Bathroom bill passes Kansas House

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – Restrooms and locker rooms in public buildings would be limited to biological gender only under a bill approved Wednesday in the Kansas House.

The 87-36 vote followed nearly six hours of debate.

The bill also requires drivers licenses and birth certificates to reflect a person’s biological gender at birth. The Kansas Court of Appeals struck down a previous gender marker requirement that was part of another law.

Read and track the bill here.

The bathroom requirements were added to the bill during a committee hearing Tuesday afternoon. The proposal does not preclude a gender neutral, single-person restroom facility or a family restroom.

The lack of a formal hearing on the new provision was cited by some in their opposition to the bill.

“There’s no public input in the Senate. There’s no testimony from your municipalities that you live in that are going to have to deal with the fallout and ramifications,” Rep. Dan Osman, D-Overland Park, said.

Other representatives disputed that argument.

“I know for some of you, this may be a brand new bill, you’ve never heard this topic, you’ve never seen it discussed in the legislature, but I can tell you it’s not new. Things like this have come up. We’ve had many conversations,” said Rep. Charlotte Esau, R-Olathe.

Supporters say the policy is about safety and ensuring official documents match biological gender. They also cite privacy, especially for women and girls.

“They deserve environments that respect those boundaries without forcing them to negotiate privacy in moments when they should not have to,” Rep. Megan Steele, R-Manhattan, said.

However, opponents say the bill discriminates against people who are transgender.

“Trans Kansans are not a threat to anyone,” said Rep. Tobias Schlingensiepen, D-Topeka. “There are a lot of people in Kansas, who will be emboldened by this kind of legislation and other kinds of legislation to harass transgender people.”

A motion to send the bill back to committee failed.

The bill would still need approval from the Senate.

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