Tag: bathroom bill

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Memphis Gaydar News

Anti-Transgender Bathroom Bill Dead … Again

The Tennessee bill that would have prevented transgender students in public high schools and universities from using the restroom that corresponds with their gender identity is dead again. 

House sponsor, Rep. Susan Lynn (R-Mt. Juliet) announced on Monday that she would roll the bill over to next year.

It’s the second time in less than a month that the bill has been killed. In late March, the bill was sent to summer study, but proponents managed to get it back up for consideration and a House committee voted 8-4 to reverse the decision to send the bill to summer study.

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has expressed concerns about the bill, citing that the state may lose federal education funding if it goes into law. And an opinion by State Attorney General Herbert Slatery issued last week backed up Haslam’s concerns that the state could lose millions in federal funding if the bill was passed. Across the country, as states have considered such bills, major companies, such as Coca-Cola, the NFL, and Delta Air Lines, have raised concerns about discrimination. In Tennessee, CMT (Country Music Television) has issued a statement against the bill.

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Memphis Gaydar News

Anti-Transgender Bathroom Bill Killed For Now

A Tennessee bill that would have prohibited transgender students at public schools and universities from using the restrooms that correspond with their gender identity has been sent to summer study, meaning it’s essentially dead.

The Tennessee House Education Administration & Planning Committee voted to send HB2414 to study after the Tennessee General Assembly Fiscal Review Committee issued a fiscal note that stated, if passed, “federal funding to the state for education could be jeopardized.” Governor Bill Haslam has also expressed that the bill could endanger federal education funding. The state received $1 billion in federal funding for secondary and post-secondary education in this fiscal year.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee applauded the bill’s death.

“We applaud the House Education Administration & Planning Committee’s vote to stop this discriminatory bill from advancing any further,” said Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the ACLU of Tennessee. “The powerful voices of transgender students and their families who spoke out against this bill truly increased understanding of what it means to be transgender and moved legislators to recognize that this legislation was extremely harmful. Every child in Tennessee deserves to be treated with respect and dignity, which is why today’s vote is so important as we work to move Tennessee forward and ensure that all Tennessee children are treated equally under the law.”

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Memphis Gaydar News

Tennessee House Advances Anti-Transgender Bathroom Bill

Susan Lynn

A bill that would prevent transgender students from using the restroom that matches their gender identity passed a Tennessee House subcommittee on Tuesday afternoon and is up before the Senate education committee on Wednesday.

The bill would apply to students at public grade schools and universities, and the gender restrictions would extend to locker rooms as well.

Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has stated opposition to the bill, but it’s being pushed by ultra-conservatives Rep. Susan Lynn (R-Mt. Juliet) and Sen. Mike Bell (R-Riceville).

Similar legislation was passed in South Dakota last month, but it was vetoed by their Republican Governor Dennis Daugaard.

“The Tennessee House of Representatives education and planning subcommittee showed … that they only care about cis-gender students and not trans students,” said Victoria Hester, an opponent of the bathroom bill who observed the subcommittee meeting on Tuesday. “It goes to show how much lack of understanding and hate there is in this state in regards to transgender and gender non-binary individuals. A very sad day.”