BISMARCK, ND (AP) – North Dakota’s Republican Gov. Doug Burgum on Tuesday evening signed two transgender athlete bans into law, effectively banning transgender girls and women from joining female sports teams in K-12 and college. .
Lawmakers in the House and Senate passed the bill with a veto-proof majority this year. If the governor vetoes the bill or refuses to sign it, the bill becomes law.
At least 19 other countries have enacted bans on transgender athletes. Republican lawmakers in the US have introduced hundreds of laws this year to push for LGBTQ+ freedoms, particularly targeting the everyday lives of transgender people – including sports, health care, bathrooms, workplaces and schools.
The Biden administration this month proposed legislation, which still faces a lengthy approval process, to ban outright bans on transgender athletes.
In 2021, Burgum vetoed a nearly identical bill that would have banned transgender girls from playing on girls’ teams in public schools. Lawmakers did not have enough votes that year to override the veto.
This year, lawmakers wrote new legislation to replicate and expand the bill — including at the college level. The bill is now law.
Trisha Ahmed is a member of the Associated Press / Report for America Statehouse News Initiative corps. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on hidden issues. Follow Trisha Ahmed on Twitter: @TrishaAhmed15.