A bill that attempts to define ''male" and ''female" and that could eventually lead to a ban on transgender people accessing women's restrooms, locker rooms and other facilities faces a decisive vote in the Wyoming House Of Representatives on Monday

You can read House Bill 32--the What Is A Woman Act--here.

What The Bill Says

A part of the bill specifically addressess locker rooms and restrooms:

''Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, laws, rules and regulations that recognize or enforce distinctions between the sexes with respect to athletics, prisons or other detention facilities, domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers, locker rooms, restrooms and other areas where safety or privacy are implicated and that result in separate accommodations between the sexes are substantially related to the important governmental objectives of protecting the health, safety and privacy of persons in such circumstances.''

A similar bill was filed in the 2024 Wyoming Legislature, winning a 37-24 majority vote for introduction. But because 2024 was a budget session, that vote fell short of the 2/3 majority needed for introduction of a non-budget bill.

A bill that would ban transgender people born as men from using women's restrooms, House Bill 72, has also been filed. House Bill 32 would clarify the definitions of gender in regard to that and other gender-related legal issues.

hThe bill is back again this session, and has cleared introductory and committee votes as well as two readings in the Wyoming House.

Opponents of the bill in floor debate on Thursday argue that it oversteps the role of the legislature and interferes with what should be a judicial function in definining 'male" and "female" for legal purposes.

But supporters argue that question is in fact appropriate for the legislative branch to define and that it would give the courts information in deciding relevant cases.

The bill is sponsored by Rep. Jayme Lien [R-Casper]. If it passes the scheduled House vote on Monday it would move on to the Wyoming Senate.

Meet the Four-Legged Heroes of the Cheyenne Police Department

They may not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, but make no bones about it, police dogs play a vital role in the fight against crime.

In many situations, they're the first ones to put their lives on the line to protect their human partners, proving that not all heroes wear capes, some wear fur coats.

Gallery Credit: Joy Greenwald

 

 

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