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NCAA turns up pressure on North Carolina over bathroom law

FILE - In this March 20, 2015 file photo, Duke's Jahlil Okafor, left, shoots over Robert Morris's Rodney Pryor, right, during the second half of an NCAA tournament college basketball game in Charlotte, N.C. NCAA President Mark Emmert says it's up to the Atlantic Coast Conference and its members whether to follow the association's lead and pull events out of North Carolina because of a state law that some say can lead to discrimination against LGBT people. In an interview Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2016, with The Associated Press, Emmert said the association expects to take a financial hit for moving seven championship events and tournament games out of the state on short notice, but how much is unknown. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)
FILE - In this March 20, 2015 file photo, Duke's Jahlil Okafor, left, shoots over Robert Morris's Rodney Pryor, right, during the second half of an NCAA tournament college basketball game in Charlotte, N.C. NCAA President Mark Emmert says it's up to the Atlantic Coast Conference and its members whether to follow the association's lead and pull events out of North Carolina because of a state law that some say can lead to discrimination against LGBT people. In an interview Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2016, with The Associated Press, Emmert said the association expects to take a financial hit for moving seven championship events and tournament games out of the state on short notice, but how much is unknown. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) FILE - In this March 20, 2015 file photo, Duke's Jahlil Okafor, left, shoots over Robert Morris's Rodney Pryor, right, during the second half of an NCAA tournament college basketball game in Charlotte, N.C. NCAA President Mark Emmert says it's up to the Atlantic Coast Conference and its members whether to follow the association's lead and pull events out of North Carolina because of a state law that some say can lead to discrimination against LGBT people. In an interview Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2016, with The Associated Press, Emmert said the association expects to take a financial hit for moving seven championship events and tournament games out of the state on short notice, but how much is unknown. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

By Associated Press 5 min read

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – The NCAA’s decision to pull seven championships out of North Carolina ratchets up the pressure on this college sports-crazy state to repeal its law on bathroom use by transgender people.

Unlike the recent one-time cancellations by the NBA and various rock stars, the move by college sports’ governing body could make moderate and conservative voters question whether the price tag for the law has finally become too high.

Economic development officials said the effect of the NCAA’s action goes well beyond the projected $20 million in lost revenue from the cancellation of the 2016-17 basketball, baseball, soccer, tennis, lacrosse and golf events.

“College sports is part of the fabric of North Carolina. It’s part of the culture. I can say with confidence that there’s no other state in the country that loves its college sports more than North Carolina. That’s why it hits so hard and feels so personal,” said Scott Dupree, executive director of the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance, which was coordinating four of the events being moved.

The law passed in March requires transgender people to use restrooms in schools and state government buildings that correspond to the gender on their birth certificate. It also excludes gender identity and sexual orientation from statewide antidiscrimination protections.