BOISE - It may have been inspiration or just coincidence, but the Idaho Legislature on Martin Luther King Day favored a measure to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation.

The Senate State Affairs Committee agreed Monday to introduce legislation that would amend the state's 1968 Human Rights Act by prohibiting discrimination by employers or landlords based on sexual orientation. Currently, discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or ethnicity is prohibited.

There are 20 other states with such bans in place, and 11 others have passed executive orders issuing similar restrictions, said Leslie Goddard, director of the Idaho Human Rights Commission.

The committee voted 6-2 to print the legislation. The bill has four sponsors from both parties in both chambers.

Sen. Tim Corder, R-Mountain Home, told the committee the bill was not about homosexuality or ideology, but rather about being judged on skill and ability.

"What this is about is workers being treated fairly," Corder said. "It's about due process where everyone's rights are protected - employers' rights and employees' rights."

Rep. Nicole Lefavour, D-Boise, a co-sponsor and the Legislature's only openly gay legislator, said she has personally felt professionally hindered.

"There are people discriminated (against) all across this state quietly and treated unfairly," she said. "This is pretty huge for Idaho."

Corder said he hopes the bill would receive a hearing. A recent Boise State University public policy poll showed that 63 percent of Idahoans agree it should be illegal to fire someone because they are perceived to be gay or lesbian.

Goddard said that her agency handles numerous allegations of discrimination, but disputes related to sexual orientation are turned away. Goddard said that passing the bill would result in a 3.5 percent increase in her office's workload and 17 more cases, but would be within their budget.

"It would give us a level playing field whether we are gay, lesbian or straight," she said.

Religious organizations would be exempt. The original human rights act applies only to companies with at least five employees.

Voting against introducing the legislation was Sen. Majority Leader Bart Davis, R-Idaho Falls, and Sen. Denton Darrington, R-Declo.

Darrington disagreed with the sponsors and said the proposal has a much broader aim.

"It's become much more of an agenda to legislate or to give state-sanctions to a preference that seems quite contrary to our traditional values," Darrington said.

But Sen. Chuck Coiner, R-Twin Falls, also a co-sponsor, said that the bill is designed simply to include a group of people who were left out of the original bill, and has nothing to do with a violation of values.

"It seems like it has everything to do with values - values of the community and protecting employees," he said.

Jared S. Hopkins may be reached at 631-793-5717 or jhopkins@magicvalley.com