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Texas legislators approved a bill requiring sex assigned at birth for all state documents and records
The controversial bill is one of several transphobic actions taken by Republicans in Texas.
Legislators in Texas have passed a bill requiring a person’s sex assigned at birth rather than their gender identity for official state documents and records.
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House Bill 229, entitled “Relating to general definitions for and collection of governmental information regarding biological sex” or the Women’s Rights Bill, passed the state Senate on a party-line vote of 20 to 11 late Wednesday night. The bill passed the House by a vote of 87 to 56 on May 12.
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“A governmental entity that collects vital statistics information that identifies the sex of an individual for the purpose of complying with antidiscrimination laws or for the purpose of gathering public health, crime, economic, or other data shall identify each individual as either male or female,” the text of the approved bill reads.
The bill specifically defines male and female for official state government purposes as sex assigned at birth rather than gender identity.
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“‘Female’ and ‘woman’ mean an individual whose biological reproductive system is developed to produce ova,” the text of the bill continues, adding “‘Male’ and ‘man’ mean an individual whose biological reproductive system is developed to fertilize the ova of a female.”
The bill adds there are reasons for separating gender along a binary definition.
“There are legitimate reasons to distinguish between the sexes with respect to athletics, prisons and other correctional facilities, domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers, locker rooms, restrooms, and other areas where biology, safety, or privacy are implicated,” the bill reads.
RELATED: Texas quietly gathers data on trans people updating their gender
In March, it was revealed that the Texas Department of Public Safety recorded every time a resident requested to update their gender on their driver’s licenses online. The gathered data also included people who inquired about the process via phone or in person.
Also in March, Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton directed state agencies to ignore court orders on gender changes that conflicted with state law.
RELATE: Texas AG tells agencies to ignore court orders on gender changes
The bill now heads to the desk of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature or veto. It's most likely that he will sign it.
