Court: Gov. Edwards can't protect LGBT rights with order

BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's governor has lost his latest effort to revive an executive order aimed at protecting the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in state government.

A three-judge panel of a Louisiana appeal court ruled Wednesday that Gov. John Bel Edwards lacked authority to issue his April 2016 order banning discrimination in government and state contracts based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

The appeal court panel sided with a lower court judge who blocked enforcement of the order in December at Attorney General Jeff Landry's urging.

Landry says Edwards unconstitutionally sought to create state law and circumvent Louisiana lawmakers who refused to approve such LGBT-rights protections.