The Republican-led U.S. House has voted to ban transgender girls and women from competing in women’s sports at all federally funded institutions, from kindergarten through college.
The bill is now expected to be taken up by the newly Republican-controlled U.S. Senate. If it becomes law, House Resolution (HR) 28 will amend Title IX – the landmark civil rights law prohibiting sex discrimination at educational institutions. It would explicitly exclude transgender athletes from civil rights protections under the law and revoke federal funding from institutions that allow trans athletes to compete.
Ohio’s 15 congressional representatives voted along party lines Tuesday morning, with House Republicans voting unanimously in favor of the bill.
The move comes one year after Ohio lawmakers passed House Bill (HB) 68, barring transgender female athletes from competing in girls and women’s sports and banning health care for transgender youth statewide.
With a state sports ban already in place and a federal ban looming, legal experts, lawmakers and LGBTQ+ organizations have expressed deep concern around enforcement of the law, which could force students to undergo invasive genital exams in order to compete.
Ohio already bans transgender athletes
In addition to banning transgender girls and women from competing under HB 68, the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) – which governs sports at the high school level – has also amended a policy allowing transgender girls and young women to compete in women’s sports.
Previously, trans girls and women were required to undergo a minimum of one year of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and provide proof they possessed no physical advantages over their peers.
OHSAA’s new rules – which comply with state law under HB 68 – ban transgender girls from competing entirely.
The policy does not outline specific enforcement policies or procedures.
If the federal ban passes, any attempts in Ohio to repeal HB 68 would be superseded by this federal law.
Defining gender
Because HR 28 defines gender as “based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth,” it oversimplifies the way humans develop and display primary and secondary sex characteristics – particularly during puberty.
The bill opens up student athletes to eligibility challenges at a time when hormone and growth patterns are already unpredictable and dependent on factors like diet, physical activity, genetic predisposition and even the presence of illness or chronic disease.
When babies are born, doctors assign them one of two sexes based on the appearance of their external genitalia. But sex determination is complex and can sometimes defy binary gender patterns.
Typically, the presence of XX sex chromosomes is associated with girls and women, while XY chromosomes are linked to boys and men. However, variations in sex chromosomes, hormones and genitalia have been documented across cultures for thousands of years.
Intersex people – who might display dozens of combinations of sex characteristics throughout their lives and “do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies” – are not acknowledged in the bill’s text, despite accounting for nearly 2% of the general population.
Concerns around enforcement
In a press release, national LGBTQ+ civil rights group the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) highlighted incidents of harassment following state-level transgender athlete bans.
The press release included the story of a cisgender lacrosse player who experienced brutal harassment because she had short hair, along with that of cisgender basketball player who faced widespread online harassment after a Utah State School Board member falsely implied that the girl might be transgender.
“We all want sports to be fair, students to be safe, and young people to have the opportunity to participate alongside their peers, but this kind of blanket ban deprives kids of those things,” said HRC President Kelley Robinson. “This bill would expose young people to harassment and discrimination, emboldening people to question the gender of kids who don’t fit a narrow view of how they’re supposed to dress or look.”
“It could even expose children to invasive, inappropriate questions and examinations,” she added.
HB 68 and HR 28 do not outline specific policies or procedures for enforcing the law.
Democrats express concern
Democratic lawmakers cited similar concerns around enforcement, including Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vermont), who delivered an impassioned plea to reject the legislation on the floor of the House.
“Trans Americans are not the problem. This obsession with monitoring kids’ genitals is absolutely the problem,” Balint said. “Let’s be clear: This is about kids. My kids. Your kids. All kids. All kids – even elementary school kids playing basketball.”
As a parent and former educator, Balint said she understands the challenges students already face at school.
“They are already self-conscious about their bodies. They just want to be on the soccer field with their friends,” she added. “They certainly do not want to be humiliated by members of Congress.” 🔥
Ignite Action
- To register to vote or to check your voter eligibility status in the state of Ohio, click here.
- To find contact information for your Ohio state representative, click here.
- To find contact information for your Ohio senator, click here.
- If you are a young LGBTQ+ person in crisis, please contact the Trevor Project: 866-4-U-Trevor.
- If you are an transgender adult in need of immediate help, contact the National Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
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