This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/30/us/north-carolina-senate-acts-to-repeal-restrictive-bathroom-law.html
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| North Carolina Governor Signs Repeal of Bathroom Law | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| ATLANTA — In a day of swift legislative action, North Carolina lawmakers passed and the governor signed on Thursday a repeal of a controversial state law that had restricted transgender bathroom use in public buildings. | |
| The bill, passed by both houses of the North Carolina General Assembly, was part of a compromise worked out earlier in the week between Republican legislative leaders and Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat. | |
| “Today, we repealed HB2,” Mr. Cooper wrote on Twitter. “It wasn’t a perfect deal or my preferred solution, but an important first step for our state.” | |
| But with anger rising over the compromise from groups on both the left and the right, it was unclear whether the signing of the new bill into law would extricate North Carolina from the roiling national controversy over the proper levels of legal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. | |
| The repealed law, known as House Bill 2, triggered a national backlash from companies, entertainers and sports leagues that considered it to be discriminatory. Performers like Bruce Springsteen canceled concerts, and the N.C.A.A., Atlantic Coast Conference and National Basketball Association have moved high-profile events. | |
| This week, a new flurry of action over the law came as the N.C.A.A. warned North Carolina that it could lose the opportunity to host championship sporting events through 2022, which could mean millions in lost revenue. The league had already relocated championship tournament games that would have been played in the state during this academic year, including the Division I men’s basketball tournament. | This week, a new flurry of action over the law came as the N.C.A.A. warned North Carolina that it could lose the opportunity to host championship sporting events through 2022, which could mean millions in lost revenue. The league had already relocated championship tournament games that would have been played in the state during this academic year, including the Division I men’s basketball tournament. |
| The compromise bill passed the Senate, 32 to 16, in a late-morning vote after only brief discussion. It passed the House in the afternoon by a vote of 70 to 48 after fiery denunciations by some conservative and liberal members. | |
| Phil Berger, a Republican and the Senate leader, acknowledged that many people were probably not pleased by the arrangement. However, he said, “compromise sometimes is difficult, and this bill represents that.” | Phil Berger, a Republican and the Senate leader, acknowledged that many people were probably not pleased by the arrangement. However, he said, “compromise sometimes is difficult, and this bill represents that.” |
| House Bill 2 was signed in March 2016 by the governor at the time, Pat McCrory, a Republican. It curbs legal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and, in perhaps its most contentious measure, requires transgender people in public buildings to use the bathroom that corresponds with the gender on their birth certificate. | House Bill 2 was signed in March 2016 by the governor at the time, Pat McCrory, a Republican. It curbs legal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and, in perhaps its most contentious measure, requires transgender people in public buildings to use the bathroom that corresponds with the gender on their birth certificate. |
| The new bill would repeal House Bill 2, create a moratorium on local nondiscrimination ordinances through 2020 and leave regulation of bathrooms to state lawmakers. | The new bill would repeal House Bill 2, create a moratorium on local nondiscrimination ordinances through 2020 and leave regulation of bathrooms to state lawmakers. |
| In a brief statement on Wednesday, Mr. Cooper — whose razor-thin victory over Mr. McCrory in November was due in large part to voter frustration over the national backlash over House Bill 2 — said that the measure was “begins to repair our reputation.” | |
| In the House, Representative Deb Butler, one of the state’s few openly gay legislators, was among those who said the compromise would not ameliorate “the stigma and suffering” associated with House Bill 2. “We would rather suffer HB2 than to have this body, one more time, deny us the full and unfettered protection of the law,” she said. | In the House, Representative Deb Butler, one of the state’s few openly gay legislators, was among those who said the compromise would not ameliorate “the stigma and suffering” associated with House Bill 2. “We would rather suffer HB2 than to have this body, one more time, deny us the full and unfettered protection of the law,” she said. |
| Representative Bert Jones, a Republican, also opposed the compromise, citing his belief that God “created us male and female,” and arguing that it was not discriminatory for him to hold that belief. | Representative Bert Jones, a Republican, also opposed the compromise, citing his belief that God “created us male and female,” and arguing that it was not discriminatory for him to hold that belief. |
| “It troubles me today that we are doing this in this manner,” Mr. Jones said. | “It troubles me today that we are doing this in this manner,” Mr. Jones said. |
| But in the end, more legislators appeared to believe that the state needed to do something to end the boycotts. Senator Dan Blue, the Democratic minority leader, said that the compromise “brings an end to an economic threat.” | But in the end, more legislators appeared to believe that the state needed to do something to end the boycotts. Senator Dan Blue, the Democratic minority leader, said that the compromise “brings an end to an economic threat.” |
