California Rejects Bills to Ban Transgender Athletes from Girls' Sports

Lawmakers uphold the state’s 2013 law allowing sports participation based on gender identity, despite federal pressure and internal party divisions.

California legislators voted down two Republican-backed bills that sought to ban transgender athletes from participating in girls' sports teams based on their gender identity.
One bill, AB 89, aimed to mandate the California Interscholastic Federation to prohibit students assigned male at birth from competing on girls' sports teams.
The second bill, AB 844, proposed reversing the state’s 2013 law that allows students to participate in sex-segregated programs based on their gender identity.
Governor Gavin Newsom has expressed concerns about fairness in sports but has not called for reversing the 2013 law, highlighting divisions within the Democratic Party.
The U.S. Department of Education is investigating California’s policies on transgender student privacy and athletic participation, raising concerns about potential federal funding cuts.