Idaho Civil Rights Laws

Learn about your state’s laws by using the links below.

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| Last updated June 20, 2016

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Civil rights refer to the rights of all people to be protected equally under the law, free from discrimination or special privileges. So civil rights laws are meant to prevent individuals from being treated unfairly on the basis of one’s religion, skin color, ethnicity, gender, or any other such arbitrary characteristic. While civil rights laws protect everyone against bias, they typically focus on various categories and characteristics that have historically been marginalized, such as racial minorities and women. In the context of civil rights law, these categories — the disabled, for instance — are referred to as protected classes.

For instance, if a Muslim family applying for a home loan was treated with disrespect and perhaps rejected solely because of their religion, they may file a lawsuit for having their civil rights violated. In both federal and state law, civil rights protections apply to the areas of housing, public accommodation, and employment. Federal civil rights protections apply to all states, although some states provide additional protections.

Civil Rights Laws in Idaho at a Glance

While Idaho doesn’t provide many additional civil rights protections not already provided by federal law, there are some differences. For instance, Idaho’s age discrimination provision applies to employers of all sizes. This expands on federal law, which only applies to employers with 20 or more employees.

Additional details about Idaho’s civil rights laws are listed in the following table. See FindLaw’s Discrimination section for more articles and resources.

Code Section	67-5901, et seq. (Generally)
Agency	Commission on Human Rights
Prohibited Acts	Discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, disability or national origin in the areas of employment, housing, or public access
How to File a Complaint	Contact the Idaho Commission on Human Rights at (888) 249-7025 or inquiry@ihrc.idaho.gov Or, mail your completed complaint form to: Idaho Commission on Human Rights 317 West Main Street Boise, ID 83735-0660
Administrative Preemption	No
Private Action Permitted?	Yes
Attorney Fees Recoverable by Plaintiff?	No
Statute of Limitations	1 yr.

Note: State laws are always subject to change through the enactment of newly signed legislation, decisions from higher courts, or other means. You should contact an Idaho civil rights lawyer or employment law attorney, or conduct your own legal research to verify the state law(s) you are researching.

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