Senate Bill 140, which defines male and female sports for youth athletic teams as based on a biological gender, passed out of Senate Judiciary Committee on a 3-1 vote, with Juneau Sen. Jesse Kiehl voting no. Kiehl has concerns about student confidentiality, an argument that was disputed in committee when it was pointed out that already students must submit to a physical, answer questionnaires about health, and provide their grades before they can compete on school teams.
Bill sponsor Sen. Shelley Hughes says the bill will ensure that discrimination against females is prevented, and that they are not forced to compete against biological male athletes who have biological advantages of muscle and lung capacity and size.
According to Gallup, LGBT identification is over 7%, up from 5.6% in 2020, among adults. One in five Generation Z adults identify as LGBT. That’s double the number of people identifying as LGBT in 2012. Transgender is a subcategory of LGBT, involving hormones and surgeries to make a person appear to be the opposite gender. Nearly 21% of Generation Z says they are LGBT.
Read the Gallup poll results here.
The bill now moves to the Senate Rules Committee for introduction on the Senate floor, where Senate Democrats will try to block its passage.
