NC sports association warns NCAA could cancel events from 2018 to 2022 over bathroom bill

The North Carolina Sports Association (NCSA) has warned that the state could lose all NCAA Championship events until 2022 if the controversial transgender bathroom bill known as HB2 is not immediately repealed.

In a letter to the members of the North Carolina House of Representatives and the General Assembly last week, the NCSA said that 133 bids have been submitted for NCAA championship events in the state for the period between 2018 and 2022.

The sports association noted that the bids represent at least $250 million in economic impact, The Christian Post reported. It was estimated that the state had already lost hundreds of millions of dollars in business due to the controversial law.

The NCSA also warned that other sports organizations, such as the Atlantic Coast Conference, could follow suit.

"When compounding the effect of losing these additional sporting events, including hundreds of youth and amateur events, plus the NBA All-Star Game, we believe North Carolina could lose upwards of a half-billion dollars in economic impact," said the NCSA in the letter.

HB2, which was signed into law by former Gov. Pat McCrory last March, nullified local government ordinances that established non-discrimination protections for LGBT people. Additionally, the law prohibited people from using bathrooms that do not correspond to their biological gender.

The efforts to repeal HB2 failed during a special session in December. The call for the special session came after Charlotte repealed its LGBT anti-discrimination ordinance that was voided by HB2. Republican lawmakers argued that the repeal of the ordinance was not enough to overturn the bathroom bill.

On Tuesday, Gov. Roy Cooper offered a new compromise proposal to repeal the bathroom bill. In his proposal, Cooper recommended tougher penalties for crimes committed in bathrooms and dressing rooms. He also suggested that local governments should be required to give the legislature 30 days notice before voting on non-discrimination ordinances.

"I know North Carolinians are tired of hearing about this. HB 2 has divided us and stained our reputation. I've proposed a common sense compromise that will get HB2 off the books and address concerns on both sides," Cooper said, according to Patch.

"It's time for Republican leaders to step up and lead their members because February needs to be the month we get this done," he added.