Entry #242: LGBT discrimination in Kentucky

Current Version

Region	Kentucky
Issue	LGBT discrimination
Status	Illegal
Start Date	2021
End Date	(none)
Description	The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed fairness ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Sources	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/chapter.aspx?id=38920 https://kchr.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx https://kchr.ky.gov/Resources/Reports/Annual%20Report%20FY2024%20&%20FY2025.pdf

Revision History (10)

3 days ago

edited by mineszilla. Adding the first sentence back

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value (Current)
Description	The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed fairness ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.	The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed fairness ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Description	Show Difference The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed fairness ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed fairness ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

3 days ago

edited by mineszilla. small error correction

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value
Description	The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.	The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed fairness ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Description	Show Difference The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. fairness ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

3 days ago

edited by mineszilla. Public accommodation discrimination is also included in Kentucky on the condition the place is directly or indirectly funded by the government. Fairness ordinances which protect over 25% of the state's population fully prohibits public accommodations.

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value
Value	Illegal in some contexts	Illegal
Start Date	Jan 26, 1999	2021
Description	The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.	The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Description	Show Difference The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. identity) Restaurants, hotels, motels, and facilities directly or indirectly supported by government funds are prohibited from denying goods and services on the basis of sex. Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

3 weeks ago

edited by mineszilla. Fixing some information.

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value
Start Date	(unknown)	Jan 26, 1999
Description	The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) The Kentucky Civil Rights Act also grants cities and counties to pass non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.	The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Description	Show Difference The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) The Kentucky Civil Rights Act also grants cities and counties to pass non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. identity) Cities and counties have also passed non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Sources	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY https://kchr.ky.gov/Resources/Reports/Annual%20Report%20FY2024%20&%20FY2025.pdf https://kchr.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/chapter.aspx?id=38920 https://kchr.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx https://kchr.ky.gov/Resources/Reports/Annual%20Report%20FY2024%20&%20FY2025.pdf
Sources	Show Difference https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY https://kchr.ky.gov/Resources/Reports/Annual%20Report%20FY2024%20&%20FY2025.pdf https://kchr.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/chapter.aspx?id=38920 https://kchr.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx https://kchr.ky.gov/Resources/Reports/Annual%20Report%20FY2024%20&%20FY2025.pdf

3 weeks ago

edited by mineszilla. Further research has found that the KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity providing statewide protections in some context on top of existing ordinances in place.

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value
Value	(REMOVED)	Illegal in some contexts
Special Status	Varies by Region	Illegal in some contexts
Start Date	Jan 26, 1999	(unknown)
Description	LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances protect individuals from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, and public accommodations. Kentucky communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections).	The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) The Kentucky Civil Rights Act also grants cities and counties to pass non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Description	Show Difference LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances protect individuals from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, and public accommodations. Kentucky communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections). The Kentucky Commission on Human Rights enforces the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and financial transactions on the basis of sex. (KCHR interprets sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity) The Kentucky Civil Rights Act also grants cities and counties to pass non-discrimination ordinances which explicitly protects individuals from discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Sources	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY https://kchr.ky.gov/Resources/Reports/Annual%20Report%20FY2024%20&%20FY2025.pdf https://kchr.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx
Sources	Show Difference https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY https://kchr.ky.gov/Resources/Reports/Annual%20Report%20FY2024%20&%20FY2025.pdf https://kchr.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx

Sep 12, 2025

edited by mineszilla. Adding date and context of LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances.

