North Dakota governor signs bill targeting transgender students
Rachel Schilke
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Gov. Doug Burgum (R-ND) signed a bill into law on Monday placing several restrictions on transgender students in North Dakota.
Under the bill, transgender students will be restricted from using bathrooms or locker rooms inconsistent with their sex at birth. Teachers will also be required to notify a parent or legal guardian if their student identifies as transgender and are not required to refer to the student by their preferred pronouns.
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The new law “largely codifies existing practices while reaffirming the First Amendment right to free speech,” Burgum said on Monday, per the Hill. The legislation balances the “rights and interests of students, parents, and teachers,” he said.
Monday’s bill passed the legislature with veto-proof majorities, so it would have become law without Burgum’s signature.
This is the latest set of anti-transgender legislation to pass in the United States as GOP-controlled legislatures nationwide seek to restrict transgender rights.
Burgum vetoed a similar bill with “concerning language” in March. It would have prohibited North Dakota teachers and government officials from recognizing “expressed gender,” which the governor said would have turned teachers into the “pronoun police” and set up the state for lawsuits.
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The North Dakota legislature ultimately sent eight anti-transgender bills to the governor’s desk on April 7. Five days later, Burgum signed bills banning biological men from participating in women’s sports from kindergarten through college. In 2021, Burgum vetoed a bill limiting transgender athletes’ participation in sports.
North Dakota became the fourth state to make providing gender-related treatment to transgender minors a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison and $20,000 in fines. Some Republicans and all Democrats voted against the bill.