Bill > H645

This bill, titled the "Friendly NC Act," represents a comprehensive legislative effort to enhance anti-discrimination protections and promote inclusivity across various aspects of North Carolina state law. The bill introduces several key provisions: First, it expands hate crime statutes by broadening the definition of protected characteristics and increasing penalties for crimes motivated by a victim's personal characteristics. It establishes a hate crime statistics database and requires law enforcement training on identifying and responding to hate crimes. Second, the bill provides a comprehensive definition of discrimination that requires any discriminatory action to meet strict criteria of objective necessity, evidence-based justification, and least harmful means. This definition is applied across housing, employment, public accommodations, credit, insurance, and education sectors. Third, the bill codifies protections for reproductive rights, including maintaining access to abortion before fetal viability, ensuring unlimited access to contraception, and protecting access to assisted reproductive technology. Fourth, it introduces an environmental justice framework that requires state agencies to consider and address disproportionate environmental burdens on marginalized communities. Additional provisions include ensuring domestic violence protective orders are available for same-sex couples, protecting minors and adults from conversion therapy, and requiring the Division of Motor Vehicles to offer applications and tests in an applicant's native language. The bill aims to create a more inclusive, equitable, and just environment in North Carolina by systematically addressing potential sources of discrimination across multiple domains of public and private life.

Government Affairs

https://www.ncleg.gov/BillLookUp/2025/H645