(The Center Square) — A Georgia Senate special committee will soon begin exploring a high-profile and often contentious social issue that has, at times, dominated the national political discourse.
The Senate Special Committee on the Protection of Women’s Sports will hold its first hearing later this month.
“Biological males competing in women’s sports presents a clear and present danger to the physical safety of the athletes and the integrity of women’s athletics,” Sen. Greg Dolezal, R-Cumming, who is chairing the committee and is the father of three daughters, said in a statement. “I look forward to working with my colleagues on the committee to ensure Georgia’s female athletes are allowed to participate in fair and competitive athletics.”
The committee, which Republican Lt. Governor Burt Jones announced this month, will continue its work until Dec. 15. Of the eight state senators on the committee, all but two are Republicans.
In a statement, Jones said he created the committee “to investigate policies athletic associations, schools, colleges, and universities have implemented regarding the protection of women’s sports.”
The move follows a push from President Joe Biden’s administration to expand Title IX. While the original Title IX barred discrimination based on sex, a new rule that took effect Aug. 1 in some states broadened the prohibition to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
Critics have denounced the change as dangerous to women, saying males identifying as females could use girls’ bathrooms and locker rooms. Additionally, the new rule would have required schools receiving federal funding to accommodate students’ and teachers’ “gender identity” and mandated that students and teachers use others’ “preferred pronouns.”
However, several states objected to the rules. At the end of last month, a U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit judge granted a request for an administrative injunction, blocking Title IX changes in several states, including Georgia and South Carolina. In South Carolina, state officials sued, saying administration officials aren’t authorized to override Title IX, which Congress passed in 1972.
Separately, the Center Square Voters’ Voice Poll, released last month, found that more voters oppose the Biden administration’s Title IX expansion than support it.
