California may be headed for a new battle over legal rights for the LGBT community. The governor recently signed a bill requiring public schools to let students use facilities and play on sports teams according to their gender identify, not their biological sex.
But a coalition of groups may have enough signatures to put the issue before voters in November 2014. Counties are counting the signatures now. Brad Dacus is with the Pacific Justice Institute.
“This is going to be very, very problematic,” Dacus said. “This legislation was so irresponsibly drafted. It has no proposed safeguards and considerations that should have been in place if they truly were looking out for all students, including those who are transgendered.”
The California Republican Party supports overturning the law. Several campaign committees for Republican lawmakers have contributed money to the referendum effort.
The law’s author, Democratic Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, said the referendum push is reminiscent of Proposition 8, which outlawed same-sex marriage in the state.
“This effort is nothing but bullying at the ballot box and only makes sense as a way for these groups to raise more money by throwing fear into their supporters and misleading people about what the law does,” he said in a statement. “What's worse, it only encourages hatred of the kind that is again too familiar.”
The law is set to go into effect on January 1 unless the referendum qualifies for the ballot.
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