The Pennsylvania State Senate passed the “Save Women’s Sports Act” on Tuesday by a 32-18 vote.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Judy Ward (R-Blair/Fulton/ Huntingdon/Juniata/Mifflin), says that “school athletic teams designated for women may not be open to those of the male sex. The legislation defines “sex” as the biological distinction between male and female, based on reproductive biology and genetic make-up.”

Senate Bill 9 requires public schools and colleges to label sports teams as male, female or coed. The legislation states that only biological females can join teams designated for women. The bill also allows students to take legal action if they are harmed by violations of this rule.

“Sport has never been separated based on gender identity, said Ward. “Rather, it has been separated by biological sex, and this legislation ensures that that remains true in the future. We cannot allow these opportunities that women fought so hard for to be lost, and we must protect the opportunities for our female athletes that sports provides. How many more women have to lose at the hands of a man before we act? Does it have to be your daughter that loses for it to matter?”

The 90-minute debate on the floor became heated at times, as Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) called out the proceedings as purely political.

“We know why it’s being considered today. This is a political issue. You all know it. We know it, and it’s something that’s not necessary. So to that end, you know this bill is not going anywhere in the house. You know it’s not going anywhere near the governor’s desk. This is simply being done for political reasons.”

Sen. Dawn Keefer (R-York), one of the bills’ co-sponsors, responded by telling the senators that the “bill isn’t anti-anything. It’s pro-women.”

She did inaccurately invoke a story involving University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines, who has become one of the most outspoken critics of trans women participating in women’s athletics. Keefer claimed that despite tying University of Pennsylvania trans swimmer Lia Thomas in the NCAA 200-yard freestyle, the fifth-place trophy was presented to Thomas rather than Gaines. The senator said that Gaines “was told to shut up and step aside,” citing that as an example of women being bullied.

The NCAA had one fifth-place trophy for the event. Per NCAA policy, in a case of a tie, the trophy is presented to the older athlete in terms of years of competition.

“This bill is long overdue, and I’ll continue to stand with women and to protect the rights that we have fought for over five decades,” said Keefer. “For asking women to take a back seat and check their biological reality for the feelings of biological men is unacceptable. We must protect the rights of women to compete fairly and safely protecting the opportunities safety of biological women is absolutely an issue. Women are being harmed, and shaming them into silence is unacceptable. It’s time to protect women’s sports. We need to pass this bill.”

At a congressional hearing in December, NCAA President Charlie Baker said that there are fewer than 10 transgender athletes out of over 500,000 student that participate in collegiate athletics within the Association.

Numerous athletes at both the amateur and professional levels have spoken out in support of their transgender teammates and competitors – including Women’s World Cup champion soccer player Megan Rapinoe, tennis icon Billie Jean King, Stanford swimmer Brooke Forde, NBA star Dwyane Wade, Canadian soccer phenom Erin McLeod, WNBA star Napheesa Collier, Dawn Staley, Head Coach of the NCAA Championshipiwinning University of South Carolina women’s basketball team.

Sen. Lindsey Williams (D-Allegheny) spoke on the Senate floor about her experience in defending trans athletes.

“What I didn’t anticipate was death threats. I didn’t anticipate hundreds of calls and emails and social media posts from people around the country threatening to slit my throat, put me through a meat grinder or simply punch me in the face,” said Williams. “The most violent comments were from men, men who were so upset that I didn’t vote for a quote protecting women in sports bill that they threatened to physically assault me.

She continued by sharing lessons taught by her parents.

“They taught me that you should never stand on the side of the bully. They taught me to always help the person getting bullied. So if the President of the United States, the richest man in the world, and the majority in this chamber want to continue to bully trans kids, this is where I will continue to be. I will always be on the side of the kid who just wants to play ball with their friends and with the parents who simply want to see their child live to be an adult.”

Sen. Maria Collett (D-Montgomery) criticized the Republican majority in the chamber for bringing up SB9 as “a calculated distraction from the urgent crises facing Pennsylvanians, a distraction that serves only to divide us and divert attention from the real issues that demand our focus.”

While Republicans continued to come to the podium to stand up for fair competition for women, some Democrats took their time to talk about the impact on transgender individuals – not just trans athletes.

Five Democrats crossed the aisle to vote in support of SB9 – Sens. Christine Tartaglione (D-Philadelphia), Nick Miller (Lehigh/Northampton), Lisa Boscola (D-Lehigh/ Northampton), Marty Flynn (D-Lackawanna/ Luzerne), and James Malone (D-Lancaster).

The bill now advances to the state House where it is expected to find choppy waters in the Democrat majority chamber.

This is a breaking story and will be updated.