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Abbott Signs Texas Birth-Sex Bathroom Law Covering Schools, Prisons and Shelters

Opponents plan legal challenges, citing steep fines and an attorney-general complaint process.

Overview

  • The law takes effect Dec. 4, 2025, requiring use of restrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms and showers in government-owned facilities based on the sex listed on a birth certificate, with limited exceptions for law enforcement, custodial work and medical assistance.
  • It applies to public schools and universities and directs the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to house inmates according to birth sex in jails and prisons.
  • Women’s domestic violence shelters are barred from serving people assigned male at birth, with an exception only for minor children of women receiving services.
  • Institutions, not individuals, face civil penalties of $25,000 for a first violation and $125,000 for subsequent violations after a late House amendment increased the fines.
  • Enforcement can be prompted by private complaints to the attorney general; Abbott called the policy “common sense,” while civil-rights and LGBTQ groups label it discriminatory and warn of “gender policing,” and Texas becomes the 20th state with some form of bathroom restriction.