New Hampshire has become the latest state to ban body-mutilating sex-change surgeries from being performed on minors and prohibit boys from competing in girls-only sports and athletic competitions.

More than half of the states across the U.S. have passed laws banning experimental trans procedures from being performed on youth or have banned men and boys from competing in women’s sports, or both.  

On Monday, New Hampshire’s Republican Gov. Chris Sununu signed House Bill 619 and House Bill 1205 into law. House Bill 619, passed by the Republican-controlled New Hampshire House of Representatives in a 199-175 vote and the Republican-controlled Senate in a 13-10 vote, prohibits doctors from performing sex-change surgeries on children and teens exhibiting gender dysphoria. It is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2025. 

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For the most part, support for the legislation came down along party lines, with nearly all Republicans voting in favor of it and nearly all Democrats opposing it. No member of the New Hampshire Senate broke from their party, while 14 Democrats in the New Hampshire House supported the measure and three Republicans opposed it. Unlike similar laws passed in many other states, the legislation does not prohibit prescribing body-deforming puberty blockers or opposite-sex hormones to children and teens suffering from confusion about the sex. 

New Hampshire joins 25 other states that have banned the some or all trans-procedures from being performed on minors younger than 18. The other states include: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming. 

The push to prohibit surgeons from performing body-mutilating trans surgeries, such as castration and elective hysterectomies, comes amid concerns about the lifelong  physical, mental and emotional trauma that comes which such procedures being performed on otherwise healthy youth. As Sununu said in a statement announcing his approval of the bill, “There is a reason that countries across the world — from Sweden to Norway, France, and the United Kingdom — have taken steps to pause these procedures and policies.”

Chloe Cole, a detransitioner who once self-identified as male but saw her gender dysphoria subside as she got older, has emerged as one of the most prominent voices advocating against performing such body-deforming procedures on children and teens. 

A lawsuit filed last year details how Cole experienced suicidal thoughts after having an elective surgery to remove her breasts as a young girl in an attempt to look more like a boy. She said the rush to “affirm” her as a boy and perform irreversible cosmetic surgeries left “deep physical and emotional wounds, severe regrets, and distrust of the medical system.” 

The other bill approved by Sununu, House Bill 1205, prohibits trans-identified male student athletes in grades 5-12 from competing in girls’ sports. The measure was approved by the New Hampshire House of Representatives in a 189-182 vote, while the Senate passed it 13-10 earlier this year. It is slated to take effect 30 days after passage.

As with House Bill 619, support for the legislation fell along party lines in the Senate. However, one House Republican broke with her party to oppose it and one House Democrat broke with his party to support it. 

New Hampshire joins 25 additional states that have implemented laws and/or regulations requiring athletes to compete on sports teams that correspond with their sex instead of the self-declared, chosen gender identity: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming. 

Efforts to ensure that only females compete in women’s sports stem from concerns about how the biological differences between men and women give men and boys an unfair advantage when it comes to athletics.

Anecdotal evidence of trans-identified male athletes breaking women’s sports records when competing on women’s sports teams, most notably in the case of former collegiate swimmer Lia (Will) Thomas, has served as a call to action for state legislatures.

A study from the British Journal of Sports Medicine shows that males’ advantages over females in athletics do not diminish even after two years of taking feminizing hormones. 

Sununu praised the bills he signed into law as “commonsense, bipartisan solutions that reflect the values of parents across our state.”

He added, “The vast majority of Granite Staters share in this approach — because it is fair, balanced, and void of political considerations. By enacting these measures, we continue to uphold the principles of safety, fairness, and common sense for all our citizens.” 

DOVER — Former Dover fire chief Perry Plummer has been tapped to serve as the city department’s interim leader as current Chief Michael McShane is away on extended family and medical leave, according to the city. 

Plummer, a 25-year veteran of the Dover Fire Department, served as the city’s chief from 2002 until 2011. Appointed by City Manager Michael Joyal Jr., Plummer’s 10-week-long interim deal will be up for approval at Wednesday’s City Council meeting. 

Plummer, 65, would be paid $2,949.91 by the city for working 39 hours each week, per the terms of his deal. The former chief’s first day back overseeing the station was last Monday, July 15. 

“Some days it feels like I never left, and other days it’s like I’ve never been here,” Plummer said of the Dover Fire Department. “But everyone has been fantastic. It’s like coming home for me after all this time.”

