CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia Senate President Mitch Carmichael has again unclarified his position on proposed nondiscrimination legislation.
The bill would add sexual orientation and gender identity to classes protected for employment and housing.
Carmichael has been in several discussions about the bill. But, as the annual legislative session kicks off this coming week, his position remains unclear. Carmichael has said he is against all forms of unfair discrimination but hasn’t clearly backed a bill.
“I am evaluating the various options to be sure we adhere to a nondiscrimination policy in the state of West Virginia,” Carmichael said last week to reporters and editors.
Carmichael has been entangled by the topic for weeks.
It started when he was a panelist for Fairness West Virginia, stating generally that he is against discrimination. Fairness put out a statement thanking Carmichael “for supporting LGBTQ Nondiscrimination.”
He took criticism from state Delegate Jim Butler, R-Mason, who is opposing Carmichael in the upcoming primary election.
Carmichael then moderated a separate panel of church leaders from his district. The panelists expressed concern about religious freedom, the possibility of lawsuits and effects on small businesses. Supporters of a nondiscrimination bill also attended and made comments at a podium.
For that, Carmichael was then hit with an accusation by an anti-LGBTQ organization called Family Policy Council of West Virginia that he’d “set an ambush for a dozen pastors.”
During a Legislative Lookahead event Friday, reporter Dave Mistich of West Virginia Public Broadcasting asked about the nondiscrimination bill, briefly characterized Carmichael as being in support and then said he would like to hear House Speaker Roger Hanshaw’s position.
Carmichael grinned and shook his head, gestured to Hanshaw to hold up, swung a shared microphone in his own direction and said, “Hang on. I have not come out in support of this legislation. I just want to clarify that.”
He added, “That has been characterized by many in the media as my position because I have been willing to listen to the other side of the argument. And I think that’s exaclty what a person in a leadership role should do is listen and try to understand the various positions.”
Fairness West Virginia, a lobbying organization for LGBTQ issues, has indicated optimism over getting a nondiscrimination bill passed in this year’s legislative session. Several of West Virginia’s cities have local versions.
A bill would add gender identity and sexual orientation to classes already protected under West Virginia law, including race, religion, national origin, gender, age or disability.
Democrats in the House of Delegates were particularly vocal during last year’s legislative session, unsuccessfully attempting almost daily to get a nondiscrimination bill discharged from the Industry and Labor Committee.
Speaker Hanshaw, when it was his turn to field the nondiscrimination question, said the logical committee for a nondiscrimination bill to be assigned would be Judiciary.
But Hanshaw did not say he would support a bill.
“I think we have to be very careful about creating protected classes, if that’s what the bill does” Hanshaw said. “We need to make sure there’s not unintended consequences.”
Regarding the specific protections already under the West Virginia Human Rights Act, Hanshaw asked, “How many should there be? What should they be if we have more? I am generally hesitant on any bill that creates more protected classes.”
Other lawmakers who addressed the nondiscrimination issue were split.
Delegate Moore Capito, R-Kanawha and the vice chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said he favors a nondiscrimination policy that would ensure West Virginia is a desirable location for companies that value diversity.
“We want to retain everybody. We want to attract everybody. In West Virginia we need to start approaching the way we want West Virginia to look,” Capito said.
Capito was not ready to commit to any particular bill language, but says he supports the concept.
“It all depends on what the legislation particularly says, but yes.”
Senator Eric Tarr, R-Putnam, spoke next: “I’m going to be on the other side of that. I would not support that legislation.”
Tarr said he is wary of specifying another protected class in West Virginia law. He said a new law would provide opportunities for people who fish for lawsuit opportunities.
“As an attorney all they have to do is have somebody claim there was discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation,” Tarr said.
Delegate Doug Skaff, D-Kanawha, was incredulous that a nondiscrimination law would even be in question.
“It’s 2020 everybody. I can’t believe we’re still talking about this,” Skaff said.
Skaff said he is often asked by business representatives why West Virginia doesn’t have such a law.
“This is one of those things that I think would truly deter a company from investing,” he said.