GOP Senators To Reintroduce “Save Women’s Sports” Act
Aims to ensure female students competing in high school, college sports have a “level playing field”
December 2, 2024
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Aims to ensure female students competing in high school, college sports have a “level playing field”
Ten Republican female senators have joined forces to reintroduce the so-called “Save Women’s Sports Act” that was originally proposed during the 2021-22 legislative session.
Primary co-sponsors Sen. Judy Ward (R-Blair/Fulton/ Huntingdon/Juniata/Mifflin) and Sen. Kristin Phillips-Hill (R-York) say they want to “ensure that female students compete in high school and college sports on a level playing field,” thereby ensuring that the increased athletic opportunities that female students have achieved will be preserved.
The legislation states that school athletic teams designated for women “may not be open to those of the male sex.” It goes on to say that “sex” is defined as the “biological distinction between male and female, based on reproductive biology and genetic make-up.”
“It’s imperative that we protect the opportunity for female athletes to compete on the athletic field in a fair and equal manner,” wrote the co-sponsors. “Allowing a biological male to compete on a women’s scholastic athletic team puts all women on the playing field at an automatic disadvantage.”
The controversy over transgender athletic participation continues to spill into the nation’s courts. A women’s volleyball player from San Jose State (Calif.) University filed two lawsuits arguing her teammate should not be on the team. An associate head coach for the program filed a Title IX complaint against the head coach and joined a lawsuit that says the team’s victories should be vacated.
The senior player played girls’ club and high school volleyball before playing four seasons of women’s college volleyball, and she has never been an All-American or contended for a national championship. Until this season, there has been no public outcry about safety or fairness related to her. But now her participation is the topic of debate on national talk shows and the subject of multiple lawsuits, and the president-elect has criticized her play.
The previous Pennsylvania bill – HB 972 – passed the state House by a 115-84-1 vote and the state Senate, 30-20, before being vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf.
“This discriminatory legislation would prohibit transgender girls and women from participating on women’s athletic teams or sports,” wrote Wolf in his veto. “Even if enacted, this bill would face legal challenges for violating federal law and constitutional guarantees of equal protection. To the LGBTQ+ community in Pennsylvania and around the country, and especially our transgender and nonbinary youth and young people; I see you, I support you, I respect you, and I stand with you.”
“Maintaining separate, biologically specific teams will ensure opportunities for women athletes, while fulfilling the goals of Title IX,” read the new co-sponsorship memo. “Title IX was designed to end discrimination and create equal athletic opportunities for women. Allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports threatens to undo the progress we’ve witnessed since the enactment of Title IX.
“Athletic competitions give women the opportunity to demonstrate their strength and skill, while also providing opportunities for recognition ranging from accolades to college scholarships. By opening women’s sports to includes males, we take away those opportunities from our women and girls who have worked tirelessly to achieve the equality they deserve.”
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) policy, established nearly three years ago, calls for transgender participation for each sport to be determined by the policy for the national governing body (NGB) of that sport, subject to ongoing review and recommendation by the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports to the Board of Governors. If there is no NGB policy for a sport, that sport’s international federation policy would be followed. If there is no international federation policy, previously established IOC policy criteria would be followed.
New Title IX regulations that became effective on August 1 state that “Sex discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity. This expanded definition shifts the focus from sexual harassment to sex-based harassment more broadly.”
In addition, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act require equitable access to sports for transgender, nonbinary, and intersex students.
“Students have the right to participate in school sports activities consistent with their gender identity; to deny students this right is discrimination on the basis of sex and gender identity under Title IX and the PHRA.”
A representative from the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA), the governing body that oversees scholastic sports in the Commonwealth, said the organization did not have a comment at this time.
