HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolutions - 2016.04.21 - 22322MISCELLANEOUS RESOLUTION #16106
BY: Commissioner David Woodward, District #19
IN RE: BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS —TEMPORARILY SUSPEND TRAVEL BY ANY COUNTY
EMPLOYEE TO THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA UNTIL HB 2 IS OVERTURNED
To the Oakland County Board of Commissioners
Chairperson, Ladies and Gentlemen:
WHEREAS basic concepts of human and civil rights dictate that discrimination based on another's gender
identity or sexual orientation is inherently wrong; and
WHEREAS on February 22, 2016, the City Council of Charlotte, North Carolina enacted a local ordinance
that added marital status, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression to the
list of categories protected from discrimination in Charlotte's city contracting and public accommodations;
and
WHEREAS on March 23, 2016, in response to that Charlotte ordinance, the North Carolina General
Assembly in special session ratified, and Governor Pat McCrory signed, HB 2,; and
WHEREAS the North Carolina law created a "new" mandatory statewide anti-discrimination policy, but it
intentionally excluded specific protections based on sexual orientation or gender identity; and
WHEREAS HB 2 effectively repeals the Charlotte ordinance; and
WHEREAS HB 2 prohibits local governments in North Carolina from passing and enforcing anti-
discrimination ordinances — like many adopted by Oakland County communities — that prohibits
discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity; and
WHEREAS the legislation is inconsistent with the Equal Protection Clause of the United States
Constitution, which provides that no state shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction "the equal
protection of the laws" (US Const amend XIV, § 1); and the legislation is mean-spirited and "born of
animosity toward the class of persons affected" (Romer v Evans, 517 US 620 [1996]); and
WHEREAS in response to the enactment of this legislation, more than 160 business leaders (including
Starbucks, Google, Citibank, Hilton, Dow Chemical and Kellogg) are asking Governor McCrory to repeal
the law known as HB2; and
WHEREAS the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce called HB 2 "bad for business and bad for North
Carolina"; and
WHEREAS since the adoption of the law, it has been estimated that the State of North Carolina has lost
tens of millions of dollars in private sector investment, including decisions by PayPal Holdings and
Deutsche Bank to halt adding a combined 650 jobs in the state; and
WHEREAS many state, county and municipal governments have taken a stand against this discriminatory
law by banning publicly funded non-essential travel by employees to the State of North Carolina until this
law is repealed, these communities include: the states of New York, Connecticut, Vermont and
Washington; the counties of Franklin (OH), Cuyahoga (OH) and Dane (WI); the cities of; Seattle; New
York City; San Francisco, Santa Fe, Los Angeles, Columbus, Portland, Providence, Boston, Atlanta,
Cincinnati, Chicago, Miami Beach, Salt Lake City, Dayton, Honolulu, West Palm Beach and Royal Oak,
MI; and
WHEREAS Oakland County government has the opportunity stand in solidarity with other municipal
leaders in opposition to discrimination by joining the ban on publicly funded nonessential travel,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the County of Oakland temporarily suspends public funding
for county employees' nonessential travel to the State of North Carolina for county government purposes
until such time as North Carolina's HB 2 has been overturned and call on civic and business leaders
throu hout Oakland County to join us in saying no to discrimination.
son, I move the 0.9ption of the foregoing Resolution.
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Resolution #16106 April 21, 2016
The Chairperson referred the resolution to the General Government Committee. There were no
objections.