S 2953 New Jersey Senate · 2026-2027 Regular Session

Establishes "LGBTQIA+ Pride Month" in New Jersey.

This bill designates June of each year as "LGBTQIA+ Pride Month" in New Jersey to recognize all members of the LGBTQIA+ community, including those identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and nonbinary. It requires the Governor to annually issue a proclamation encouraging public officials and citizens to observe the month with activities and programs. The bill takes immediate effect and does not create new regulations or funding, serving as a symbolic recognition of the community's contributions and commitment to inclusion.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Jun 2026

Senate Passage

May 2026

General Assembly Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action Jun 18, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Technical Review Of Prefiled Bill → Introduced · 3 edits · Jan 13, 2026

MINOR

The bill moved from technical review to introduced status, with co-sponsors removed (now only Senator McKnight) and a new legislative STATEMENT section added at the end. The statement provides context for the bill by describing federal executive orders since January 2025 that targeted DEI programs, paused commemorative observances, and removed references to transgender and queer individuals from federal resources. It positions New Jersey's designation of June as LGBTQIA+ Pride Month as a response to these federal actions.

SCOPE

A new STATEMENT section was added that frames the bill as a direct response to federal executive orders targeting DEI programs, commemorative observances, and LGBTQ+ recognition. It lists specific federal actions including pauses on events for Black History Month, Juneteenth, Pride Month, and others, removal of gender identity terms from federal forms, and pausing of federally funded research projects.

TECHNICAL

The bill status changed from 'As reported by the Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism & Historic Preservation Committee with technical review' to 'Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel,' indicating it is now in its initial introduced form rather than a committee-reported version.

Co-sponsors Diegnan, Greenstein, and Ruiz were removed from the introduced version, leaving only Senator McKnight. This is typical when a bill is first formally introduced before co-sponsors are added.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Jun 18, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Assembly Committee, 2nd Reading

lower

Jun 18, 2026

Committee

Transferred to Assembly Health Committee

lower

May 28, 2026

Committee

Received in the Assembly, Referred to Assembly Community Development and Women's Affairs Committee

lower

May 28, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed by the Senate (29-7)

upper

Jan 13, 2026

Introduced

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism & Historic Preservation Committee

upper

2 primary · 3 co-sponsors