Bill > H501

This bill amends Chapter 151B of the General Laws, which is the Massachusetts anti-discrimination law, to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on a person's known relationship or association with a handicapped individual. This means that employers or other entities covered by this law cannot discriminate against someone because they are friends with, married to, or otherwise associated with a person with a disability, even if the person themselves does not have a disability. The bill inserts this protection into various subsections of Section 4 of Chapter 151B, which outlines unlawful discriminatory practices. The term "handicapped individual" refers to a person with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.