votes required to avoid a filibuster, but told The Daily Beast that she was able to secure the commitment of the Senate Armed Services Committee to hold hearings on "don't ask, don't tell" in the fall of 2009. However, the hearings were postponed and began on February 2, 2010. The repeal ultimately passed both Houses of Congress and was signed by President Obama on December 22, 2010. In 2010, the Human Rights Campaign gave her a 100% rating from the LGBT advocacy group. On March 16, 2011, Gillibrand, along with Senators Feinstein and Leahy, introduced a bill to repeal DOMA. In 2011, Gillibrand heavily lobbied undecided members of the New York State Senate to pass a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in New York. The bill ultimately passed the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, and was signed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, on June 24, 2011. In May 2017, Gillibrand was one of forty-six senators to introduce the Equality Act of 2017, described by Representative David Cicilline as ensuring "that every LGBT person can live their lives free from the fear of discrimination. Above all, it’s about honoring the values that have guided our nation since its founding. It’s critical that Congress pass the Equality Act into law." In October 2018, Gillibrand was one of twenty senators to sign a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging Pompeo to reverse the rolling back of a policy that granted visas to same-sex partners of LGBTQ diplomats who had unions which were not recognized by their home countries, writing that too many places around the world have seen LGBTQ individuals "subjected to discrimination and unspeakable violence, and receive little or no protection from the law or local authorities" and that the US refusing to let LGBTQ diplomats bring their partners to the US would be equivalent of America upholding "the discriminatory policies of many countries around the world." In June 2019, Gillibrand was one of eighteen senators to sign a letter to Secretary of State Pompeo requesting an explanation of a decision by the State Department to not issue an official statement that year commemorating Pride Month nor issue the annual cable outlining activities for embassies commemorating Pride Month. They also questioned why the LGBTQ special envoy position had remained vacant and asserted that "preventing the official flying of rainbow flags and limiting public messages celebrating