Raleigh, N.C. – Governor Pat McCrory has signed a bill that prevents local governments from setting their own anti-discrimination rules.
House Bill 2, titled the “Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act” was signed late Wednesday night.
A Charlotte City Council ordinance was supposed to take effect April 1 that expanded protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity for treatment at hotels and restaurants.
Governor McCroryreleased a statement following the signing of House Bill 2, the Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act:
“The basic expectation of privacy in the most personal of settings, a restroom or locker room, for each gender was violated by government overreach and intrusion by the mayor and city council of Charlotte. This radical breach of trust and security under the false argument of equal access not only impacts the citizens of Charlotte but people who come to Charlotte to work, visit or play. This new government regulation defies common sense and basic community norms by allowing, for example, a man to use a woman’s bathroom, shower or locker room.
“While local municipalities have important priorities working to oversee police, fire, water and sewer, zoning, roads, and transit, the mayor and city council took action far out of its core responsibilities. As a result, I have signed legislation passed by a bipartisan majority to stop this breach of basic privacy and etiquette which was to go into effect April 1. Although other items included in this bill should have waited until regular session, this bill does not change existing rights under state or federal law.
“It is now time for the city of Charlotte elected officials and state elected officials to get back to working on the issues most important to our citizens.”
