13 States Denying Rights to the Transgendered

In April 2022, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed the controversial Senate Bill 184. Provisions in the new law make it illegal for health care workers to provide gender-affirming medical treatment to transgender youth under the age of nine. These laws carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $15,000 fine for violators and are the first in the nation to come with a felony charge.

According to the HRC, the new laws violate best practices outlined by the American Academy of Pediatrics and also take away the rights of parents to make decisions about what’s best for their children, in consultation with their primary care provider. In response, the U.S. Department of Justice is challenging the legislation on the grounds that it can deny some children necessary medical care, a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, and is discriminatory against transgender youth.

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed Senate Bill 1399 into law on April 6, 2022. The new law will allow tax-payer funded child welfare agencies to refuse services such as adoption, foster care, and family reunification on religious grounds – which can open the door for descrimination against same-sex and LGBTQ families.

The new law comes on the heels of two other bills Gov. Ducey has signed this year seen as anti-LGBTQ, as they prevent transgender youth from receiving certain health care that may be medically necessary and restrict transgender youth from playing sports in a way that aligns with their gender identity.

Perhaps the highest profile 2022 legislation that is viewed by many as anti-LGBTQ was signed into law in March by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. The new law, derided by as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, prohibits instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through third grade.

Critics of the controversial law argue that it marginalizes those in the LGBTQ community and creates a stifled classroom environment where teachers may fear legal repercussions should certain discussions arise. The bill’s proponents, including Gov. DeSantis, say that it is the role of parents, not of schools, to discuss these issues with their children.

On April 28, 2022, Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia signed House Bill 1084 into law, creating an athletic committee that would have the authority to ban transgender youth from playing sports in a way that aligns with their gender identity. In early May, the Georgia High School Association took that very action.

When Gov. Kemp signed the bill, he cited his opposition to “woke politics,” and opened himself to criticism that he, along with many other governors on this list, are feeding into a culture war purely for political gain.

Indiana is one of several states to pass a law this year that prohibits transgender youth from playing sports in a way that aligns with their gender identity. Unlike some of the other states, however, in Indiana, Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb vetoed the bill when it came to his desk, stating that there was no evidence that the legislation solved an existing problem in the state.

When the bill, HB 1041, was sent back to the state legislature, however, lawmakers overrode the governor’s decision, passing the bill with a 32-15 Senate vote, and a 67-28 vote in the House.

Once considered a bastion of LGBTQ rights with protections against descrimination in education, employment, housing, and public accommodations, Iowa has changed course, and is one of 13 states to have passed legislation that can be seen as anti-LGBTQ.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law this year a bill that makes it illegal for transgender women in girls to participate in sports in a way that conforms with their gender identity at the primary, secondary, college, and university school levels. Reynolds justified the law stating that transgender girls have an athletic advantage, while her critics point to the denial of the many benefits gained from participation in sports and athletic competition.

When Senate Bill 83, known as Fairness in Women’s Sports Act passed through the Kentucky legislature to Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s desk, it was vetoed. Beshear rejected the bill, which mandated that student athletes participate in sports in accordance with the gender printed on their birth certificate, on the grounds that it was unneccessary and that “transgender children deserve public officials’ efforts to demonstrate that they are valued members of our communities.”

However, state lawmakers ultimately overrode the governor’s decision. State Sen. Robby Mills (R), sponsor of the bill, claimed that its passage was a “huge win for the integrity of women’s sports.”

In April, the Louisiana Senate passed SB 44, which effectively bans transgender youth from playing sports in a way that aligns with their gender identity. The bill will become law and go into effect on Aug. 1, 2022, without the signature of Gov. John Bel Edwards.

In June of 2021, Gov. Edwards, a Democrat vetoed a similar bill on the grounds that it was discriminatory.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a bill into law on May 25, 2022 that requires public schools and charter school students in grades pre-K-12 to use bathroom and locker room facilities that align with the gender listed on their birth certificate, regardless of how they may identify. Under the new law, students who identify as trans will have to use single occupancy bathrooms and changing rooms. Schools that fail to provide these alternatives could face funding cuts in addition to lawsuits from parents.

The new controversial law is the latest from Gov. Stitt, who, earlier this year, signed laws that ban nonbinary gender markers on birth certificates and transgender women and girls from participating in sports.

South Carolina is one of several states to pass a law this year that restricts transgender atheletes’ participation in sports. The bill, known as the Save Women’s Sports Act, was signed into law in mid-May by Gov. Henry McMaster and specifically bans transgender girls and women from female sports teams in public primary and secondary schools, as well as colleges and universities and private school teams that compete against public schools.

Debate over the bill in South Carolina resembles those taking pace in many other states – with proponents arguing that transgender girls could have an unfair biological advantage, and critics claiming that singling out transgender students and denying them the ability to participate in sports is cruel.

On Feb. 3, 2022 Gov. Kristi Noem signed Senate Bill 46 into law, making South Dakota the first state this year to enact legislation restricting the rights of LGBTQ residents. The law was the first of many to pass through state houses around the country banning transgender youth from playing sports in a way that aligns with their gender identity.

Notably, the state’s Senate Judiciary committee killed House Hill 1005, that would have banned transgender students from using school bathrooms that align with their gender identity.

This year, lawmakers in Tennessee extended a ban on transgender students participating in school sports in a way that aligns with their gender identity. Republican Gov. Bill Lee signed into law additional provisions that penalize school districts that do not determine the gender of student athletes through a birth certificate, or other comparable means, by withholding some portion of state funding.

This year, lawmakers in Utah passed House Bill 11, which prohibits transgender girls from competing in school sports. Though the bill was vetoed by Republican Gov. Spencer Cox, the state Legislature overrode the Cox’s decision.

At least two Utah families are challenging the new law, claiming that it stands in direct violation of several provisions of the Utah Constitution.