On Jan. 14, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would effectively ban transgender women and girls from school sports, The Advocate reported.
The so-called Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025, which U.S. Rep. W. Gregory Steube (R-Florida) introduced on Jan. 3, passed 218-206. (Illinois Republicans Mike Bost and Mary Miller were among the co-sponsors.) In part, the measure reads, “For the purposes of this subsection, sex shall be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” According to Congress.gov, the act would “amend the Education Amendments of 1972 to provide that for purposes of determining compliance with title IX of such Act in athletics, sex shall be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”
Transgender people compose only 0.6 percent of the overall population, according to the Williams Institute. Also, NCAA head Charlie Baker told a Senate panel last month that out of 510,000 athletes in U.S. NCAA schools, there are fewer than 10 transgender athletes who currently compete in college sports (0.002 percent).
The Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD and Advocates for Trans Equality have issued an open letter to the legislature in opposition to recent anti-trans laws, which they said “invite scrutiny and harassment of any other student perceived by anyone as not conforming to sex stereotypes.”
Advocates for Trans Equality Executive Director Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen issued a statement after the vote, saying, “This discriminatory bill is an unconscionable attack on transgender girls and women across the country. Every child deserves a quality education, including the ability to participate in athletic programs.”
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PRESS RELEASES
Campaign for Southern Equality:
WASHINGTON, DC – Today the United States House of Representatives voted to pass HR28, legislation that restricts transgender students from participating in school athletics. The bill amends the Education Amendments of 1972 so that, for the purpose of athletics, Title IX’s definition of “sex” only refers to a student’s sex assigned at birth. The bill explicitly states that youth assigned male at birth will not be allowed to participate on school sports teams designated for women and girls.
If the bill becomes law, schools that receive federal funding will be forced to exclude transgender young people from school athletics programs. During the House debate today legislators questioned how, exactly, HR28 would be enforced: Would students, for example, be subject to invasive body examinations by adults to determine their eligibility to play? While this bill claims to “protect women and girls”, its true impact will be to exclude transgender and intersex women and girls from participation in school sports, and to put pressure on all women and girls to conform to rigid sex stereotypes.
Allison Scott (she/her pronouns), Director of Impact and Innovation at the Campaign for Southern Equality, said today:
“The passage of HB28 by the U.S. House of Representatives is a cruel and unjust abuse of power that targets a very small number of young people who just want to play school sports with their friends. It’s appalling that one of the first priorities of this new Congress is to bully children with the weight of a federal law. I want to send a clear message to transgender young people and their families: No law can strip you of your inherent dignity and humanity, and we will never stop working alongside you and a huge community nationwide to ensure all people can live authentically and with joy. The Senate should do the right thing here, refuse to exclude and marginalize children, and reject this legislation.”
HB28 now heads to the United States Senate.
Based in Asheville, NC, the Campaign for Southern Equality works for full LGBTQ equality across the South. Our work is rooted in commitments to equity in race, gender and class. Through our Trans Youth Emergency Project we provide rapid response support – including emergency grants and patient navigation – directly to the families of trans youth who are impacted by anti-transgender healthcare bans.
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Congressional Equality Caucus:
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Rep. Mark Takano (CA-39), Chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, released the following statement after House Republicans passed H.R. 28, a federal ban on transgender girls from participating in school sports—better known as the Child Predator Empowerment Act. This was one of the first bills to pass the House in the 119th Congress.
“Once again, Republicans have proved that their obsession with attacking trans people trumps lowering the cost of groceries or investing in our schools,” said Rep. Mark Takano, Chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus. “It’s shameful that one of the first bills to pass the House this Congress limits transgender girls’ ability to be a part of their school’s community, prevents kids from playing with their friends, and could force any girl to answer invasive personal questions about their bodies and face humiliating physical inspections to “prove” that they’re a girl. Speaker Johnson and the Republican Conference are more focused on passing legislation that targets transgender children for exclusion and puts all girls at risk than working to address the problems impacting Americans daily.”
BACKGROUND
H.R. 28 amends existing law to make it a violation of Title IX for recipients of federal financial assistance to allow transgender girls or women to participate in girls’ and women’s athletic programs. This bill would effectively ban all trans girls and trans women from participating on school sports teams, depriving them of an important opportunity to be part of their school community, learn sportsmanship, and challenge themselves. It would also limit the ability of non-binary and intersex students to participate in these programs as well.###Founded in 2008, the Congressional Equality Caucus is dedicated to promoting equality for all, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics, including intersex traits. The Caucus is strongly committed to achieving the full enjoyment of human rights for LGBTQI+ people in the U.S. and around the world.
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