Homosexuality
    ✔ Legal
    Gay Marriage
    ✔ Legal
    Censorship
    Ambiguous
    Changing Gender
    ✖ Illegal
    Gender-Affirming Care
    ✖ Restricted
    Non-Binary Gender Recognition
    ✖ Not legally recognized
    Discrimination
    ✖ No protections
    Employment Discrimination
    ✔ Sexual orientation and gender identity
    Housing Discrimination
    ✖ No protections
    Adoption
    ✔ Legal
    Intersex Infant Surgery
    ✖ Not banned
    Military
    ✔ Legal
    Donating Blood
    ✔ Legal
    Conversion Therapy
    ✖ Not banned
    Age of Consent
    ✔ Equal
💬 Join Equaldex's LGBTQ+ Discord to discuss LGBT rights and chat!

Recent surveys in Idaho have revealed a mixed response towards LGBTQ+ rights and issues.

Perception of LGBTQ+ People

Survey results from 6 LGBTQ+ Equaldex users who lived in or visited Idaho.

Overall

Overall

Perceived Safety*

Feel safe being open
Absence of verbal harassment
Absence of threats and violence
*Survey results represent personal perceptions of safety and may not be indicative of current actual conditions.

Equal Treatment

Treatment by peers
Treatment by family
Treatment at work
Treatment at school
Treatment by general public
Treatment by businesses
Treatment by law enforcement
Treatment by religious groups

Visibility & Representation

Inclusion in education
Representation in entertainment
Representation in news
Political support
Out public figures

Culture

Pride/events
Nightlife
Dating life
Interest groups and clubs

Services

Health and wellness
Gender-affirming care
Support and social services
Advocacy and legal

History

Homosexual activity in Idaho

?

Homosexual activity in Idaho is legal.

Current status
Since Jun 26, 2003
Legal
Idaho's law banning gay sex was overturned by SCOTUS's decision in Lawrence v. Texas (2003), and definitively repealed in 2022.
Sources:
Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003)
legiscan.com/ID/bill/S1325/2022
Report error  ·  Log

Same-sex marriage in Idaho

?

Same-sex marriage in Idaho is legal.

Current status
Since Oct 15, 2014
Legal
On October 15, 2014, same-sex marriage became legal in Idaho.
Report error  ·  Log
Until Oct 15, 2014
Unrecognized
Same-sex marriage is not recognized. A 2006 constitutional amendments defined marriage as the union of man and woman and the only type of partnership the state recognizes.
Report error  ·  Log

Censorship of LGBT issues in Idaho

?

Censorship of LGBT issues in Idaho is ambiguous.

Current status
Since Jul 1, 2024
Ambiguous
Idaho school districts will soon be required to remove any mandates for teachers to use transgender students' preferred pronouns. Governor Brad Little recently signed House Bill 538, sponsored by Rep. Ted Hill, R-Eagle, which provides protections for public employees, including teachers, who decline to use preferred names and pronouns. The bill prohibits teachers from using a name or pronoun that doesn't match a student's birth sex without parental consent, and it grants teachers the option to sue their district if they face discipline for refusing to comply. The bill will become effective on July 1st, 2024.
Until Jul 1, 2024
No censorship
No law currently censors LGBT topics in Idaho.

However, the State has tried in March 2022 to pass a bill that would make librarians criminally liable if kids access LGBT books. While the bill overwhelmingly passed in house, it was blocked by the Idaho senate.

Right to change legal gender in Idaho

?

Right to change legal gender in Idaho is illegal.

Current status
Since Jul 1, 2024
Illegal
Transgender people are no longer able to change their gender on official documents in Idaho after the passage of House Bill 421. The bill came into effect on July 1st, 2024.
Until Jul 1, 2024
Legal, no restrictions
As of 2018, you can change your gender marker on all forms of ID and birth certificates. A new Idaho law will be going into effect, making it harder for LGBTQ people to get surgeries.

Gender-affirming care in Idaho

?

Gender-affirming care in Idaho is restricted.

Current status
Since Jul 1, 2024
Restricted
Gender Affirming Care will no longer be accessible in the state of Idaho unless seeking outside of Idaho. House Bill 668 bans the right to gender affirming care for adults and minors when state funds are revoked. This bill also restricts non-profits and organizations from using funds for gender affirming care.
Apr 15, 2024–Jul 1, 2024
Legal, but banned for minors
Idaho law bans any changes with gender affirming care for minors, calling it gender mutilation in HB-71. Minors under the age of 18 cannot access gender affirming care even with parental consent. Doctors who do preform gender affirming care will be removed of their license and possibly face jail time. There will be a law into effect July 1st, 2024 that bans gender affirming care for all.

Legal recognition of non-binary gender in Idaho

?

Legal recognition of non-binary gender in Idaho is not legally recognized.

Current status
Since Jul 1, 2024
Not legally recognized
While legal recognition is federally recognition Idaho will not recognize any government IDs with gender X marker. This includes out of state ids, and passports.
Mar 25, 2019–Jul 1, 2024
Ambiguous
Not currently available for birth certificates, but initially available for driver's licenses and state IDs.

