The US House of Representatives on Tuesday approved legislation that would prohibit federal funding for K-12 schools that allow transgender students to participate in women’s sports teams. The bill, which passed largely along party lines with a vote of 218-206, faces a significant challenge in the Senate, where it would require support from seven Democrats to overcome a filibuster.
House speaker Mike Johnson said that it was a great day for America, as House Republicans passed representative Greg Steube’s Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which guarantees that men cannot compete in women’s sports.
“Today is a great day in America because House Republicans just passed @RepGregSteube’s Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act ensuring men cannot compete in women’s sports. Men are men, women are women, and men cannot become women. It’s just that simple,” Johnson said in a post on X.
Republicans argue that the bill is necessary to protect women’s rights and ensure a level playing field for female athletes. Representative Greg Steube, the bill’s sponsor, said, “The overwhelming majority believe men don’t belong in women’s sports. This bill will deliver upon the mandate the American people gave Congress.”
Democrats, however, criticized the bill as a dangerous invasion of privacy for young girls and an example of Republicans’ “creepy obsession with your kids’ private parts,” according to representative Jim McGovern. They also pointed out that the legislation targets a small and vulnerable population of transgender children who already face higher rates of bullying and mental health issues.
Representative Lori Trahan, the only former division I college athlete serving in Congress, acknowledged legitimate concerns about transgender athletes competing in women’s sports at the highest levels but questioned the involvement of politicians in the issue.
The decision to bring up the bill in the second week of Congress suggests that Republicans believe the issue remains politically advantageous. During the 2024 presidential election season, the Trump campaign spent a significant portion of its ad budget on television ads addressing transgender issues.
Democrats spent more time raising concerns about the bill’s potential to infringe upon girls’ privacy, arguing that it could lead to invasive questioning about their bodies. Representative Katherine M. Clark said, “This doesn’t protect a girl’s rights, it eliminates them. It puts a target on the back of every girl, every young woman who chooses to play sports.”
The debate also included disagreements about how the legislation would be enforced, with Republicans suggesting that reviewing birth certificates would suffice, while Democrats argued that this method would be unreliable due to the existence of intersex individuals.
Two Democrats, representatives Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, voted in favor of the bill, while representative Don Davis of North Carolina voted “present.”
Last week, a federal judge in Kentucky struck down US President Joe Biden‘s effort to expand protections for transgender students and make changes to the rules governing sex discrimination in schools.
