(The Center Square) – Companion bills have been filed in the Texas Senate and House to prohibit individuals from using state-funded facilities that are designated for use by the opposite sex. It would ban biological males from using state-funded women’s facilities like in jail or prison cells, domestic violence shelters, public bathrooms, locker rooms or other facilities.
State Rep. Valoree Swanson, R-Spring, filed HB 239, the Texas Women’s Privacy Act. State Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, filed the companion bill in the Texas Senate. The bill has bipartisan support.
It seeks to amend state government code to define biological sex, correctional facilities, family violence shelters, political subdivisions, private spaces, single occupancy private spaces, state agencies and other terms.
Biological sex is defined as the “physical condition of being male or female, as determined by: … the sex organs, chromosomes, and endogenous profiles of a person; a person’s original birth certificate, if the biological sex is correctly stated on the birth certificate …,” according to the bill language.
The bill would require political subdivisions or state agencies to ensure that private spaces within their jurisdiction are only designated for or used by persons based on their biological sex. Exceptions include those assisting the disabled, seniors, parents and guardians of children under age 10, among others.
The law applies to taxpayer-funded facilities that have bathrooms, locker rooms, sleeping quarters or other areas, including state parks, state prisons and county jails, domestic violence shelters, among others.
Civil penalties include $5,000 for the first violation and $25,000 for each subsequent violation.
In 2023, both Swanson and Middleton sponsored the Save Women’s Sports Act, which passed the legislature and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott, The Center Square reported. It prohibits biological men from competing on a team or as an individual against women in college sports.
In 2021, Abbott first signed a bill into law to protect girls’ sports in Texas public schools. In the legislative sessions of 2017 and 2019, he signed four bills into law to address student safety and adjudication processes for reports of sexual harassment and sexual assault on college campuses.
Last year, Abbott also instructed Texas colleges and universities not to comply with a Biden administration rewrite of Title IX to expand the definition of “sex” to include “gender identify.”
“I signed laws to ensure the safety of our students on campus and provide a process for adjudicating reports of sexual harassment and sexual assault with adequate due process for all parties involved, as well as laws to protect the integrity of women’s sports by prohibiting men from competing against female athletes – and I will not let President Biden erase the advancements Texas has made,” he said at the time.
Texas also sued to stop the Title IX rewrite and won in court, The Center Square reported.
Once in office, President Donald Trump began reversing Biden administration gender initiatives and actions. On his first day in office, he signed an executive order stating there are only two genders: male and female.
Trump also said his administration is enforcing its 2020-era Title IX rule, which expanded protections for women and girls, instead of the Biden administration rewrite, The Center Square reported.
He also signed an executive order, “No Men in Women’s Sports,” banning biological men from competing in women’s sports. He also put “every school receiving taxpayer dollars on notice that if you let men take over women’s sports teams or invade your locker rooms, you will be investigated for violations of Title XI and risk your federal funding. There will be no federal funding,” he said when he signed it.
He also signed an executive order banning sex change surgeries and “transitioning” drugs for minors, which was challenged in court.
In Texas, Abbott signed a bill into law banning sex surgeries and other gender altering procedures for minors, which received bipartisan support. It was challenged in court but upheld by the Texas Supreme Court, which nearly unanimously affirmed it was constitutional, The Center Square reported.
