Story out of Raleigh, North Carolina:
North Carolina lawmakers took steps Thursday to set aside a half-million dollars for the legal defense of a law limiting protections for LGBT people as a judge sought to streamline a cluster of lawsuits it has inspired.
Republican lawmakers were mapping out the end of the session, including possible changes to the law known as House Bill 2, which has attracted high-profile critics including the NBA. The session could end this weekend.
But there was no appetite to change the provision requiring transgender people to use restrooms corresponding to the sex on their birth certificate in schools, universities and many other public buildings. The law also excludes sexual orientation and gender identity from statewide anti-discrimination protections.
Pressure to change the law has come from several quarters including NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who said earlier this month that there needed to be progress on changing the law this summer to ensure the league keeps its 2017 All-Star Game in Charlotte.
The Senate also approved a plan to give McCrory's office $500,000 to defend the law in court, by transferring money from a disaster relief fund. The measure still must pass the House.
Other legislators have said possible changes include increasing criminal penalties for people who commit sexual assaults in bathrooms and locker rooms. There also could be dispensations for transgender people who have undergone sex reassignment surgery but were born in the few states where the sex on a birth certificate can't be changed.
Gay rights advocates held a news conference to say nothing short of the law's repeal would suffice. Cont.
Story from - AP
Image from - YouTube
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