North Carolina Legislature to Enter Costly, Unnecessary Special Session for Anti-LGBT Bill

Washington, D.C. - March 22, 2016 - North Carolina's General Assembly will go into special session tomorrow to override the LGBT protections that were added to Charlotte's nondiscrimination ordinance last month. The ordinance is set to take effect on April 1.

The session will cost taxpayers $42,000 per day, which is $10,000 more than the average North Carolinian's salary. Going into a costly special session just to push this anti-LGBT legislation is an extreme step that overrides local control. Any fears that state legislators claim to be addressing were already brought up before the Charlotte City Council during the city's hearing process. Meanwhile, North Carolina legislators are not creating room for public discussion of the bill, nor for any alternatives. No bill text was available as of noon on Tuesday, March 22, less than 24 hours before the session was due to start.

"The state does not need to waste taxpayers' money by suddenly and secretively coming into session. There are actual problems in North Carolina, and the General Assembly is not addressing any of them in this session," said NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling.

If the legislature manages to pass a bill, its actions will have an impact on LGBT people and their families beyond Charlotte. Over 200 communities around the nation have similar nondiscrimination ordinances.

The National Center for Transgender Equality

 is the nation's leading social justice advocacy organization winning life-saving change for transgender people. As a national social justice organization, NCTE is devoted to ending discrimination and violence against transgender people through education and advocacy on national issues of importance to transgender people.