LGBT discrimination in Idaho

?

LGBT discrimination in Idaho is no protections.

Current status
No protections
No protections from discrimination exist based upon sexual orientation or gender identification.
Report error  ·  Log

LGBT employment discrimination in Idaho

?

LGBT employment discrimination in Idaho is sexual orientation and gender identity.

Current status
Since Jun 15, 2020
Sexual orientation and gender identity
Protected federally under a Supreme Court ruling.
Report error  ·  Log
Dec 16, 2014–Jun 15, 2020
No protections
As of December 16, 2014, there are no legal protections for people who are LGBT in regards to employment.
Report error  ·  Log

LGBT housing discrimination in Idaho

?

LGBT housing discrimination in Idaho is no protections.

Current status
No protections
This state does not provide any legal protections from discrimination based upon sexual orientation or gender identification.

However, the Human Rights Campaign states, "The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires grantees and participants of HUD programs to comply with local and state non-discrimination laws that include sexual orientation and gender identity.
HUD also prohibits inquiries regarding the sexual orientation or gender identity of a prospective tenant or applicant for assisted
housing in every state (March 2012)."
Report error  ·  Log

Same-sex adoption in Idaho

?

Same-sex adoption in Idaho is legal.

Current status
Legal
Pursuant Idaho §16-1501, any adult may may petition for adoption. Though it's not expressly permitted by any case law or statute, same-sex, second-parent adoption is theoretically legal as no laws prohibit it.
Sources:
www.lambdalegal.org/states-region/idaho
Idaho §16-1501
Report error  ·  Log

Intersex infant surgery in Idaho

?

Intersex infant surgery in Idaho is not banned.

Current status
Not banned
No US state has enacted a ban on surgeries that attempt to change an intersex minors sex without their consent.
Report error  ·  Log

Serving openly in military in Idaho

?

Serving openly in military in Idaho is legal.

Current status
Since Feb 26, 2021
Legal under federal United States law
President Biden removed former President Trumps ban on transgender people serving in the military, transgender people are still allowed to serve as of 2024.


A year after the ban was lifted, Admiral Levine was sworn into being an Admiral, becoming the first transgender woman to hold a high rank in the Navy and in Cabinet.
Apr 11, 2019–Feb 26, 2021
Lesbians, gays, bisexuals permitted, transgender people banned under federal United States law
New policy goes into effect barring individuals with a "condition" known as "gender dysphoria."
Report error  ·  Log
Sep 20, 2011–Apr 11, 2019
Legal under federal United States law
In 2011, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was repealed by the Obama Administration. Former President Obama allowed members who were dishonorably discharged under DADT, to receive an honorable discharge.
Dec 21, 1993–Sep 20, 2011
Don't Ask, Don't Tell under federal United States law
Don't Ask, Don't Tell was the historic compromise signed by President Bill Clinton authorizing people who are LGBT to serve in the military provided they didn't disclose sexuality. The law also removed the ability for others in the military from asking for a service member's orientation.
Sources:
gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-104p…
catalog.archives.gov/id/122244870 *official document for DADT signed by Former President Clinton*
gao.gov/assets/nsiad-92-98.pdf *study from 1992 to 1998*
history.com/news/dont-ask-d…
Report error  ·  Log

Blood donations by MSMs in Idaho

?

Blood donations by MSMs in Idaho is legal.

Current status
Since May 11, 2023
Legal
The new FDA policy on blood donation eliminates deferrals and screening questions specific to men who have sex with men (MSM). Prospective donors will be asked the same set of questions regardless of their sex or sexual orientation.
Apr 2, 2020–May 11, 2023
Banned (less than 6-month deferral)
Blood donation centers follow the new FDA 3-month deferral guidance.
Report error  ·  Log
Dec 21, 2015–Apr 2, 2020
Banned (1-year deferral)
Blood donation centers followed the non-binding FDA one year deferral guidance.
Report error  ·  Log
1983–Dec 21, 2015
Banned (indefinite deferral)
Ban on blood donations from MSMs applies to any man who has had sex, even once, with another man on or after January 1, 1977.
Report error  ·  Log

Conversion therapy in Idaho

?

Conversion therapy in Idaho is not banned.

Current status
Not banned
Conversion therapy is not banned in Idaho. House Bill 52, a bill which aimed to ban conversion therapy in certain instances, was introduced on January 27th, 2021. However, the bill did not pass.
Report error  ·  Log

Equal age of consent in Idaho

?

Equal age of consent in Idaho is equal.

Current status
Equal
Though it does not explicitly say if LGBTQ parties are in the law, it remains equal for LGBTQ people. Idaho legislature is trying to write out LGBTQ people from their state. See other topics in this state for more information.
Sources:
legislature.idaho.gov/wp-co…
criminaldefenselawyer.com/r…~:text=What%20Is%20the%20Age%20of,informed%20consent%20to%20sexual%20relations.
Report error  ·  Log