The City of Palm Springs has received a perfect score from the Human Rights Campaign's 2022 Municipal Equality Index.
The Index is a nationwide evaluation of more than 350 cities, which examines how inclusive a city's municipal laws, policies and services are for LGBTQ+ people who reside and work there.
On the city's website, Palm Springs Mayor Lisa Middleton thanked the Human Rights Commission for "recognizing our work with a perfect score" of 100 points and said the city is an example to follow.
“Palm Springs is a unique and wonderfully diverse city, and we pride ourselves on being one of the most inclusive and welcoming communities in the country," Middleton said. "Thanks to the City Council’s strong commitment to equality and social opportunity, this city has become a nationwide leader and role model for other municipalities to follow when it comes to protecting the rights of our LGBTQ+ community and ensuring they feel welcomed, celebrated and safe.”
This year's Municipal Equality Report is the 11th annual edition and includes evaluations from every state in the nation, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) website said. According to this year's report, 120 cities across the country earned a perfect score, an increase from last year's 110. Additionally, the national average score rose for the fifth year in a row, reaching an all-time high of 68 points.
According to HRC President Kelley Robinson, almost every region in the U.S. earned a higher average score than last year.
Palm Springs was not the only city in Coachella Valley to be evaluated by the HRC this year. Cathedral City and Rancho Mirage also received perfect scores of 100 on the Municipality Scorecard, the HRC website said. Additionally, Palm Desert was awarded an 82, 14 points above the national average.