Two bills focused on transgender issues advanced in the House of Delegates with some changes to each.
The bills are still assigned for review by the House Judiciary Committee with just a few days left in the regular legislative session. If the changes stand, the bills would go back to the Senate to agree or disagree.
The first, Senate Bill 299, would close narrow exceptions that allowed minors going through gender dysphoria to use medication affecting hormones if they are at risk of suicide or self-harm.
Those exceptions have been allowed only if the minor has been diagnosed with gender dysphoria by two doctors, if the doctors express written opinions that the treatment is medically necessary to limit self-harm or harm to others, if the minor and their parents or legal guardians agree, and if the medications are the lowest dose necessary.
Senate Bill 299 would forbid the use of specific kinds of medication to be used for gender transition for minors.
As the bill was originally introduced, violations would be considered unprofessional conduct and could be subject to discipline by licensing agencies — with legal recourse available, including actions by the Attorney General.
The House Health Committee voted for an amendment removing penalties and potential legal liability for medical professionals.
Delegate Mike Pushkin, D-Kanawha, said that made the bill better — but he said the bill is still bad.
“I think it’s made a very what could be a very harmful bill, slightly less harmful,” Pushkin said.
But he reminded the committee that the law was changed two years ago, allowing the narrow exemption for when two healthcare professionals deemed that a child was at risk of self-harm or suicidal.
“I don’t begin to pretend to know really much at all about this issue. I’m not a health care professional, far from it, but if it was simply a carve out to prevent suicide by children what are we doing, why are we getting rid of that little exemption?”
Another delegate, Republican Chris Anders of Berkeley County, spoke in favor of the bill, saying “this is a moral issue.”
“I’m going to vote to ban the use of puberty blockers on minors, and I do so knowing full well the gravity of this decision.” Anders said. “This is a defining issue, morally, medically and culturally.”
He continued, “I do not wish harm on anyone walking through this painful struggle, quite the opposite. I want them to know they were created with purpose and that their identity, body and soul, was not a mistake.”
Earlier, the House Education Committee made a big change to SB154, a bill prohibiting sexual orientation instruction in public schools, and then advanced it. It is still assigned for review by the House Judiciary Committee with just a few days left in the regular legislative session.
S. B. 154 would prohibit instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in schools, whether it is offered as part of a health education class or program or as part of any other class or program.
The bill also prevents schools from providing misleading information to parents about a student’s gender identity or transition intentions. It mandates that school employees report student requests for gender affirmation accommodations to administrators, who must then inform the student’s parents.
An original version of the bill allowed parents to take legal action against schools that violate these provisions, and organizations representing educators expressed concern about lack of due process.
The amendment adopted by the committee removed the civil action provisions, replacing them with state board policies and suspension/dismissal codes.
There were several attempts in the Education Committee meeting to table the bill, but they were defeated.