U.S. House passes bill that would protect female athletes

The House passed a bill Thursday to protect female athletes in federally-funded schools and colleges by preventing males from playing on their sports teams. The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023 passed 219-203 along party lines. If made law, the bill would clarify that to be in compliance with Title IX and to receive federal funding, sex in athletics would be recognized based only on biology. 

Have any states passed similar bills? North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum signed two bills last week that protect women’s sports by preventing males from joining female school and college teams. On Thursday, Burgum also signed a bill to protect minors from transgender treatment. The state law makes it illegal to perform transgender surgery or prescribe hormone blockers to a child before puberty. It does allow a minor to be prescribed puberty-blocking medication if he or she has received mental health care for at least twelve months prior and has started puberty. 

Dig deeper: Read Thomas S. Kidd’s column in WORLD Opinions on Title IX and the Biden administration’s plan to harm athletics.