TOPLINE TAKEAWAYS:

• 43 states are currently in session as of March 1

• So far, HRC is tracking about 765+ bills:

  • 190+ pro-equality

  • 420+ anti-LGBTQ+

  • Four anti-LGBTQ+ bills have passed into law (one in Ohio, one in Tennessee and two in Utah)

  • Three pro-equality bills have passed into law (Maine, New Mexico and California)

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN AMERICA:

Last week, SCR1013 was defeated in the Arizona Senate. This ballot referral would have restricted transgender students from using bathrooms consistent with their gender identity and allowed educators to refuse to use their proper names. If passed through both chambers, SCR1013 would have bypassed the governor and gone directly to the November ballot for consideration.

On Friday, the US Department of Education shared with HRC that, in response to a formal complaint issued by HRC President Kelley Robinson, the department has opened a federal civil rights investigation into Owasso Public Schools in Oklahoma and complaints that it failed to respond appropriately to sex-based harassment that may have contributed to the tragic death of Nex Benedict (he/they), a 16-year-old 2STGNC+ (Two Spirit, transgender, or gender nonconforming+) teen of Choctaw heritage.

The investigation marks a critical step in the search for justice for Nex, and serves as an important reminder of our collective responsibility to keep students safe at school. Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and rhetoric in states across the country are fueling a dangerous climate for young people. Every young person deserves a school environment free of bullying, harassment, and discrimination. And Nex’s death demands justice.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING THIS WEEK:

Despite anti-LGBTQ+ legislation stalling in other Republican-led legislatures, over a dozen anti-LGBTQ+ bills are on the move in Tennessee this week. HRC will join ACLU-TN, Out Memphis, and the Tennessee Equality Project for a virtual press conference today to call out these anti-LGBTQ+ attacks.

Florida’s legislative session is scheduled to come to an end on Friday, March 8.

OTHER THINGS WE’RE WATCHING:

Anti-Equality Bills:

• Arizona: Last Monday, the Senate passed SB1166, a forced outing bill, and SB1182, a bill restricting access to school shower rooms for transgender students. On Tuesday, the Senate Health Committee held a hearing on HB2183, a forced outing bill that would require healthcare entities to provide parents access to minors’ medical records, including for services that do not require parental approval, such as emergency mental health treatment.

• Florida: HB1639, a bill that would require health insurance to offer policy options that exclude gender-affirming care and require health insurance policies to cover conversion therapy passed the House on Friday. This bill would also require state identification cards and driver's licenses to list a person's sex assigned at birth. The bill now heads to the Senate, where President Kathleen Passidomo has promised it will not be heard.

• Georgia: Nearly all of the more than 20 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced in recent weeks failed to meet last week’s deadline for crossover. The Senate did, however, pass SB180, which would create a state “license to discriminate” and allow for religious beliefs to be used as a justification for violating the basic civil rights of others. It could lead to LGBTQ+ Georgians – not to mention women, religious minorities and other vulnerable communities – being turned away from a business, denied housing or refused service because of who they are or who they love.

• Iowa: On Thursday, the Iowa House passed SF2095, sending it to the governor’s desk for consideration. This bill would create a state “license to discriminate” and allow for religious beliefs to be used as a justification for violating the basic civil rights of others. It could lead to LGBTQ+ Iowans – not to mention women, religious minorities and other vulnerable communities – being turned away from a business, denied housing or refused service because of who they are or who they love.. The bill could be used in claims against businesses as well as government entities.

• Missouri: On Wednesday, HB2309, a bill that would define sex and gender to explicitly exclude gender identity and require all state laws, rules, and guidelines to treat individuals according to the sex they were assigned at birth, passed its first committee.

• Tennessee: On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on SB620. This bill would define parents’ rights to include barriers to gender-affirming health care and restrict access to sex education and inclusive school lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity. The bill would also require schools to adopt procedures requiring written permission before using affirming pronouns for transgender and non-binary students, and would permit instances of deadnaming and misgendering.

• Wyoming: On Tuesday, the Wyoming Senate passed two anti-LGBTQ+ bills, sending both to the House for consideration. SF99 would prohibit doctors or other health providers from providing gender-affirming care, including hormone blockers, to patients under the age of 18, on penalty of professional discipline (losing their license). SF98 would require any cause of action relating to gender-affirming health care for a minor to be filed prior to the patient's 21st birthday.

THE LAST WORD:

“It is the charge of every single generation to show up, show out, and say that ‘You will not defeat us; you will not get rid of us.’ We are here. We are queer. And we’re not going anywhere.”

HRC Georgia State Director Bentley Hudgins in a speech during Georgia Lobby Day

To follow HRC’s state legislation work on Twitter, visit here. For Instagram, visit here.

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ+ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.

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