GOP-led House votes to ban transgender athletes from women’s sports

By Clare Foran and Haley Talbot, CNN

(CNN) — The House voted on Tuesday to pass a GOP-led bill that would ban transgender athletes from women’s and girls’ sports at federally funded schools and educational institutions.

The legislation is expected to next be taken up by the GOP-controlled Senate. The House vote was 218 to 206 with two Democrats voting in favor and one Democrat voting “present.” Reps. Vicente Gonzalez and Henry Cuellar of Texas were the two Democrats who voted for the bill and Rep. Don Davis of North Carolina was the present vote.

Republicans put attacks on Democrats over transgender issues front and center in competitive races during the last election cycle, including at the top of the ticket with President-elect Donald Trump.

In the aftermath of Trump’s White House win, some Democrats have said their party must do more to address potential voter concerns.

This isn’t the first time congressional Republicans have advanced this piece of legislation.

During the last session of Congress, House Republicans passed the bill by a vote of 219 to 203 down strict party lines, but it was not taken up by the Democratic-led Senate.

Now, Republican are bringing it back up with the Senate under GOP control. The bill still faces an uncertain future in the Senate, however, as some Democrats would need to join with Republicans to advance the legislation.

The bill would prohibit transgender women and girls from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity. It seeks to amend federal law to require that “sex shall be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth,” for the purpose of determining compliance with Title IX in athletics, according to the legislative text.

Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs or activities that receive funding from the federal government, and applies to schools and other educational institutions.

The bill would not “prohibit schools or institutions from permitting males to practice against women’s sports teams,” according to a fact sheet from the House committee on Education and the Workforce.

According to the legislative text, the bill does not prohibit institutions “from permitting males to train or practice with an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls so long as no female is deprived of a roster spot on a team or sport, opportunity to participate in a practice or competition, scholarship, admission to an educational institution, or any other benefit that accompanies participating in the athletic program or activity.”

However, the fact sheet from the Education committee states that under the bill, “a recipient of federal education funding violates Title IX’s prohibition against sex discrimination if the recipient operates, sponsors, or facilitates athletic programs or activities and allows a person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls.”

The bill – called the “Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act” – was introduced by Republican Rep. Greg Steube of Florida.

Republicans have argued that transgender women hold a physical advantage over cisgender women in sports and thus their participation could consequentially limit opportunities for others.

Democrats have said that policies to restrict transgender athletes’ participation in team sports adds to the discrimination that trans people face, particularly trans youth. And they argue that Republicans are seeking to undermine the rights of LGBTQ students by advancing the bill.

The House vote comes as GOP-led states across the country continue to push anti-trans measures, including bills intended to keep transgender students from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity.

In addition to featuring heavily on the campaign trail, the issue of transgender rights has stirred controversy on Capitol Hill.

Toward the end of last year, GOP Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina announced she was putting forward a resolution to prevent transgender women from using women’s bathrooms at the US Capitol. The move by Mace came after Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride of Delaware became the first out transgender person elected to Congress.

McBride posted on X the day that Mace announced her resolution, “Every day Americans go to work with people who have life journeys different than their own and engage with them respectfully, I hope members of Congress can muster that same kindness.”

“This is a blatant attempt from far right-wing extremists to distract from the fact that they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing. We should be focused on bringing down the cost of housing, health care, and child care, not manufacturing culture wars,” McBride said.

It’s not clear if the bill will be able to pass the Senate and likely faces an uphill battle in the chamber due to the tight margin of partisan control.

Senate Republicans have 53 seats. Typically, that would mean that at least seven Democrats would need to vote with Republicans to hit the 60-vote threshold to advance a bill subject to a filibuster.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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