Date:         Mon, 2 May 1994 08:39:42 -0400
From: "David B. O'Donnell" <atropos@aol.net>

        WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Coast Guard is banning discrimination
against its 6,000 civilian workers based on their sexual
orientation, a spokesman said Wednesday.
        Coast Guard Commandant Thomas F. Fisher issued an order that
``no one be denied opportunity because of their sexual
orientation.''
        While the Coast Guard is not part of the Defense Department, it
follows the military policy of not asking the sexual orientation of
its 38,000 uniformed personnel.
        The order specifically banning discrimination was intended to
clarify the situation for the agency's 6,000 civilian workers, said
Cmdr. Ernest Del Bueno, a Coast Guard spokesman.
        The Coast Guard is supervised by the Department of
Transportation, and Transportation Secretary Federico Pena has long
opposed discrimination against homosexuals.
        The Defense Department policy permits homosexual military
personnel to serve as long as they do not reveal their sexual
orientation or engage in homosexual conduct. The Pentagon does not
have a formal policy for its civilian employees.