| Gay rights advocates have been harshly critical of the proposed compromise. Cathryn Oakley, senior legislative counsel for the Human Rights Campaign, said that it would leave lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people with no statewide anti-discrimination ordinance and no ability to seek such protections from local government for a number of years. | Gay rights advocates have been harshly critical of the proposed compromise. Cathryn Oakley, senior legislative counsel for the Human Rights Campaign, said that it would leave lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people with no statewide anti-discrimination ordinance and no ability to seek such protections from local government for a number of years. |
| “What that means for the L.G.B.T. community is that we continue to be boxed out of nondiscrimination protections,” she said. | “What that means for the L.G.B.T. community is that we continue to be boxed out of nondiscrimination protections,” she said. |
| Chris Sgro, executive director of the gay rights group Equality North Carolina, said the proposal “keeps North Carolina as the only state in the country obsessed with where trans people use the restroom through law.” | Chris Sgro, executive director of the gay rights group Equality North Carolina, said the proposal “keeps North Carolina as the only state in the country obsessed with where trans people use the restroom through law.” |
| The conservative NC Values Coalition had urged its followers to contact lawmakers and tell them not to repeal House Bill 2, arguing that the existing law guaranteed that men would not be allowed “into women’s and little girl’s bathrooms and showers.” | The conservative NC Values Coalition had urged its followers to contact lawmakers and tell them not to repeal House Bill 2, arguing that the existing law guaranteed that men would not be allowed “into women’s and little girl’s bathrooms and showers.” |
| “No NCAA basketball game, corporation, or entertainment concert is worth even one little girl being harmed or frightened in a bathroom,” Tami Fitzgerald, the coalition’s executive director, wrote in an email. “She should not lose her privacy and dignity to a boy in a locker room.” | “No NCAA basketball game, corporation, or entertainment concert is worth even one little girl being harmed or frightened in a bathroom,” Tami Fitzgerald, the coalition’s executive director, wrote in an email. “She should not lose her privacy and dignity to a boy in a locker room.” |
| The announcement of a compromise on Wednesday came after months of acrimony over the bill and a seeming inability to find middle ground after numerous efforts. Conservative legislators, citing safety concerns, have been worried about the idea of men using women’s restrooms since the Charlotte city government, in February 2016, passed an ordinance that allowed transgender people to use the restroom of their choice. Charlotte officials repealed that ordinance in December as part of one of the efforts to broker a compromise in the state capital, but that effort failed during a special legislative session. | The announcement of a compromise on Wednesday came after months of acrimony over the bill and a seeming inability to find middle ground after numerous efforts. Conservative legislators, citing safety concerns, have been worried about the idea of men using women’s restrooms since the Charlotte city government, in February 2016, passed an ordinance that allowed transgender people to use the restroom of their choice. Charlotte officials repealed that ordinance in December as part of one of the efforts to broker a compromise in the state capital, but that effort failed during a special legislative session. |
| The possibility of further punishment, particularly from the N.C.A.A., placed tremendous pressure on lawmakers in the basketball-obsessed state, a pressure heightened by the fact that the University of North Carolina men’s basketball team has reached the N.C.A.A. tournament’s Final Four and will be squaring off against the University of Oregon on Saturday night. | The possibility of further punishment, particularly from the N.C.A.A., placed tremendous pressure on lawmakers in the basketball-obsessed state, a pressure heightened by the fact that the University of North Carolina men’s basketball team has reached the N.C.A.A. tournament’s Final Four and will be squaring off against the University of Oregon on Saturday night. |
| The Atlantic Coast Conference also moved its neutral-site championships out of North Carolina this year in response to House Bill 2, and the National Basketball Association moved its All-Star Game to New Orleans from Charlotte. | The Atlantic Coast Conference also moved its neutral-site championships out of North Carolina this year in response to House Bill 2, and the National Basketball Association moved its All-Star Game to New Orleans from Charlotte. |
| Some local news outlets reported this week that the N.C.A.A. had set a Thursday deadline for the state to address the bill. Officials at the association could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. The league said in a statement last week, “Absent any change in the law, our position remains the same regarding hosting current or future events in the state.” | Some local news outlets reported this week that the N.C.A.A. had set a Thursday deadline for the state to address the bill. Officials at the association could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. The league said in a statement last week, “Absent any change in the law, our position remains the same regarding hosting current or future events in the state.” |
| Some conservatives in the House said that it felt as though the legislature was caving to pressure from the N.C.A.A. Mr. Jones said two flags should now be flown outside the legislative building: that of “a certain intercollegiate athletic association” and “a white flag.” | Some conservatives in the House said that it felt as though the legislature was caving to pressure from the N.C.A.A. Mr. Jones said two flags should now be flown outside the legislative building: that of “a certain intercollegiate athletic association” and “a white flag.” |
| The Associated Press released an analysis this week estimating that House Bill 2 would cost North Carolina more than $3.7 billion in lost business in the next 12 years. | The Associated Press released an analysis this week estimating that House Bill 2 would cost North Carolina more than $3.7 billion in lost business in the next 12 years. |