California Issues Travel Ban on States It Accuses of LGBT Discrimination

Monica Sanchez | June 26, 2017
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California has issued a ban on all state-funded and state-sponsored travel to four more states that it says discriminates against the LGBT community.

The travel ban under law AB 1887, first put into effect on Jan. 1, targets states that California believes use religious freedom as a basis for discrimination.

Fox 5 San Diego reports, “Kansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Tennessee were the original states banned by AB 1887, but [California Attorney General Xavier] Becerra added Alabama, Kentucky, South Dakota and Texas on Thursday, citing what he called new discriminatory legislation enacted against the LGBTQ community in those states.”

“Alabama, South Dakota, and Texas all recently passed legislation that could prevent LGBT parents from adopting or fostering children and Kentucky passed a religious freedom bill that would allow students to exclude LGBTQ classmates from campus groups.”

According to AB 1887, "the California Legislature determined that 'California must take action to avoid supporting or financing discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.' To that end, AB 1887 prohibits a state agency, department, board, or commission from requiring any state employees, officers, or members to travel to a state that, after June 26, 2015, has enacted a law that (1) has the effect of voiding or repealing existing state or local protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression; (2) authorizes or requires discrimination against same-sex couples or their families or on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression; or (3) creates an exemption to antidiscrimination laws in order to permit discrimination against same-sex couples or their families or on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression."

The law was first enacted on Jan. 1, 2017, amid the continued controversy surrounding North Carolina's so-called "bathroom bill."

California Attorney General Becerra said in a statement Thursday, “Each of those states in the recent weeks have enacted legislation that may deprive some of the individuals of those states and individuals who visit those states of their constitutional rights.”

“Discrimination has consequences," he said. "While the California DOJ works to protect the rights of all our people, discriminatory laws in any part of our country send all of us several steps back. That’s why when California said we would not tolerate discrimination against LGBTQ members of our community, we meant it.”

The travel ban does not prohibit personal travel to any state on the list.

California under law AB 1887 has the discretion to ban state-funded or state-sponsored travel to any state it deems discriminatory against LGBT people, even if certain laws such as adoption laws involve deeply held religious beliefs.

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