WASHINGTON, May 9 (UPI) — North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory on Monday filed a lawsuit against the Department of Justice for ordering the state to cease enforcement over the controversial “bathroom bill” targeting transgender people.
McCrory and Department of Public Safety Secretary Frank Perry filed the lawsuit seeking “declaratory and injunctive relief” against the federal government, the Justice Department, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and the Justice Department’s acting assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division, Vanita Gupta.
McCrory and Perry filed the lawsuit against the Obama administration for its “radical reinterpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which would prevent plaintiffs from protecting the bodily privacy rights of state employees while accommodating the needs of transgendered state employees.”
Title VII prohibits the discrimination of employees by employers on the basis of sex. The provision has previously been used by the Justice Department to cover transgender workers.
“The department contends that North Carolina’s common sense privacy policy constitutes a pattern or practice of discriminating against transgender employees … because it does not give employees an unfettered right to use the bathroom or changing facility of their choice based on gender identity,” the lawsuit states.
“The department’s position is a baseless and blatant overreach … The overwhelming weight of legal authority recognizes that transgender status is not a protected class under Title VII. If the United States desires a new protected class under Title VII, it must seek such action by the United States Congress.”
Previously, the Justice Department said North Carolina must revoke the controversial new law by the end of the day on Monday or risk losing millions in federal funding.
The Justice Department on Wednesday informed McCrory and North Carolina lawmakers that the new law violated federal anti-discrimination laws. North Carolina’s House Bill 2, signed by McCrory in March, mandates transgender people must use whichever bathroom matches their gender at birth — regardless of whether they identify as male or female.
The Justice Department could pull millions in federal funding if the state does not comply. Businesses and civil rights groups have criticized the state for the law, which could ultimately cost the state even more in lost revenue.
There are several ways in which the government can persuade the state to comply, an anonymous federal official told The New York Times — including the pulling of millions of dollars in federal funding.
Speaking to Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace, McCrory said federal officials rejected his request to extend the deadline to comply.
McCrory said the department would have granted the extension if the governor admitted publicly that House Bill 2 was discriminatory.
“What I’ve asked for, I asked for Friday, was an extension. They gave the ninth largest state in the United States … three working days to respond to a pretty complex letter and to a pretty big threat,” McCrory said. “Well, we don’t think three working days is enough to respond to such a threat.”
“Did they respond to your request for an extension?” Wallace asked the governor.
“Yes, they said, no, unless we will give you a one-week extension if the governor admits publicly that the ruling that their language regarding bathrooms does, in fact, discriminate,” McCrory replies. “Well, I’m not going to publicly announce that something discriminates, which is agreeing with their letter because we’re really talking about a letter in which they’re trying to define gender identity. And there is no clear identification or definition of gender identity.”
About 57 percent of people in the United States say they oppose House Bill 2, while about 38 percent support the law, according to a new CNN/ORC poll.
Doug G. Ware contributed to this report.
McCrory, Perry vs. United States of America by United Press International