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value
Start Date	1999	Jan 26, 1999
Description	Kentucky communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections).	LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances protect individuals from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, and public accommodations. Kentucky communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections).
Description	Show Difference Kentucky communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections). protect individuals from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, and public accommodations. Kentucky communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections).
Sources	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY
Sources	Show Difference https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.fairness.org/about-us/ https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/KY

Sep 11, 2025

edited by mineszilla. Adding relevent information

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value
Description	The Commonwealth of Kentucky does not have statewide LGBT fairness protections. Currently only six cities have LGBT protections: Louisville, Lexington, Covington, Vicco, Frankfort, and Morehead. Governor Steve Beshear, by Executive Order, prohibited discrimination	Kentucky communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections).
Description	Show Difference The Commonwealth of Kentucky does not have statewide LGBT fairness protections. Currently only six cities have LGBT protections: Louisville, Lexington, Covington, Vicco, Frankfort, and Morehead. Governor Steve Beshear, by Executive Order, prohibited discrimination communities with LGBTQ Fairness Ordinances include Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022). Two additional communities have approved partial Fairness Ordinances: Ashland (housing protections) and Cynthiana (housing and public accommodations protections).
Sources	http://www.aclu-ky.org/articles/morehead-ky-adopts-fairness-ordinance/	https://www.fairness.org/about-us/
Sources	Show Difference http://www.aclu-ky.org/articles/morehead-ky-adopts-fairness-ordinance/ https://www.fairness.org/about-us/

Mar 31, 2025

edited by DaisyGeekyTrans. Description indicates it varies by region.

Helpful?

	Old Value	New Value
Value	Illegal in some contexts	(REMOVED)
Special Status	Illegal in some contexts	Varies by Region
Start Date	1792	1999

Mar 27, 2014

edited by imullin01

Helpful?

	Old Value (Original)	New Value
Description	The Commonwealth of Kentucky does not have statewide LGBT fairness protections. Currently only five cities have LGBT protections: Louisville, Lexington, Covington, Vicco, and Frankfort. Governor Steve Beshear, by Executive Order, prohibited discrimination	The Commonwealth of Kentucky does not have statewide LGBT fairness protections. Currently only six cities have LGBT protections: Louisville, Lexington, Covington, Vicco, Frankfort, and Morehead. Governor Steve Beshear, by Executive Order, prohibited discrimination
Description	Show Difference The Commonwealth of Kentucky does not have statewide LGBT fairness protections. Currently only five cities have LGBT protections: Louisville, Lexington, Covington, Vicco, and Frankfort. Governor Steve Beshear, by Executive Order, prohibited discrimination six cities have LGBT protections: Louisville, Lexington, Covington, Vicco, Frankfort, and Morehead. Governor Steve Beshear, by Executive Order, prohibited discrimination
Sources	http://www.lex18.com/news/vicco-kentucky-approves-lgbt-fairness-law	http://www.aclu-ky.org/articles/morehead-ky-adopts-fairness-ordinance/
Sources	Show Difference http://www.lex18.com/news/vicco-kentucky-approves-lgbt-fairness-law http://www.aclu-ky.org/articles/morehead-ky-adopts-fairness-ordinance/

Reports (2)
Newer law has been passed "Woodford County is also fair."
Nov 1, 2023
Status is not correct "Kentucky currently has 24 cities with fairness protections:  Louisville (1999), Lexington (1999), Covington (2003), Vicco (2013), Frankfort (2013), Morehead (2013), Danville (2014), Midway (2015), Paducah (2018), and Maysville (2018), Henderson (2019), Dayton (2019), Georgetown (2019), Versailles (2019), Bellevue (2019), Highland Heights (2019), Fort Thomas (2020), Woodford County (2020), Cold Spring (2020), and Newport (2020), Crescent Springs (2021), Augusta (2021), Fort Mitchell (2021), and Elsmere (2022)."
Oct 25, 2023

Sep 16, 2013

created by bradcoffey106

Helpful?

	Original entry
Status	Illegal in some contexts
Start Date	1792
End Date	(none)
Description	The Commonwealth of Kentucky does not have statewide LGBT fairness protections. Currently only five cities have LGBT protections: Louisville, Lexington, Covington, Vicco, and Frankfort. Governor Steve Beshear, by Executive Order, prohibited discrimination
Sources	http://www.lex18.com/news/vicco-kentucky-approves-lgbt-fairness-law

Reports (2)
Other information is incorrect "Six cities have non-discrimination Fairness laws. Morehead passed in December 2013."
Jan 29, 2014
Other information is incorrect "As of December, 2013, Morehead became the sixth city with discrimination protections."
Jan 25, 2014