The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the U.S. state of Utah have significantly evolved in the 21st century. Protective laws have become increasingly enacted since 2014, despite the state's reputation as socially conservative and highly religious. Same-sex marriage has been legal since the state's ban was ruled unconstitutional by federal courts in 2014. In addition, statewide anti-discrimination laws now cover sexual orientation and gender identity in employment and housing, and the use of conversion therapy on minors is prohibited. In spite of this, there are still a few differences between the treatment of LGBT people and the rest of the population, and the rights of transgender youth are restricted.
Opinion polling has shown an increase in support for LGBT rights in the state. A 2017 Public Religion Research Institute poll showed that 44% of Utah residents supported same-sex marriage, a significant increase from the early 2000s. A 2019 survey by the same pollster showed that 74% of Utahns supported anti-discrimination legislation protecting LGBT people.
Law regarding same-sex sexual activity
Criminalization of same-sex sexual activity began since people of European descent first established a federally recognized government in the region. In 1851, the theocratic Utah Territorial Legislature of the newly formed Utah Territory passed the first law addressing same-sex sexual activity. Brigham Young acted as both the Territorial Governor and the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and oversaw the selection of legislators. The law banned any "man or boy" from "sexual intercourse with any of the male creation" with penalties left to the courts' discretion. Only one year later, a new criminal code was passed. It made no mention to sodomy or common-law crimes, thus legalizing sodomy in Utah. The lack of such a law was noted in 1864, when a soldier, Frederick Jones, was arrested on the grounds of sodomy but later released as there was no law punishing it. Shortly after his release, Jones was murdered by the father of his sexual partner. In 1876, the Utah Territorial Legislature enacted a new criminal code, which this time contained provisions outlawing sodomy. Punishment was set at five years' imprisonment, and 10 years for attempted sodomy. The law applied to both heterosexual and homosexual conduct, as well as to private and consensual activity. In 1913, in the case of State v. Johnson, the Utah Supreme Court held that fellatio (oral sex) was not a criminal offense. Despite expressing its disgust toward the practice and the fact that Johnson was "a negro", the court ruled that fellatio could not be criminal without defined legislation. In response, the state passed a law in 1923 prohibiting "sodomy or any other detestable and abominable crime against nature" that was committed "with either the sexual organs or the mouth", with a penalty varying between three and twenty years' imprisonment.
In 1969, the Utah State Legislature reduced the penalty for sodomy from a felony to a misdemeanor. It also removed the reference to "detestable and abominable crime against nature" and reduced the penalty for consensual acts to a maximum of six months in county jail, and/or a fine of up to $299. In 1973, a comprehensive revision of the law resulted in married couples being exempt from prosecution. The revision also established that an act of sodomy could be completed by "any touching". The sodomy statute would remain in force until 2003 when the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated all state sodomy laws with its landmark 6 to 3 opinion in Lawrence v. Texas. The opinion stated that private consensual sexual conduct is protected by the due process and equal protection rights that are guaranteed by the United States Constitution.
In 1925, the Utah State Legislature passed a sterilization law, providing for the possible sterilization of state inmates afflicted with "habitual sexual criminal tendencies". The statute was upheld by the state Supreme Court in 1929 in the case of Davis v. Walton. By the end of 1948, 555 persons had been sterilized in Utah, all of them "insane or mentally retarded". The law was amended in 1975 to apply only to the "mentally redarded".
Openly gay Utah Senator Scott McCoy (D-Salt Lake) unsuccessfully sponsored the bill S.B. 169 ("Sodomy Amendments") in 2007. The bill would have amended the state sodomy law by repealing its unconstitutional parts. The bill failed without consideration.