Texas Governor Greg Abbott, on Monday, signed a bill that virtually protects biological females from having to compete against biological males in school sports.
Spanning all levels of state public education, the bill, which will take effect in early January 2022, seeks to remove unfair advantages males have in sports over women.
As reported by the Texas Tribune, House Bill 25, authored by state Rep. Valoree Swanson, R-Spring, will require student athletes who compete in interscholastic competition to play on sports teams that correspond with the sex listed on their birth certificate at or near their time of birth. It is set to go into effect Jan. 18.
Reuters wrote in a report about how more states are considering and adopting similar laws. “Seven other states have passed similar laws this year, part of a Republican-led national campaign since Idaho in March 2020 barred athletes who were assigned a male gender at birth from competing on sports teams against those assigned as female in public schools or colleges. Other states whose legislatures have followed Idaho’s lead include Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Montana, Tennessee and West Virginia, while South Dakota’s governor acted by executive order,” Reuters reported.