Rachel Kurzius
North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
The U.S. Justice Department has notified the governor of North Carolina that a controversial law passed in March violates the U.S. Civil Rights Act.
The law, HB2, prevents transgender people from using public bathrooms that do not match the gender on their birth certificates and rolls back local anti-discrimination measures for LGBTQ people. It has already led to travel bans from other states and cities, as well as a number of businesses cancelling plans for expansion in the Tarheel State and performers calling off shows.
Now, it could result in North Carolina losing federal funding for education. Last year, state public schools got $861 million from the federal government, according to the Charlotte Observer.
The letter, addressed to NC Governor Pat McCrory, says that “the State is engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination against its employees and both you and the State are engaged in a pattern or practice of resistance to the full enjoyment of Title VII rights by employees of public agencies.”
North Carolina must “remedy these violations … by confirming that the State will not comply with or implement HB2” by close of business on Monday, May 9, otherwise the DOJ will “apply to the appropriate court for an order that will ensure compliance.”
A DOJ official told Buzzfeed that the agency hopes the state will comply voluntarily.
House Speaker Tim Moore, who championed HB2, characterized the letter to the Charlotte Observer as “a huge over-reach.”
