court last month upheld Tennessee's ban on puberty blockers and hormone treatments for transgender minors. The court's conservative majority said it doesn't violate the Constitution's equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same. Not every state includes gender identity in their civil rights code, but Iowa was the first to remove nondiscrimination protections based on gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ rights think tank. Incidents of discrimination in Iowa, before and after July 1 Iowans will still have time to file a complaint with the state Office of Civil Rights about discrimination based on gender identity that occurred before the law took effect. State law requires a complaint to be submitted within 300 days after the most recent incident of alleged discrimination. That means people have until April 27 to file a complaint about discrimination based on gender identity, according to Kristen Stiffler, the office's executive director. Sixty-five such complaints were filed and accepted for investigation from July 2023 through the end of June 2024, according to Stiffler. Forty-three were filed and accepted from July 1, 2024, through June 19 of this year. Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat and the state's first openly transgender lawmaker, fears the law will lead to an increase in discrimination for transgender Iowans. "Anytime someone has to check your ID and they see that the gender marker doesn't match the appearance, then that opens up hostility, discrimination as possibilities," Wichtendahl said, naming examples such as applying for a job, going through the airport, buying beer or getting pulled over in a traffic stop. "That instantly outs you. That instantly puts you on the spot." About half of U.S. states include gender identity in their civil rights code to protect against discrimination in housing and public places, such as stores or restaurants, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Some additional states do not explicitly protect against such discrimination, but it is included in legal interpretations of statutes. Five years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled LGBTQ people are protected by a landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace. But Iowa's Supreme Court has expressly rejected the argument that discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on gender identity. Changing Iowa birth certificates before the law took effect The months between when the bill was signed into law and when it took effect gave transgender Iowans time to pursue amended birth certificates before that option was eliminated. Keenan Crow, with LGBTQ advocacy group One Iowa, said the group has long cosponsored legal clinics to assist with that process. "The last one that we had was by far the biggest," Crow said. Iowa's Department of Transportation still has a process by which people can change the gender designation on their license or identification card but has proposed administrative rules to eliminate that option. Wichtendahl also said she has talked to some families who are looking to move out of state as a result of the new law. "It's heartbreaking because this is people's lives we're talking about," Wichtendahl added. "These are families that have trans loved ones and it's keeping their loved ones away, it's putting their loved ones into uncertain future, putting their health and safety at risk."
01-07-2025
- Politics
Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Iowa became the first state to remove gender identity from its civil rights code under a law that took effect Tuesday, meaning transgender and nonbinary residents are no longer protected from discrimination in their job, housing and other aspects of life. The law also explicitly defines female and male based on reproductive organs at birth and removes the ability for people to change the sex designation on their birth certificate. An unprecedented take-back of legal rights after nearly two decades in Iowa code leaves transgender, nonbinary and potentially even intersex Iowans more vulnerable now than they were before. It's a governing doctrine now widely adopted by President Donald Trump and Republican-led states despite the mainstream medical view that sex and gender are better understood as a spectrum than as an either-or definition. When Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Iowa's new law, she said the state's previous civil rights code 'blurred the biological line between the sexes.' 'It's common sense to acknowledge the obvious biological differences between men and women. In fact, it's necessary to secure genuine equal protection for women and girls,' she said in a video statement. Also taking effect Tuesday are provisions in the state's health and human services budget that say Medicaid recipients are no longer covered for gender-affirming surgery or hormone therapy. Iowa's state Capitol filled with protesters as the law went through the Republican-controlled Legislature and to Reynolds' desk in just one week in February. Iowa Republicans said laws passed in recent years to restrict transgender students' use of bathrooms and locker rooms, and their participation on sports teams, could not coexist with a civil rights code that includes gender identity protections. About two dozen other states and the Trump administration have advanced restrictions on transgender people. Republicans say such laws and executive actions protect spaces for women, rejecting the idea that people can transition to another gender. Many face court challenges. About two-thirds of U.S. adults believe that whether a person is a man or woman is determined by biological characteristics at birth, an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted in May found. But there's less consensus on policies that target transgender and nonbinary people. Transgender people say those kinds of policies deny their existence and capitalize on prejudice for political gain. In a major setback for transgender rights nationwide, the U.S. Supreme Court last month upheld Tennessee's ban on puberty blockers and hormone treatments for transgender minors. The court's conservative majority said it doesn't violate the Constitution's equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same. Not every state includes gender identity in their civil rights code, but Iowa was the first to remove nondiscrimination protections based on gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ rights think tank. Iowans will still have time to file a complaint with the state Office of Civil Rights about discrimination based on gender identity that occurred before the law took effect. State law requires a complaint to be submitted within 300 days after the most recent incident of alleged discrimination. That means people have until April 27 to file a complaint about discrimination based on gender identity, according to Kristen Stiffler, the office's executive director. Sixty-five such complaints were filed and accepted for investigation from July 2023 through the end of June 2024, according to Stiffler. Forty-three were filed and accepted from July 1, 2024, through June 19 of this year. Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat and the state's first openly transgender lawmaker, fears the law will lead to an increase in discrimination for transgender Iowans. 'Anytime someone has to check your ID and they see that the gender marker doesn't match the appearance, then that opens up hostility, discrimination as possibilities,' Wichtendahl said, naming examples such as applying for a job, going through the airport, buying beer or getting pulled over in a traffic stop. 'That instantly outs you. That instantly puts you on the spot.' About half of U.S. states include gender identity in their civil rights code to protect against discrimination in housing and public places, such as stores or restaurants, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Some additional states do not explicitly protect against such discrimination, but it is included in legal interpretations of statutes. Five years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled LGBTQ people are protected by a landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace. But Iowa's Supreme Court has expressly rejected the argument that discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on gender identity. The months between when the bill was signed into law and when it took effect gave transgender Iowans time to pursue amended birth certificates before that option was eliminated. Keenan Crow, with LGBTQ+ advocacy group One Iowa, said the group has long cosponsored legal clinics to assist with that process. 'The last one that we had was by far the biggest,' Crow said. Iowa's Department of Transportation still has a process by which people can change the gender designation on their license or identification card but has proposed administrative rules to eliminate that option. Wichtendahl also said she has talked to some families who are looking to move out of state as a result of the new law. 'It's heartbreaking because this is people's lives we're talking about," Wichtendahl added. 'These are families that have trans loved ones and it's keeping their loved ones away, it's putting their loved ones into uncertain future, putting their health and safety at risk.'
