Ban on trans girls playing female sports goes to Sununu's desk

May 16—CONCORD — New Hampshire appears close to joining other states in barring transgender athletes born biologically male from playing on girls sports teams in public schools.

After an emotional debate Thursday, the Republican-led state Senate voted along party lines, 13-10, to endorse House-passed legislation (HB 1205) that would make the prohibition for students in grades 5-12 also apply to private-school teams if they compete in leagues against public schools.

All Senate Democrats voted against it.

While Gov. Chris Sununu told reporters Wednesday he would wait to see the precise language before deciding whether to sign the bill, he said last March, "I fundamentally don't believe that biological boys should be competing in girls sports."

Senate President Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro, called the measure a "narrow carve-out" from the 2018 law which banned discrimination on the basis of gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodation.

"We will never be able to legislate total fairness, but what we can't do is create rights for one at the expense of another," Bradley said.

Sen. Debra Altschiller, D-Stratham, said the bill is a systematic attack against a very small number of trans girls who want to play on teams of their adopted gender.

"The fact is in New Hampshire right now there are five, and the truth of the matter is those five girls are not a threat — they are the threatened," Altschiller said.

Senate Assistant Democratic Leader Becky Whitley, D-Hopkinton, said it's doubtful the bill could survive a constitutional challenge because it's a violation of the federal Title IX that 50 years ago required athletic equality for women's and men's sports.

"This bill assumes participation in youth sports is a zero-sum game; that is not the case here," said Whitley, a candidate for Congress in the 2nd District.

"This is about inclusion, making sure all girls have the opportunity to participate on a team with their friends."

But Sen. Dan Innis, R-Webster, cited the case of Caitlyn Jenner, a transgender woman who won the Olympic Gold Medal in the decathlon as Bruce Jenner and publicly supports athletes bans adopted in more than 20 states.

"It is not just dangerous, but it is unfair for biological males to compete against biological females," Innis said.

Other measures

The Senate voted by the same 13-10 margin to send to the governor HB 1312, which would require parents to be notified before their children are taught about gender identity and sexuality in schools.

"We should not be asking teachers to keep secrets from parents," said Sen. Tim Lang, R-Sanbornton. "What House Bill 1312 does not do is prvent any topic from being offered as curriculum. That's up to local school districts."

Sen. Lou D'Allesandro, D-Manchester, a retired educator, said intrusive legislation such as this was why people are not entering the teaching profession.

Sen. David Watters, D-Dover, a retired English professor, said the definition of gender is so broad that the bill could become an expensive and unworkable mandate for school districts.

A House-passed ban on allowing minors to have sex reassignment surgery (HB 619) likewise won support in the Senate, 13-10, and it too will now go to Sununu's desk.

Sen. Bill Gannon, R-Sandown, said such surgery is fraught with risk and children should not be able to have it.

Sen. Suzanne Prentiss, D-Lebanon, countered that these procedures are rarely done and should be left up to families and their doctors.

"We should be very careful interfering in the medical field," Prentiss said.

klandrigan@unionleader.com