RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Gov. Pat McCrory decided against signing one bill sent by the legislature because money appropriated to defend House Bill 2 originated from a disaster relief fund.
The bill became law without McCrory’s signature as a deadline passed July 31. It contained many tweaks to a larger budget measure, including $500,000 for the governor’s office for legal costs of defending House Bill 2, which limits anti-discrimination rules for LGBTQ people.
McCrory spokesman Josh Ellis said July 1 the governor would have preferred that money come from Attorney General Roy Cooper, who won’t defend the law because he calls it discriminatory. Attorneys for McCrory and legislative leaders have stepped in.
Otherwise, McCrory signed about 50 other bills before the deadline.
