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NC won’t meet DOJ’s deadline, Speaker says

by Jesse Byrnes - 05/05/16 1:04 PM ET

North Carolina lawmakers do not plan to repeal or stop enforcing the state’s controversial law on bathroom use before Monday’s deadline from the federal government, according to the Speaker of the state’s General Assembly.

Tim Moore (R) told reporters on Thursday that legislators wouldn’t act before the deadline put forward by the Justice Department the previous day, according to The News & Observer of Raleigh, N.C.

{mosads}“That deadline will come and go. We don’t ever want to lose any money, but we’re not going to get bullied by the Obama administration to take action prior to Monday’s date. That’s not how this works,” Moore added.

The Justice Department sent a letter Wednesday saying the law violated protections against workplace discrimination based on sex and gave the state until Monday to “not comply with or implement” the law.

Federal officials said the law goes against the Civil Rights Act and Title IX, barring discrimination in education based on sex, which could jeopardize millions of dollars in education funding for the state.

The Speaker said state officials are working to determine their next steps.

“Right now we’re talking with our attorneys to see what our options are,” Moore said, according to the newspaper. “We’re going to move at the speed that we’re going to move at to look at what our options are.”

State Rep. Cecil Brockman, a Democrat, shot back by noting the Legislature moved quickly earlier this year to pass H.B. 2, and argued the deadline could be easily met.

#HB2 became law in less than 12 hours. 5 days should be more than enough time to decide how to clean up after it. https://t.co/MacA6DAvEm

— Cecil Brockman (@CecilBrockman) May 5, 2016

“Obviously there’ll have to be some response — you’ve got the deadline — but I don’t see the legislature, as the legislature, taking any specific response,” state Senate Leader Phil Berger (R) said Thursday morning, according to the newspaper.

LGBT activists and some businesses have been fuming over the law’s requirement that transgender people use public restrooms that correspond to their biological sex.

Tags North Carolina