Transgender Law Opponents Look To Referendum

The clock could start running as early as today or tomorrow on an effort to petition to referendum the transgender anti-discrimination bill passed Tuesday by the Baltimore County Council.

Ann Miller, a Phoenix Republican who opposed the bill, told Patch after the vote that she and other opponents would attempt to place the issue on the 2012 ballot.

"We're focusing on the next phase—petitioning this bill to referendum," said Miller.

If successful, it could be the first time in county history that a county law has been successfully petitioned to the ballot, according to some long-time council observers.

The hurdle for getting the law on the ballot is high.

Opponents will have 45 days from the day the county executive signs the bill to collect the signatures of registered county voters equivalent to 10 percent of the total number of votes cast for governor in the county in the last gubernatorial election—about 28,826 signatures.

Petitioners can buy some extra time if they can collect 9,513 valid signatures in 30 days. The Board of Elections usually recommends that petitioners collect twice the required signatures in order to overcome typical rejection rates.

The balance of the signatures would be due in another 30 days.

Don Mohler, chief of staff and a spokesman for Kevin Kamenetz, said he expects the county executive to sign the bill as soon as the council delivers it to him—perhaps as early as today or Thursday.

Mohler said it "depends on when council staff gets bills down (it's) usually timely."