(Washington) The new Congress convenes today but four pieces of legislation pushed by LGBT advocates may be placed on the back burner as lawmakers grapple with the rapidly deteriorating economy and two wars.

Three of the bills - the Matthew Shepard Hate Crime Act, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, and repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell - died when the the last session of Congress ended and will need to be reintroduced.  The fourth is the proposed repeal of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act which bars the government from any form of recognition of same-sex relationships.

The Matthew Shepard Hate Crime Act was named for the 21-year-old college student who was murdered in an anti-gay hate crime in Wyoming in October 1998. It would have added sexual orientation to the list of categories covered under federal hate crime law.

The bill passed the House in 2007 and the White House threatened to veto it. In an effort to get around a veto, the Senate version was tied to the 2008 defense authorization bill.  It passed, but then went to conference, where it was stripped out.

Last fall, the FBI released statistics showing that hate crimes in general had dropped across the country except for those against LGBT people. The bureau report showed a 6 percent increase in anti-gay hate crimes.

If the Shepard Act is passed, it would allow federal charges to be brought in hate crimes against gays and give judges power to impose tougher sentences.

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or ENDA, also passed the House in 2007 but without protections for the transgendered.

The legislation would have made it illegal for employers to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation in hiring, firing, promoting or paying an employee.

When ENDA returns it is likely to include gender identity protections.

ENDA, originally introduced by Frank, included transgendered people, but Frank removed those protections in committee, saying it would be impossible to pass.

More than a dozen LGBT groups immediately distanced themselves from the legislation. Frank later reversed himself and said he would fight to ensure an inclusive ENDA is passed.

Legislation to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the ban on gays serving openly in the military, was taken up in committee last year for the first time, but did not make it to a vote.

DADT was enacted in 1993. Since then, more than 12,000 servicemembers have been dismissed when it was learned they are gay.  According to statistics from the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, which advocates for gays in the military, an average of two service members are dismissed under the law every day.

It also is widely expected that legislation will be introduced to repeal the so-called federal Defense of Marriage Act, which forbids the federal government from recognizing any form of gay union - marriage, civil union or domestic partnership.  President-elect Barack Obama has said he would sign such a repeal, although no Democrat has so far said such a bill would be brought in.

Obama also has said he supports repeal of the gay military ban, an inclusive ENDA and passage of the Shepard Act.

While Congress takes up a massive economic stimulus package and grapples with wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, LGBT civil rights groups say they will continue to lobby for passage of the four bills.