Ward and Phillips-Hill were joined by Sens. Kim Ward (R-Westmoreland), Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne/Pike/Susquehanna/ Wayne/Wyoming), Michele Brooks (R-Crawford/Lawrence/ Mercer), Camera Bartolotta (R-Beaver/Greene/Washington), Tracy Pennycuick (R-Berks/Montgomery), Rosemary Brown (R-Lackawanna/Monroe/Wayne), Lynda Schlegel Culver (R-Columbia/Luzerne/Montour/Northumberland/Snyder), and Dawn Keefer (R-Cumberland/York) as sponsors.
Ten Republican female senators have joined forces to reintroduce the so-called “Save Women’s Sports Act” that was originally proposed during the 2021-22 legislative session.
Primary co-sponsors Sen. Judy Ward (R-Blair/Fulton/ Huntingdon/Juniata/Mifflin) and Sen. Kristin Phillips-Hill (R-York) say they want to “ensure that female students compete in high school and college sports on a level playing field,” thereby ensuring that the increased athletic opportunities that female students have achieved will be preserved.
The legislation states that school athletic teams designated for women “may not be open to those of the male sex.” It goes on to say that “sex” is defined as the “biological distinction between male and female, based on reproductive biology and genetic make-up.”
“It’s imperative that we protect the opportunity for female athletes to compete on the athletic field in a fair and equal manner,” wrote the co-sponsors. “Allowing a biological male to compete on a women’s scholastic athletic team puts all women on the playing field at an automatic disadvantage.”
The controversy over transgender athletic participation continues to spill into the nation’s courts. A women’s volleyball player from San Jose State (Calif.) University filed two lawsuits arguing her teammate should not be on the team. An associate head coach for the program filed a Title IX complaint against the head coach and joined a lawsuit that says the team’s victories should be vacated.
The senior player played girls’ club and high school volleyball before playing four seasons of women’s college volleyball, and she has never been an All-American or contended for a national championship. Until this season, there has been no public outcry about safety or fairness related to her. But now her participation is the topic of debate on national talk shows and the subject of multiple lawsuits, and the president-elect has criticized her play.
The previous Pennsylvania bill – HB 972 – passed the state House by a 115-84-1 vote and the state Senate, 30-20, before being vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf.
“This discriminatory legislation would prohibit transgender girls and women from participating on women’s athletic teams or sports,” wrote Wolf in his veto. “Even if enacted, this bill would face legal challenges for violating federal law and constitutional guarantees of equal protection. To the LGBTQ+ community in Pennsylvania and around the country, and especially our transgender and nonbinary youth and young people; I see you, I support you, I respect you, and I stand with you.”
“Maintaining separate, biologically specific teams will ensure opportunities for women athletes, while fulfilling the goals of Title IX,” read the new co-sponsorship memo. “Title IX was designed to end discrimination and create equal athletic opportunities for women. Allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports threatens to undo the progress we’ve witnessed since the enactment of Title IX.
“Athletic competitions give women the opportunity to demonstrate their strength and skill, while also providing opportunities for recognition ranging from accolades to college scholarships. By opening women’s sports to includes males, we take away those opportunities from our women and girls who have worked tirelessly to achieve the equality they deserve.”
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) policy, established nearly three years ago, calls for transgender participation for each sport to be determined by the policy for the national governing body (NGB) of that sport, subject to ongoing review and recommendation by the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports to the Board of Governors. If there is no NGB policy for a sport, that sport’s international federation policy would be followed. If there is no international federation policy, previously established IOC policy criteria would be followed.
New Title IX regulations that became effective on August 1 state that “Sex discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity. This expanded definition shifts the focus from sexual harassment to sex-based harassment more broadly.”
In addition, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act require equitable access to sports for transgender, nonbinary, and intersex students.
“Students have the right to participate in school sports activities consistent with their gender identity; to deny students this right is discrimination on the basis of sex and gender identity under Title IX and the PHRA.”
A representative from the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA), the governing body that oversees scholastic sports in the Commonwealth, said the organization did not have a comment at this time.
