Texas Supreme Court sides with Houston pastors in ordinance fight

The Texas Supreme Court today ordered the City of Houston to either repeal a controversial non-discrimination policy or put it to a citywide vote this November. Houston-area pastors celebrated the ruling as a victory in their battle with the city council and Mayor Annise Parker over the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, which would make sexual orientation and gender identity protected classes.

Jared Woodfill, a former Harris County Republican Party chief and a plaintiff in the case, said the ordinance, “tramples on the religious freedom of businesses and individuals, including, among other things, a provision allowing men … to use women’s restrooms and locker rooms under the protection of law.”

The Houston Area Pastors Council and supporters gathered over 50,000 signatures in June 2014 in an effort to rescind the ordinance. Parker and then-City Attorney Dave Feldman dismissed the majority of signatures. Three months ago, a Harris County district judge agreed the petition fell 585 signatures short of the requirement.

But the court ruled today that Parker and the city council overstepped their authority in rejecting the signatures because the city secretary had already certified the petition.

“Faced with the city secretary’s certification, the city council had no discretion but to repeal the ordinance or proceed with the election process,” the court’s ruling stated, later adding, “The legislative power reserved to the people of Houston is not being honored.”

Parker told the Houston Chronicle she was disappointed in the ruling and would continue to explore the city’s legal options for enacting the ordinance. The council has until Aug. 24 to either repeal the ordinance or order it onto the November ballot.