MADISON, Wisc.—Former Wisconsin Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus, who signed the first statewide gay rights law in the U.S. in 1982, has died. He was 81.

Dreyfus died Jan. 2 at his home near Milwaukee, Lee S. Dreyfus Jr., his son, said. He had suffered from heart and breathing problems.

The gay rights measure Dreyfus signed made it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation in housing, employment and public accommodations. Activists gathered in Madison last year to mark the 25th anniversary of the law.

Dreyfus, Wisconsin’s 40th governor, was also a vocal opponent of the state’s ban on gay marriage and civil unions, which was approved by voters in 2006.

Serving through 1983, Dreyfus earned respect for his businesslike approach to politics.

“He wasn’t interested in the political maneuvering,” said Tom Loftus, who served as the Democratic majority leader in the Wisconsin Assembly during the Republican Dreyfus’ term. “He would propose something, and whatever the legislature came up with, he would work with that.”