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Here, Helping to Ensure That Members of Our Communities Are Able to Live and Work Together Despite Differences in How They Look, What They Believe, Or Whom They Love

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Here, Helping to Ensure That Members of Our Communities Are Able to Live and Work Together Despite Differences in How They Look, What They Believe, Or Whom They Love No. 16-111 ================================================================ In The Supreme Court of the United States --------------------------------- --------------------------------- MASTERPIECE CAKESHOP, LTD., et al., Petitioners, v. COLORADO CIVIL RIGHTS COMMISSION, et al., Respondents. --------------------------------- --------------------------------- On Writ Of Certiorari To The Colorado Court Of Appeals --------------------------------- --------------------------------- BRIEF OF COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA, CITIES OF NEW YORK AND LOS ANGELES, 67 ADDITIONAL CITIES AND COUNTIES, 80 MAYORS, AND UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF MAYORS AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF RESPONDENTS --------------------------------- --------------------------------- ZACHARY W. C ARTER JAMES R. WILLIAMS Corporation Counsel County Counsel RICHARD DEARING GRETA S. HANSEN CLAUDE S. PLATTON LAURA S. TRICE BENJAMIN WELIKSON JULIE WILENSKY NEW YORK CITY Counsel of Record LAW DEPARTMENT JULIA B. SPIEGEL 100 Church Street LYNNETTE K. MINER New York, NY 10007 OFFICE OF THE COUNTY COUNSEL, MICHAEL N. FEUER COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA City Attorney 70 West Hedding Street JAMES P. C LARK East Wing, 9th Floor THOMAS P. P ETERS San José, CA 95110 BLITHE SMITH BOCK (408) 299-5902 SHAUN DABBY JACOBS [email protected] OFFICE OF THE LOS ANGELES CITY ATTORNEY 200 N. Main Street, 7th Floor Los Angeles, CA 90012 ================================================================ COCKLE LEGAL BRIEFS (800) 225-6964 WWW.COCKLELEGALBRIEFS.COM i TABLE OF CONTENTS Page IDENTITY AND INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE ... 1 SUMMARY OF ARGUMENT ................................ 2 ARGUMENT ........................................................... 4 I. AMICI HAVE A CRITICAL INTEREST IN THE ENFORCEMENT OF NON- DISCRIMINATION LAWS .......................... 4 A. Discrimination Against LGBTQ People Imposes Significant Harms ................... 6 B. To Further Their Interest in Protecting Against Discrimination, Cities and Coun- ties Across the Country Have Enacted a Range of Local Laws and Policies to Ensure Equal Treatment of LGBTQ People ..................................................... 12 II. RECOGNIZING AN EXEMPTION FROM NON-DISCRIMINATION LAWS ON SPEECH OR RELIGION GROUNDS WOULD HARM AMICI AND THEIR COMMUNITIES ........ 17 A. The First Amendment Does Not Entitle Petitioners to an Exemption From Gen- erally Applicable Non-Discrimination Laws ....................................................... 17 B. Petitioners’ Proposed Exemption Would Undermine Local Governments’ Ability to Protect Their Residents From Dis- crimination and Other Harms .............. 21 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS – Continued Page 1. The Proposed Exemption Would Un- dermine Effective Enforcement of Non- Discrimination Protections .............. 22 2. The Proposed Exemption Threatens the Fabric of Amici’s Inclusive Com- munities ............................................ 25 CONCLUSION ....................................................... 28 APPENDIX List of Amici ......................................................... App. 1 iii TABLE OF AUTHORITIES Page FEDERAL CASES Bd. of Dirs. of Rotary Int’l v. Rotary Club of Du- arte, 481 U.S. 537 (1987) ........................................... 5 Boy Scouts of Am. v. Dale, 530 U.S. 640 (2000) .......... 19 Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., 134 S. Ct. 2751 (2014) ................................................................ 5 Emp’t Div., Dep’t of Human Res. v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872 (1990) ................................................ passim Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States, 379 U.S. 241 (1964) .................................................... 6, 26 Hishon v. King & Spalding, 467 U.S. 69 (1984) ......... 17 Hurley v. Irish-Am. Gay, Lesbian & Bisexual Grp. of Boston, 515 U.S. 557 (1995) .................. 18, 19 Obergefell v. Hodges, 135 S. Ct. 2584 (2015) ............ 5, 6 Reynolds v. United States, 98 U.S. 145 (1878) ........... 20 Roberts v. U.S. Jaycees, 468 U.S. 609 (1984) ......................................................... 4, 5, 18, 27 Romer v. Evans, 517 U.S. 620 (1996) .......................... 27 Rumsfeld v. Forum for Acad. & Institutional Rights, Inc., 547 U.S. 47 (2006) ......................... 18, 19 United States v. Lee, 455 U.S. 252 (1982) ................... 18 United States v. O’Brien, 391 U.S. 367 (1968) ............ 22 iv TABLE OF AUTHORITIES – Continued Page STATE CASES Gay Rights Coal. of Georgetown Univ. Law Ctr. v. Georgetown Univ., 536 A.2d 1 (D.C. 1987) ............ 