After an Associated Press analysis projected that North Carolina’s HB2 “bathroom bill” limiting LGBT protections will cost the state more than $3.76 billion in lost business, the state’s Republican legislature voted to repeal HB2 but puts state legislators in charge of public restrooms. The new measure, HB142, forbids local governments from passing nondiscrimination ordinances covering sexual orientation and gender identity until the end of 2020. “It’s not a perfect deal, but it repeals House Bill 2 and begins to repair our reputation,” said Governor Roy Cooper, who signed the bill on Thursday.
Why the rush to yesterday’s sloppy compromise? The NCAA set a Thursday deadline for HB2 repeal; without that, the state would lose hosting rights at all NCAA tournaments through 2022. The ultimatum is convincing, since North Carolina lost the league’s March Madness tournament games this year due to the discriminatory law. NCAA is reviewing the new law to see if it passes muster.
HB 142 apparently doesn’t repeal HB2’s other repressive elements, which bar Tarheel State cities and counties from adopting minimum wages above the $7.25 level, except for government employees (must be a lot of cousins on those county payrolls). The law also limits how people pursue claims of discrimination in state courts, forcing these matters into the federal court system. There’s a lot of things in the new bathroom bill that still doesn’t smell right.
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