North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum has signed legislation that will restrict transgender females in school sports, after vetoing similar legislation in 2021.
The governor on Tuesday signed House Bills 1249 and 1489, both by Rep. Ben Koppelman, R-West Fargo. The former restricts transgender athletes in K-12 sports; the latter applies to collegiate sports. Both bills will take effect Aug. 1.
Supporters said the bills ensure fairness in girls' and women's sports. Opponents said the legislation is harmful and discriminatory toward transgender people.
Burgum in a statement said, "Thoughtful debate over policy in this area should involve the pursuit of two goals: to continue to ensure fairness in North Dakota girls’ sports and demonstrate compassion and understanding for all North Dakota youth.
People are also reading…
“North Dakota continues to have a level playing field and fairness in girls’ sports. Over the past two years, with more than 27,000 students participating in North Dakota high school sports under current North Dakota High School Activities Association rules, there still has not been a single recorded incident of a transgender girl playing or entering the process to even ask to play on a North Dakota girls’ team," he said. "Nevertheless, the Legislature has now resoundingly determined that restrictions beyond the 2022 NDHSAA rules for girls’ sports should be codified in state law."
House Bill 1249 will preserve "athletics for girls and boys under traditional Title IX (sex discrimination) protections, while also providing clearer definitions and removing administrative uncertainty by shifting the appeals process from NDHSAA to the courts," the governor said.
Burgum also said his administration has "confidence that school districts will continue working to ensure all students have the opportunity to compete in athletics, and that North Dakota is a place where common-sense fairness and compassion can co-exist."
He also said concerns from 2021 about jeopardizing the ability to host regional and national collegiate tournaments "have not materialized in the roughly 20 states that have passed similar legislation.”
The Concerned Women for America of North Dakota, which says it aims to promote biblical values and constitutional principles, praised Burgum's action.
"Not only is this bill about the protection of athletics, but it stands in truth that men and women are different,” State Director Linda Thorson said in a statement.
The American Civil Liberties Union issued a statement calling Burgum's signing of the bills "shameful."
“Nobody wins when politicians meddle in people’s lives like this. Nobody wins when we codify discrimination like this,” said Cody Schuler, ACLU of North Dakota advocacy manager. “These bills are not about leveling the playing field for student athletes. They’re about erasing and excluding trans people from participation in all aspects of public life."
North Dakota Republican lawmakers this session have shown an elevated interest in gender identity issues, advancing bills restricting birth record amendments, and affecting restroom usage and schools’ use of pronouns. Burgum rejected a bill on the latter, a veto the House sustained.
The two sports bills passed with veto-proof majorities before going to Burgum.
The North Dakota High School Activities Association’s Executive Board last year altered a rule applying to transgender students after the NCAA made a similar change to its policy.
The revised policy essentially bans transgender girls who have undergone hormone treatment from participating in girls sports, but the association’s director may allow a trans student to participate in girls sports if the school demonstrates through medical evidence that the athlete has no physical competitive advantage.
The previous rule allowed trans girls to play girls sports after completing one year of hormone treatment.
The association has taken no stance on the legislation that Burgum has signed.
Nineteen states, including South Dakota, have passed bills restricting transgender girls’ participation in sports.
Burgum in 2021 cited an already level playing field in athletics, with no evidence of a transgender girl attempting to play on a girls' team. He also cited the NDHSAA's transgender student regulations at the time, and the bill's restrictions not affecting tribal or private schools.
"This bill would unnecessarily inject the state into a local issue by creating a ban with myriad unforeseen consequences," Burgum wrote in his veto message of the 2021 transgender sports bill.
The House overrode his 2021 veto, but the Senate sustained it.