5 In re Gifford v. McCarthy, 137 A.D.3d 30 (N.Y. App. Div. 2016) .......................................................... 5 Swanner v. Anchorage Equal Rights Comm’n, 874 P.2d 274 (Alaska 1994) ..................................... 24 Washington v. Arlene’s Flowers, Inc., 389 P.3d 543 (Wash. 2017) ....................................................... 5 FEDERAL RULES Supreme Court of the United States Rule 37.3(a) ........................................................................ 1 STATUTES AND CODES 2002 N.Y. Laws, ch. 2, A1971 ...................................... 14 Austin, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 5-1-1 (2017) ........ 14 Austin, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 5-1-2 (2017) ........ 14 Austin, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 5-2-1 (2017) ........ 14 Austin, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 5-3-1 (2017) ........ 14 Austin, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 5-4-1 (2017) ........ 14 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-34-601(2)(a) (2016) ...................... 2 Covington, Ky., Code of Ordinances § 37.01 et seq. (2017) ................................................................ 15 Dallas, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 46-6 (2017) ......... 15 v TABLE OF AUTHORITIES – Continued Page Dallas, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 46-6.1 (2017) ...... 15 Dallas, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 46-7 (2017) ......... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.1 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.2 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.3 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.4 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.5 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.6 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.7 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.8 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.9 (2017) ............................... 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.10 (2017) ............................. 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.11 (2017) ............................. 15 Danville, Ky., Code § 5-5.12 (2017) ............................. 15 El Paso, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 6.1-11 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 Fort Worth, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 17-48 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 Fort Worth, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 17-67 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 Fort Worth, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 17-86 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 Fort Worth, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 17-88 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 vi TABLE OF AUTHORITIES – Continued Page Frankfort, Ky., Code of Ordinances § 96.01 et seq. (2014) ................................................................ 15 H.B. 600, 107th Gen. Assemb. (Tenn. 2011) (cod- ified at Tenn. Code Ann. § 7-51-1802 (2017)) ......... 16 Houston, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 2-451 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 Houston, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 2-452 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 Houston, Tex., Code of Ordinances § 2-454 (2017) ....................................................................... 15 Knox Cty., Tenn., Code of Ordinances § 2-760 (2017) ....................................................................... 16 Knoxville, Tenn., Code of Ordinances § 15-57 (2017) ....................................................................... 16 L.A., Cal., Administrative Code § 4.400 (2017) ............ 13 L.A., Cal., Administrative Code § 4.404.1 (2017) ......... 13 L.A., Cal., Administrative Code § 4.404.2 (2017) ......... 13 L.A., Cal., Administrative Code § 4.820(a) (2017) ........ 13 L.A., Cal., Administrative Code § 4.860 (2017) ............ 13 L.A., Cal., Administrative Code § 10.8.2 et seq. (2017) ....................................................................... 13 Lakewood, Colo., Code of Ordinances § 4.14.010 (2014) ....................................................................... 12 Lakewood, Colo., Code of Ordinances § 4.15.010 (2014) ....................................................................... 12 vii TABLE OF AUTHORITIES – Continued Page Lexington-Fayette Cty., Ky., Code of Ordinances § 2-33 (2017) ............................................................ 15 Louisville-Jefferson Cty., Ky., Metro Code § 92.01 et seq. (2017) ............................................................ 15 Memphis, Tenn., Code of Ordinances § 3-8-6 (2017) ....................................................................... 16 Morehead, Ky., Code of Ordinances § 96.01 et seq. (2017) ................................................................ 15 N.Y.C., N.Y., Local Law No. 2 (1986) .......................... 14 N.Y.C., N.Y., Local Law No. 3 (2002) .........................
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