State Senate Passes Bill Banning Transgender Students from School Sports Just Weeks Before May Primaries

HARRISBURG — Today, the state Senate passed Senate Bill 1293, legislation that would ban participation in school sports by transgender students in public schools and state-funded universities and colleges. The bill, nearly identical to House Bill 972 that former Governor Tom Wolf vetoed in 2022, was advanced approximately one month before the May primary elections. Representatives from the ACLU of Pennsylvania had the following to say in opposition:

"Every young person in Pennsylvania deserves the chance to grow, play, and be included on teams and in their community. Trans girls are no exception. Their inclusion strengthens our athletic programs and benefits every girl who steps onto a field or into a gym. The conversation we should be having is about improving the health and well-being of our youth, and providing more funding for girls' sports to ensure all student athletes have what they need to thrive," said ACLU-PA Senior Organizer Naiymah Sanchez.

"Pennsylvanians are worried about the cost of living, about housing, about a world at war, and about the safety of their neighbors at a moment where our government is spending more on ICE terrorizing our streets than on restorative community programs. These are the urgent, real issues our legislators need to address," said ACLU-PA Legislative Director Elizabeth Randol. "Instead, some are chasing narrow narratives, rooted in misinformation, that divide the public and politicize our youth in harmful ways that benefit no one. Manufacturing controversy — using the lives of our most vulnerable young people as a divisive campaign strategy — just weeks before a primary, is unconscionable. It needs to stop."

The bill now moves to the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives. It is expected to face a path similar to Senate Bill 9, which has stalled in that chamber.

More information about the bill can be found here.

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