Plummer’s second chapter leading Dover fire crews is now his third time leading a New Hampshire municipal fire department on an interim basis. His recent stints with local departments includes a brief stop in Rochester before the city hired Dennis Dube as its chief, in addition to leading the Salem Fire Department for a time. 

This instance is different, as Plummer stepped in after the former fire chiefs in Rochester and Salem retired, while McShane will return from his extended leave.

Upon McShane’s return, Plummer will revert back to retirement, a stage of life he admittedly hasn’t fully committed to in recent years.

“Obviously it’s an honor to come in and be able to help the department I love and provide some assistance to Chief McShane and his department,” Plummer said Monday. “It’s an honor to be asked to lead departments of such high quality, whether it’s Dover, Rochester or Salem.” 

The interim chief’s new Dover contract notes he won’t be eligible for paid leave or paid time off for holidays, nor will he accrue it, while he is employed by the city. 

The Dover resident’s career in the city firefighting force began in 1986. He left the department in 2011 to lead the New Hampshire Department of Safety’s Division of Fire Standards and Training and Emergency Medical Services. Plummer in 2012 became the director of the state’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management agency and then worked as assistant commissioner at the state Department of Safety.

Plummer stayed busy after that, helping lead New Hampshire’s efforts to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine to residents. 

McShane began working with Dover Fire & Rescue in 2005, hired by none other than Plummer. McShane has served as the city’s fire chief and emergency management director since the winter of 2022. 

The city’s interim fire chief expects to remain with the Dover department for a few weeks following McShane’s return. 

“This is really where I feel most comfortable,” Plummer said. 

Plummer’s appointment as interim chief and McShane’s extended leave of absence coincides with the previously-planned retirement of assistant fire chief David Hanna this month, according to the city.

Granite State also to restrict access to female athletic competitions in certain grades to only biological girls.

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu signed into law a bill that restricts sex-change surgeries on minors, along with a bill that restricts access to female athletic competitions in certain grades to only biological girls. 

“As the debate over [these bills] has played out in Concord and throughout the state, charged political statements have muddled the conversation and distracted from the two primary factors that any parent must consider: safety and fairness for their children,” Sununu said in a statement. 

“These two factors have been my primary consideration in reviewing these bills,” the governor added.

Sununu vetoed a third bill related to transgender policies. 

The vetoed legislation would have ended the state’s anti-discrimination protections for people who identify as transgender. This would have permitted public and private entities to restrict bathroom and locker room access based on biological sex rather than self-asserted gender identity.

House Bill 619, which goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2025, prohibits doctors from performing “genital gender-reassignment surgery” on anyone under the age of 18.

This includes a ban on internal and external gender transition surgeries. For boys, this ban includes removal of genitals and surgical interventions to make the genitals appear similar to a female. For girls, this ban includes the removal of ovaries or other surgeries that alter the genitals and make the genitals appear similar to a male.

“This bill focuses on protecting the health and safety of New Hampshire’s children and has earned bipartisan support,” Sununu said. “There is a reason that countries across the world — from Sweden to Norway, France and the United Kingdom — have taken steps to pause these procedures and policies.”

However, New Hampshire’s restrictions do not go as far as many other Republican states. The law still allows other transgender surgeries, such as the removal of healthy breasts in girls and the addition of prosthetic breasts in boys to facilitate a sex change. The state will also continue to allow doctors to prescribe puberty-blocking drugs and hormone therapy to facilitate a sex change in minors.

The ban on genital surgery is enforced through licensing agencies. Minors or parents will also be permitted to sue doctors who perform banned surgery on minors. 

House Bill 1205 ensures that only biological girls will be allowed to participate in female sports competitions in grades 5 through 12. The legislation does not affect lower grades or college sports.

The legislation requires that sports competitions for those grades be classified as either “male,” “female” or “coed.” Only biological males can participate in “male” competitions, only biological females can participate in “female” competitions, and both can participate in “coed” competitions.

Per the legislation, a biological male who identifies as transgender could not participate in a sports competition reserved for girls.

“[This legislation] ensures fairness and safety in women’s sports by maintaining integrity and competitive balance in athletic competitions,” Sununu said. “With this widely supported step, New Hampshire joins nearly half of all U.S. states in taking this measure.”

Any student who is deprived of an athletic opportunity based on a violation of the law or who faces retaliation for reporting a violation will be allowed to sue the school for damages.

This bill goes into effect 30 days following the governor’s signature.