Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to sign a bill requiring student-athletes in the state’s public school system to compete on teams that correspond with their biological sex.
Texas lawmakers passed H.B. 25 on Sunday after Abbott added it to the agenda of a special legislative session on redistricting in the state.
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Critics of the legislation say it unfairly discriminates against transgender student-athletes, while supporters say it prevents placing female athletes at a disadvantage with biologically male competitors.
Nine other states have banned transgender student-athletes from competing on teams corresponding with their gender identity either through legislation or executive order, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Several of those efforts are subject to ongoing litigation.
“[It will] protect girls’ Title IX rights to play on a level playing field in sports,” said Mary Elizabeth Castle, senior policy adviser for Texas Values, in a statement.
The Texas House concurs on HB 25, by Representative @ValoreeforTexas Swanson & Senator @electcharles Perry, with 76 ayes, 61 nays!!!! The #SaveWomensSports bill is headed to Governor @GregAbbott_TX’s desk! #TxLege pic.twitter.com/DkmH2o3sE1
— Texas Values (text txvalues to 797979 for update) (@txvalues) October 17, 2021
Rebecca Marques, Texas state director for Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ advocacy group, said if Abbott signs “this discriminatory bill, he is putting the health, safety, and very lives of transgender young people in Texas at risk.”
“These vulnerable kids are simply trying to navigate adolescence in an environment that lawmakers are making increasingly challenging,” Marques said in a statement. “There is no need for this bill, and legislators have failed to provide examples of any problem in Texas related to trans kids playing sports alongside their peers. There is no appetite for this bill among the majority of Texans — it is simply designed to help Republican legislators win the votes of far right primary voters. A number of states that have passed similarly discriminatory and hateful legislation are already facing legal action. Signing this legislation would hurt families and make Texas a less competitive destination for companies and employees alike.”
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A spokesperson for Abbott did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the bill.
