A series of report cards from the Council for Global Equality and F&M Global Barometers that rank countries on their LGBTQ rights records indicate the U.S. continues to lag behind.

The report cards rank the 110 countries that are participating in the White House’s Summit for Democracy that began on Thursday. They specifically rank the nations on 30 specific benchmarks that are grouped together in three categories.

Basic Human Rights:

            – No criminalization of sexual orientation

            – No criminalization of gender identity or expression

            – Freedom from arbitrary arrest based on sexual orientation

            – Freedom from arbitrary arrest based on gender identity

            – Legal recognition of gender identity

            – No physiological alteration requirement for legal gender recognition

            – No psychiatric diagnosis requirement for legal gender recognition

            – LGBTQI organizations are allowed to legally register

            – LGBTQI organizations are able to peacefully and safely assemble

            – Security forces provide protection to LGBTQI pride participants

Protection from Violence:

            – Ban on gay conversion therapy

            – Hate crimes legislation includes sexual orientation

            – Hate crimes legislation includes gender identity

            – Hate crimes legislation includes sex characteristics

            – Hate speech laws include sexual orientation

            – Hate speech laws include gender identity

            – Equality body mandate exists

            – Prohibition of medically-unnecessary non-consensual medical interventions on intersex individuals

            – Gender affirming prison accommodations

            – Asylum for LGBTQI individuals is available within the country

Socio-Economic Rights:

            – Workplace non-discrimination laws include sexual orientation

            – Workplace non-discrimination laws include gender identity

            – Workplace non-discrimination laws include sex characteristics

            – Fair housing non-discrimination las include sexual orientation

            – Fair housing non-discrimination laws include gender identity

            – Head of state supports marriage equality

            – State allows for marriage equality

            – State prohibits discrimination in health care based on sexual orientation

            – State prohibits discrimination in health care based on gender identity

            – Legal classifications, such as an X sex or gender marker, universally available

The U.S. scored 70 percent on the “Basic Human Rights” benchmarks, 30 percent on the “Protection from Violence” benchmarks and 50 percent on the “Socio-Economic Rights” benchmarks.

Malta scored 100 percent on all three sets of benchmarks. Uruguay received a 100 percent score on the “Basic Human Rights” benchmarks, an 80 percent score on the “Protection from Violence” benchmarks and a 90 percent score on the “Socio-Economic Rights” benchmarks.

The report cards the Council for Global Equality and F&M Global Barometers released on Tuesday are based on 2020 data.

The groups will release a second set of report cards in 2022 based on new data. Council for Global Equality Chair Mark Bromley told the Washington Blade the U.S. will have a higher score because the State Department will have begun to offer passports with an “X” gender marker and President Biden explicitly supports marriage equality.

The Biden administration on Thursday unveiled the Presidential Initiative for Democratic Renewal, which the White House describes as “a landmark set of policy and foreign assistance initiatives that build upon the U.S. government’s significant, ongoing work to bolster democracy and defend human rights globally.” Biden in a speech he delivered at the opening of the Summit for Democracy noted the initiative, among other things, includes programs that seek to empower LGBTQ people.