Legislative leaders have promised to call a special session Tuesday after Charlotte City Council voted 10-0 today to rescind the LGBT ordinance that prompted House Bill 2, Gov.-elect Roy Cooper said.
“Senate Leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore assured me that as a result of Charlotte’s vote, a special session will be called for Tuesday to repeal HB2 in full,” Cooper said in a statement. “I hope they will keep their word to me, and with the help of Democrats in the legislature, HB2 will be repealed in full.”
“Full repeal will help to bring jobs, sports and entertainment events back and will provide the opportunity for strong LGBT protections in our state.”
Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan and many other business leaders supported the Charlotte ordinance and blamed HB2 for costing the state millions of dollars in potential economic development. Boycotts by the NCAA and others also have prompted cancellations of games and tournaments in the Charlotte, Greensboro and Raleigh areas.
Several North Carolina chambers of commerce and tourism-related interest groups have pressed for a resolution on HB2. Gov. Pat McCrory has discounted the impact of the issue, citing continued strong job growth in the state. McCrory issued an angry statement related to the new session:
“Gov. Pat McCrory has always advocated a repeal of the over-reaching Charlotte ordinance, but those efforts were always blocked by Jennifer Roberts, Roy Cooper and other Democratic activists,” spokesman Graham Wilson said in a statement. “This sudden reversal, with little notice after the gubernatorial election, sadly proves this entire issue originated by the political left was all about politics and winning the governor’s race at the expense or Charlotte and our entire state.”
Roberts said the city council’s vote “should in no way be viewed as a compromise of our principles or commitment to non-discrimination,” according to a Charlotte Observer report.
Much of the furor over the issue involved language that would enable transgender people to use the bathroom of their identity, not birth.
