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House Republicans narrowly advanced a bill Thursday that would define sex in Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 as a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth—prohibiting transgender athletes from participating in athletic programs for women or girls.
The bill, which passed the House with 219 votes, is unlikely to advance in the Democratic-controlled Senate, and President Biden said he would veto the measure. No House Democrats voted for the bill. They had decried the bill as discriminatory and extreme.
“At a time when transgender youth already face a nationwide mental health crisis, with half of transgender youth in a recent survey saying they have seriously considered suicide, a national law that further stigmatizes these children is completely unnecessary, hurts families and students, and would only put students at greater risk,” the White House said in a statement.
Supporters of the bill said it would protect female athletes and strengthen Title IX.
The Biden administration recently proposed changing the Title IX regulations to prohibit blanket bans on transgender women or girls participating in sports that align with their gender identity. Instead, a school, college or university would have to set sport-specific criteria if the institution is applying rules that would limit or deny a transgender student’s ability to participate on a team consistent with their gender identity.
Numerous states have already adopted restrictions on transgender athletes.
