Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards’ attempt to force the state attorney general to sign off on legal contracts that include anti-discrimination language to protect LGBT people from workplace discrimination was thrown out Monday by a state judge.
As The Associated Press reports, Judge Donald Johnson dismissed the case, saying the law doesn’t spell out clearly what the attorney general’s authority is in reviewing the contracts and whether Attorney General Jeff Landry’s role is only “ministerial” in nature, as the governor’s office suggested.
“I believe the law is uncertain, that it does not provide the court with a clear path,” the Baton Rouge state district judge said.
Edwards’ lawyer, Matthew Block, says the governor intends to appeal the decision. The Democratic governor issued an executive order in April requiring language barring workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity to be included in most state contracts, except if the contractors are religious organizations.
Lawmakers have refused to add such protections into Louisiana law.
Landry says Edwards’ order exceeds the governor’s legal authority and establishes a new protected class of people that doesn’t exist in statute. He has blocked dozens of contracts to let state agencies and boards hire outside lawyers that contain the anti-discrimination language. Edwards sued Landry in September, saying the stalled contracts were disrupting the normal operations of state government.
Landry issued a statement applauding Johnson’s ruling.
“I will not cower to executive overreach,” the Republican attorney general says. “Rather, I will continue to defend our constitution and the will of the people.”
No contracts besides those for hiring outside lawyers were affected by the judge’s decision.
The governor’s office noted that Johnson didn’t rule on whether Edwards’ executive order was legal, but instead on the more technical aspect of the attorney general’s authority in reviewing contracts for hiring private attorneys to work for state agencies.
“This was in no way a ruling on the merits of the executive order,” Edwards spokesman Richard Carbo says in a statement.
