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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 28 March 2017

AP Exclusive: ‘Bathroom bill’ to cost North Carolina $3.76B

EMERY P. DALESIO es of dozens of conven- healthy economy. By Monday accusing the AP middle class families. We
JONATHAN DREW tions, sporting events and quarterly gross domestic of “another attempt to mis- need to fix this now.”
Associated Press concerts through figures product, the federal gov- lead and confuse the pub- And AP’s analysis shows the
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — De- from local officials. The AP ernment said, North Caro- lic through a bogus head- economy could be grow-
spite Republican assuranc- didn’t attempt to quan- lina had the nation’s 10th line.” Forest questioned the ing faster if not for projects
es that North Carolina’s tify anecdotal reports that fastest-growing economy tally and said that even that have canceled.
“bathroom bill” isn’t hurting lacked hard numbers, or six months after the law if true, it would represent Those include PayPal can-
the economy, the law lim- forecast the loss of future passed. The vast majority only a sliver of the state’s celing a 400-job project in
iting LGBT protections will Charlotte, CoStar backing
cost the state more than out of negotiations to bring
$3.76 billion in lost busi- 700-plus jobs to the same
ness over a dozen years, area, and Deutsche Bank
according to an Associat- scuttling a plan for 250 jobs
ed Press analysis. in the Raleigh area. Other
Over the past year, North companies that backed
Carolina has suffered fi- out include Adidas, which
nancial hits ranging from is building its first U.S. sports
scuttled plans for a Pay- shoe factory employing
Pal facility that would have 160 near Atlanta rather
added an estimated $2.66 than a High Point site, and
billion to the state’s econ- Voxpro, which opted to
omy to a canceled Ringo hire hundreds of customer
Starr concert that deprived support workers in Georgia,
a town’s amphitheater of rather than North Carolina.
about $33,000 in revenue. “We couldn’t set up opera-
The blows have landed in tions in a state that was dis-
the state’s biggest cities as criminating against LGBT”
well as towns surrounding people, Dan Kiely, Voxpro
its flagship university, and founder and CEO, said in
from the mountains to the an interview.
coast. All told, the state has
The AP analysis — compiled missed out on more than
through interviews and 2,900 direct jobs that went
public records requests — North Carolina Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, left, center, talks about his state’s “bathroom bill,” at the Capi- elsewhere.
represents the largest reck- tol in Austin, Texas. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. right, looks on. Forest is a strong supporter of the An analysis by the state
oning yet of how much bill. He has accused news organizations of creating a false picture of economic upheaval. The Commerce Department
the law, passed one year Associated Press has determined that North Carolina’s law limiting LGBT protections will cost the shows that state officials
state more than $3 billion in lost business over a dozen years.
ago, could cost the state. (Deborah Cannon, Austin American-Statesman via AP) expected the PayPal ex-
The law excludes gender pansion to contribute more
identity and sexual orien- than $200 million annually
tation from statewide anti- conventions. of large companies with economy. to North Carolina’s econo-
discrimination protections, Bank of America CEO Brian existing North Carolina op- Forest, who declined an in- my. By the end of 2028, the
and requires transgender Moynihan — who leads the erations have made no terview request to discuss state expected PayPal to
people to use restrooms largest company based in public moves to financially AP’s analysis before its pub- have added $2.66 billion.
corresponding to the sex North Carolina — said he’s penalize the state. lication, recently told Texas The same analysis of the
on their birth certificates in spoken privately to busi- HB2 supporters say its costs legislators considering a Deutsche Bank project es-
many public buildings. ness leaders who took proj- are tiny compared with similar law: “Our econo- timated a total impact of
Still, AP’s tally is likely an un- ects elsewhere because an economy estimated my is doing well. Don’t be about $543 million by the
derestimation of the law’s of the controversy, and he at more than $500 bil- fooled by the media.” end of 2027. The econom-
true costs. The count in- fears more decisions like lion per year, roughly the But the state governor — ic model has been used
cludes only data obtained that are being made qui- size of Sweden’s. They say Democrat Roy Cooper, for more than a decade
from businesses and gov- etly. they’re willing to absorb who’s long opposed HB2 when the state offers major
ernment officials regard- “Companies are moving those costs if the law pre- — responded to AP’s story tax breaks.
ing projects that canceled to other places, because vents predators from pos- by saying: “We now know State officials said they
or relocated because of they don’t face an issue ing as transgender people that, based on conserva- didn’t run the same analy-
HB2. A business project was that they face here,” he to commit assaults in re- tive estimates, North Caro- sis for CoStar, Voxpro and
counted only if AP deter- told a World Affairs Council strooms — acts the law’s lina’s economy stands to Adidas, so losses attributed
mined through public re- of Charlotte luncheon last detractors say are entirely lose nearly $4 billion be- to them were calculated
cords or interviews that HB2 month. imagined. cause of House Bill 2. That using wages and other fig-
was why it pulled out. Other measures show Republican Lt. Gov. Dan means fewer jobs and less ures from the companies
The AP also tallied the loss- North Carolina has a Forest issued a statement money in the pockets of or state documents.q