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Houston mayor Annise Parker on ‘short list’ for World’s Best Mayor award
Houston Mayor Annise Parker has made the official short list for the 2014 World Mayor Prize, an international contest for the best mayor in the world. The global honor is given to mayors who exemplify a host of leadership qualities such as honesty, leadership, vision, integrity, social and economic awareness and fostering good relations among …
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Texas woman in same-sex marriage denied driver’s license
KATY, Texas — A Houston-area resident who recently relocated to Texas has been refused a driver’s license because her last name was changed following her same-sex marriage. The Texas Observer reports that Connie Wilson, who married her partner of nine years in California last year, took her wife’s last name, Wilson, which now appears on both her…
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Judge schedules hearing on Houston LGBT ordinance, no vote in November
HOUSTON — A judge in Houston has scheduled a hearing for next January in a challenge over the city’s LGBT-inclusive equal rights ordinance, squashing opponents’ efforts to put the measure on the ballot in November in hopes voters would repeal the law. State District Judge Robert Schaffer on Friday ruled that the ordinance should not be enforced prior to the trial…
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Opponents of Houston LGBT ordinance sue city after failed referendum attempt
HOUSTON — Opponents of Houston’s new protections for LGBT residents have sued the city after failing to collect enough votes for a repeal referendum. The Houston Chronicle reports the lawsuit filed late Tuesday contests how signatures were counted for the referendum petition. It claims City Attorney David Feldman illegally verified the signatures.
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Opponents of Houston equal rights ordinance fail to qualify for ballot
HOUSTON — Opponents of Houston’s LGBT-inclusive Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO) fell short of qualifying for a ballot referendum, Mayor Annise Parker announced Monday afternoon. The petition needed at least 17,269 valid signatures from registered Houston voters to put a repeal of the ordinance before voters in November.
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Opponents of Houston LGBT ordinance may fall short of qualifying for ballot
Houston city officials say they will announce Monday whether opponents of the city’s new LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination ordinance have obtained enough valid petition signatures to force a ballot referendum aimed at repealing the measure. But already, City Attorney David Feldman is hinting that many of the petitions submitted don’t meet legal…
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Vote on Houston LGBT anti-bias ordinance still possible
HOUSTON — Houston city leaders still don’t know whether opponents of new anti-bias protections for LGBT residents have enough signatures to force a repeal vote in November. The Houston City Council in May adopted the discrimination bans in housing, employment and services provided by private businesses such as hotels and restaurants. Critics contend …
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Opponents of Houston equal rights law submit signatures for public vote
HOUSTON — Opponents of Houston’s new LGBT-inclusive equal rights ordinance on Thursday delivered what they say are thousands of voters’ signatures requesting that it be repealed. The group, consisting of pastors and faith-based organizations, said they had collected more than 50,000 signatures calling for a ballot referendum aimed at repealing…
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‘Very personal’ battle in Houston could get even more personal for Mayor Parker
In a battle she characterized as “very personal” and “about me,” Annise Parker, the openly gay mayor of Houston, won a victory last week when the city council passed a law to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Now, she may have to take on two bigger fights: one to protect the law from a referendum, and another to protect her job from a recall effort.
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Houston city council approves LGBT-inclusive equal rights ordinance
Houston city leaders on Wednesday approved expanded anti-bias protections for gay and transgender residents in a measure that critics argued would impede their religious liberties.