House File 808 advanced through a Ways and Means subcommittee hearing on Tuesday afternoon. The discussion centered around the tax policy portion of the bill as it has already advanced through the Education Committee.
An amendment has been offered on the bill titled “Save Women’s Sports Act.”
The amendment was filed by Republican Rep. Sandy Salmon and cosponsored by Republican Representatives Dean Fisher, Jon Jacobsen and Mark Cisneros.
The proposed amendment requires students to participate with interscholastic or intramural athletic teams or sports sponsored by educational institutions based on biological sex.
Students of the male sex would be ineligible to participate in athletic teams or sports designated for females, women or girls.
If the biological sex of a student is disputed, the student will be allowed to establish their sex by presenting a signed statement by a licensed physician that indicates the student’s sex based solely upon the following factors:
*The student’s internal and external reproductive anatomy.
*The student’s normal, endogenously produced levels of testosterone.
*An analysis of the student’s genetic makeup.
A government entity, licensing or accrediting organization or athletic association or organization shall not consider a complaint, open an investigation or take any other adverse action against an educational institution for maintaining separate interscholastic or intramural athletic teams or sports for students of the female sex.
The amendment would allow a student who is “deprived” of an athletic opportunity or suffers direct or indirect harm as ar result of a violation of this chapter by an educational institution shall have a private cause of action for injunctive relief, damages and any other relief available provided by law against the educational institution.
A student subjected to retaliation or other adverse action by an educational institution or athletic association or organization as a result of reporting a violation of this chapter to an employee or representative of the institution or athletic association or organization or any state or federal agency will also have private cause of action or injunctive relief, damages and any other relief provided by law.
The bill will have to successfully pass the House Ways and Means Committee and then head to the House floor.
The proposed amendment was filed on March 10 and would likely be considered when the bill receives debate on the House floor.
