Cheyenne Councilman: LGBTQ Ordinance Needs ‘Properly Vetted’
Cheyenne City Councilman Richard Johnson says he won't be drafting a LGBTQ non-discrimination ordinance before his term ends.
Johnson says the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of a Colorado baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple because of his religious beliefs would indicate some kind of "religious provision" needs to be included, something he says would take him six months to get the language right on.
"I would encourage any of you that wish to bring this up that you don't basically do an impulse buy," Johnson told his fellow councilmen Monday night. "This is something that is going to require a very substantial amount of work."
Johnson also cautioned against doing a "copy and paste" of Laramie's ordinance, saying "it goes almost two steps through the attorney's office before it finally goes to the mayor."
"Even though our current mayor favors LGBTQ rights, the next mayor may not have the same type of thoughts," said Johnson. "You have to think of how the city can actually end up in court over these topics."
Johnson says he doesn't discourage a non-discrimination ordinance, he just wants the right law to pass, not some watered-down version.
"I would really not want to do the flavor of the week and just whip something out just because you're hearing it on the streets or it's an election year," said Johnson.
"Right now if I was to see a non-discrimination ordinance come forward I would view that it had not been properly vetted and that we hadn't actually thought about all the repercussions it had," he added.