Governor Abolishes Panel On Gay Youth

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Governor Mitt Romney issued an executive order yesterday abolishing the state's 14-year-old governor's commission on gay and lesbian youth after lawmakers overrode his veto of a bill creating a new commission out of the reach of the governor's office.
A spokesman for Romney said he issued the executive order because there was no need for two commissions both focused on the needs of gay and lesbian youth.
Romney angered many gay rights activists and lawmakers when he flirted with the idea earlier this year of abolishing the commission, the first of its kind in the nation, after a press release announcing a youth gay pride march was issued without the administration's blessing.
Instead of killing the commission Romney ordered it to refocus on its core mission of suicide prevention.
The bill approved by lawmakers over Romney's veto would create a new commission, none of whose members would be directly appointed by the governor.
One of the main goals of the commission would be to create "school-based and community-based programs focusing on suicide prevention, violence intervention, and the promotion of zero-tolerance policies regarding harassment and discrimination against gay and lesbian youth."
The Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth was first created by former Republican Gov. William Weld through an executive order. That allowed Romney to dismantle it, also by executive order.
from The Standard Times