North Carolina's Republican-controlled House of Representatives has approved a bill that if signed into law will ban all cities in the state from enacting LGBT nondiscrimination ordinances. The bill also voids all current LGBT rights ordinances on the books in the Tar Heel State.
House Bill 2 was passed in a special session hurriedly convened on Wednesday. Lawmakers were anxious to override an LGBT rights ordinance recently passed in Charlotte that is set to take effect on April 1. Earlier on Wednesday, lawmakers moved the bill out of committee and onto the House floor within one hour of it being introduced. Democratic legislators were reportedly given little to no time to review the bill before it was put up for a vote.
The new bill cleared North Carolina's lower chamber by a vote of 83 to 25, with a handful of Democrats joining the Republican majority in voting for the bill.
All Republicans backed bill. Democrats who voted yes: Reps. Larry Bell, William Brisson, Elmer Floyd, Ken Goodman… (1/2) #ncpol
— Colin Campbell (@RaleighReporter) March 23, 2016
(2/2)…, Charles Graham, George Graham, Ed Hanes, Garland Pierce, Robert Reives, Michael Wray…so more "yes" votes than I expected. #ncpol
— Colin Campbell (@RaleighReporter) March 23, 2016
Much of the debate around Charlotte's LGBT ordinance has centered around the heinous anti-trans bathroom myth. The oft-spewed notion is that allowing transgender individuals the right to use bathrooms corresponding to their gender identity somehow enables sexual predators to prey on young children.
WSOC TV reports on Wednesday's vote:
[Lawmakers] have extended the bill to cover more than the part that allows people to choose a bathroom that fits their gender identity.
It now also covers wages and employment.
Charlotte city leaders are inside the government center closely watching what happens in Raleigh to know how they will respond.
ABC 11 provides some background:
Republican leaders at the General Assembly scheduled a one-day session after enough lawmakers requested to reconvene. They were responding to worries from constituents and conservative activists about the provision in the state's largest city that's set to take effect April 1. Otherwise, they wouldn't have met again until late April.
Republican House Speaker Tim Moore has said intervening is necessary to protect the safety of women and children. There have been arguments that any man – perhaps a sex offender – could enter a woman's restroom or locker room simply by calling himself transgender.
“What we're doing is preserving a sense of privacy that people have long expected in private facilities and we are restoring and clarifying … the existing authority and limits of authority of local government,” said GOP Rep. Dan Bishop, who represents Charlotte, a bill sponsor.
[Top photo via Twitter]
