Republicans in the House of Representatives passed a bill Tuesday that would ban transgender athletes from participating in girls’ sports from kindergarten through 12th grade. This brings the controversial issue into focus after an election cycle in which it has often become a target for Republicans.
The Protecting Women and Girls in Sports Act would amend Title IX – the federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on sex in schools and educational programs that receive federal funding – to prohibit schools from allowing transgender athletes to participate in sports programs or To allow activities “that are intended for this purpose”. Women or girls.”
It defines sex as “based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”
The bill, which if passed would be the first stand-alone bill restricting the rights of transgender Americans, passed by a vote of 218-206, with two Democrats joining all Republicans in support. Three Republicans and six Democrats did not vote, while one Democrat voted “present.”
Texas Reps. Vicente Gonzalez and Henry Cuellar were the only two Democratic “yes” votes.
House Republicans brought up the measure in the second full week of the 119th Congress, a sign that the conference sees the issue as a top priority over the next two years. Last week, Republican lawmakers passed a border control bill.
Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.), the bill’s sponsor, said the legislation aims to preserve Title IX’s original intent of ensuring equal opportunity for men and women.
“Across humanity, we as a species have recognized that there are women and men, as God created them, who are obviously biologically and, dare I say, scientifically different,” he said.
The bill’s immediate future in the Senate is unclear. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) is leading the measure in the upper house, which is considering the Laken Riley Act this week and will focus on President-elect Trump’s Cabinet nominations next week. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has initiated the necessary procedural steps last week to prepare for a vote on the future measure.
Democrats warned Tuesday that the bill could open the door to sexual abuse and invasive examination of girls’ bodies. The Congressional Equality Caucus, a coalition of pro-LGBTQ Democrats in the House of Representatives, called it the “Child Predator Empowerment Act.”
“This bill is not about protecting women. In fact, it could force every student to answer intrusive personal questions about their bodies and undergo humiliating physical exams to “prove” they are a girl,” the group wrote in a post on the social platform X.
Proponents of the bill said Tuesday that the measure does not allow genital or physical exams and that a student’s birth certificate determines whether they can play sports. When asked what enforcement of the bill will look like, Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.) said the legislation “has nothing to do with that.”
Officials in at least two dozen states with similar restrictions on transgender athletes have grappled with how to enforce them. Florida school officials in 2023 weighed to track students’ menstrual cyclesa proposal that was ultimately rejected after widespread opposition.
In 2022, the Utah High School Activities Association announced that it had investigated a high school athlete because of her gender after a group of parents complained that the student, who is not transgender, may have violated a state law that bans transgender athletes from women’s sports.
“There is no enforcement mechanism in this bill,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). “And if there is no enforcement mechanism, you open the door to any enforcement mechanism.”
“We know there is only one logical conclusion to this,” said Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.), one of 13 openly LGBTQ lawmakers. “This is about questioning young girls about their bodies; This is asking people to show them what’s under their underwear. That’s what we’re talking about.”
More than 400 LGBTQ and civil rights groups on Monday called on Congress to reject the billwhich they said would lead to further isolation and discrimination against transgender youth.
“When schools effectively mark some students as outcasts, they foster an environment in which no student is included and safe,” the groups wrote.
Transgender rights have become a central issue in the election campaign and at the Capitol in recent weeks. In November, Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.) became the first openly transgender person elected to Congress.
Shortly after her victory, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said announced a novel policy Trans women were banned from using restrooms in the Capitol that matched their gender identity, a move seen by many as a response to McBride’s election. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said a previous decision to ban transgender members and staff from women’s restrooms was “absolutely” motivated by McBride.
McBride said She will follow Johnson’s policieseven if she doesn’t agree with it. “I am not here to argue about toilets,” she said in a November statement, calling the policy an “attempt to distract from issues like cost cutting.”
McBride did not participate in Tuesday’s debate over the transgender athlete bill.
