Story at a glance
- A proposal to form a panel to determine whether transgender athletes are eligible to participation on sports teams aligning with their gender identity was advanced by a legislative committee in Utah on Monday.
- The proposed commission would evaluate the physical characteristics of trans athletes and how they compare to “baseline ranges” for their age and gender.
- Those who support the proposal say it would both level the playing field and legitimize transgender-athlete participation, while those against the proposal believe it will further isolate transgender youth.
Lawmakers in Utah on Monday advanced a proposal to form a panel of political appointees to determine whether transgender student athletes in the state will be permitted to compete on sports teams aligning with their gender identity.
The proposed School Activity Eligibility Commission would evaluate the physical characteristics of transgender student athletes and how they compare to a set of “baseline ranges” for their age and gender that have been established by the commission, according to the proposal.
Commission members, including a mental health professional, a statistician specializing in medical data analysis, a board-certified physician and several athletic officials, would be appointed by the state Senate president, House speaker and the governor.
Members of the commission would also be granted immunity from suit, according to the proposal, meaning legal action may not be taken against them.
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The commission would determine which transgender athletes may participate in “gender-designated” youth sports, basing their decision on whether granting the student eligibility would present a “substantial safety risk” to others or give the student a “material competitive advantage.”
Utah’s proposal comes as a heated debate over whether transgender athletes should be allowed to compete on sports teams aligning with their gender identity comes to a head, with the University of Pennsylvania’s Lia Thomas — a trans swimmer caught in the crossfire — set to compete at next month’s NCAA championships.
Conservative lawmakers in most statehouses have directed similar legislation specifically at transgender female athletes, who they say have an inherent advantage over cisgender women because, in some cases, the athletes went through male puberty.
“To those that think that I’m just trampling on women’s sports, or that this is a solution looking for a problem: All three of my daughters have played [against] transgender athletes. So this is happening in our state,” Utah Rep. Kera Birkeland (R), who is sponsoring the Utah proposal, said Monday, The Associated Press reported.
Birkeland last year sponsored a bill that would have banned transgender girls from competing in high school sports.
Birkeland, who also coaches junior varsity basketball, said she has spoken with several girls who feel it is unfair for transgender athletes who have undergone male puberty to play alongside them, according to The Associated Press.
She added that cisgender girls would feel more comfortable if they knew a commission had been tasked with leveling the playing field and transgender athletes would be more legitimized if they were granted eligibility by a panel of experts.
Some say the creation of the commission would make trans youth feel more isolated from their peers or singled out.
“When we start talking about these ‘verify that you’re girl enough, or verify that you’re boy enough [policies],’ these kiddos, they shake in their proverbial boots,” University of Utah pediatrician Jennifer Plumb told the Associated Press.
The proposed eligibility commission passed through a state House committee on a 6-3 vote, with Republicans in favor and Democrats opposed.
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