Lawmakers rush bill through in under 9 hours, reach far beyond stated purpose of reversing Charlotte LGBT protections
Today, the North Carolina General Assembly went into a special legislative session for just one day to hurriedly pass a bill that attacks trans people and overrides local control in multiple public policy areas. Legislators originally proposed today’s session to reverse the addition of LGBT protections to Charlotte’s municipal nondiscrimination ordinance. However, the bill that they ended up passing does far more than that.
Lawmakers used the Charlotte ordinance as an excuse to overreach, restricting bathroom access in all public buildings—including public schools, public universities, and libraries - based on the sex listed on a person’s birth certificate. This standard is especially damaging for trans students in public schools, who would be subjected to humiliation and health risks, making it impossible for them to learn effectively.
The bill also overrules LGBT protections in all municipalities, not just Charlotte, and blocks any future local LGBT nondiscrimination measures. In an extreme move, the bill also goes beyond addressing nondiscrimination protections to also prohibit local communities from regulating wages and workplace conditions.
The state legislature announced only last night that it would go into special session today and did not release the text of the bill until the session started this morning. Legislators spent just a few hours with the bill before rushing to vote it into law.
NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling, who is at the State Legislative Building in Raleigh supporting local advocates, said, “It was disappointing and embarrassing to watch the North Carolina legislature recklessly pass this hurtful, unnecessary law that simply won't stand up in court. I’m very concerned for all of the trans people, especially trans kids, in North Carolina who are now going to be worried about being arrested or punished for simply using the restroom that matches the gender they live as every day. Essentially, this bill would make it illegal to be trans.”
North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory now has 30 days to sign this bill into law. The state’s Attorney General, Roy Cooper, has already come out against the bill, calling it “shameful.”
