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White House won’t strip funding from NC during ‘bathroom law’ suit

by Jordan Fabian - 05/12/16 3:00 PM ET

The Obama administration will not strip federal funding from North Carolina amid a legal battle over the state’s controversial law on bathroom use, the White House said Thursday.

Cabinet agencies have been conducting a review to determine whether the state’s recent legislation on LGBT rights makes it ineligible to receive education, transportation and other funding under federal law.

{mosads}White House press secretary Josh Earnest said the money would keep flowing while the Department of Justice pursues a civil rights lawsuit against North Carolina.

“What has been concluded as a result of that effort is that the administration will not take action to withhold funding while this enforcement action is playing out in the courts,” Earnest said.

He said the decision was made separate from the Justice Department’s choice to pursue its legal challenge, which says the law violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The North Carolina law is the latest flashpoint in the debate over gay and transgender rights during President Obama’s time in office.

The White House has repeatedly condemned the state measure, which most prominently requires transgender individuals use bathrooms corresponding to their sex at birth.

The state government filed a lawsuit last week accusing the federal government of overreach after the Justice Department sent it a letter saying the law violates the Civil Rights Act.

Tags Barack Obama bathroom law Josh Earnest North Carolina Pat McCrory