Ward and Phillips-Hill were joined by Sens. Kim Ward (R-Westmoreland), Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne/Pike/Susquehanna/ Wayne/Wyoming), Michele Brooks (R-Crawford/Lawrence/ Mercer), Camera Bartolotta (R-Beaver/Greene/Washington), Tracy Pennycuick (R-Berks/Montgomery), Rosemary Brown (R-Lackawanna/Monroe/Wayne), Lynda Schlegel Culver (R-Columbia/Luzerne/Montour/Northumberland/Snyder), and Dawn Keefer (R-Cumberland/York) as sponsors.
Ten Republican female senators have joined forces to reintroduce the so-called “Save Women’s Sports Act” that was originally proposed during the 2021-22 legislative session.
Primary co-sponsors Sen. Judy Ward (R-Blair/Fulton/ Huntingdon/Juniata/Mifflin) and Sen. Kristin Phillips-Hill (R-York) say they want to “ensure that female students compete in high school and college sports on a level playing field,” thereby ensuring that the increased athletic opportunities that female students have achieved will be preserved.
The legislation states that school athletic teams designated for women “may not be open to those of the male sex.” It goes on to say that “sex” is defined as the “biological distinction between male and female, based on reproductive biology and genetic make-up.”
“It’s imperative that we protect the opportunity for female athletes to compete on the athletic field in a fair and equal manner,” wrote the co-sponsors. “Allowing a biological male to compete on a women’s scholastic athletic team puts all women on the playing field at an automatic disadvantage.”
The controversy over transgender athletic participation continues to spill into the nation’s courts. A women’s volleyball player from San Jose State (Calif.) University filed two lawsuits arguing her teammate should not be on the team. An associate head coach for the program filed a Title IX complaint against the head coach and joined a lawsuit that says the team’s victories should be vacated.
The senior player played girls’ club and high school volleyball before playing four seasons of women’s college volleyball, and she has never been an All-American or contended for a national championship. Until this season, there has been no public outcry about safety or fairness related to her. But now her participation is the topic of debate on national talk shows and the subject of multiple lawsuits, and the president-elect has criticized her play.
The previous Pennsylvania bill – HB 972 – passed the state House by a 115-84-1 vote and the state Senate, 30-20, before being vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf.
“This discriminatory legislation would prohibit transgender girls and women from participating on women’s athletic teams or sports,” wrote Wolf in his veto. “Even if enacted, this bill would face legal challenges for violating federal law and constitutional guarantees of equal protection. To the LGBTQ+ community in Pennsylvania and around the country, and especially our transgender and nonbinary youth and young people; I see you, I support you, I respect you, and I stand with you.”
“Maintaining separate, biologically specific teams will ensure opportunities for women athletes, while fulfilling the goals of Title IX,” read the new co-sponsorship memo. “Title IX was designed to end discrimination and create equal athletic opportunities for women. Allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports threatens to undo the progress we’ve witnessed since the enactment of Title IX.
“Athletic competitions give women the opportunity to demonstrate their strength and skill, while also providing opportunities for recognition ranging from accolades to college scholarships. By opening women’s sports to includes males, we take away those opportunities from our women and girls who have worked tirelessly to achieve the equality they deserve.”
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) policy, established nearly three years ago, calls for transgender participation for each sport to be determined by the policy for the national governing body (NGB) of that sport, subject to ongoing review and recommendation by the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports to the Board of Governors. If there is no NGB policy for a sport, that sport’s international federation policy would be followed. If there is no international federation policy, previously established IOC policy criteria would be followed.
New Title IX regulations that became effective on August 1 state that “Sex discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity. This expanded definition shifts the focus from sexual harassment to sex-based harassment more broadly.”
In addition, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act require equitable access to sports for transgender, nonbinary, and intersex students.
“Students have the right to participate in school sports activities consistent with their gender identity; to deny students this right is discrimination on the basis of sex and gender identity under Title IX and the PHRA.”
A representative from the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA), the governing body that oversees scholastic sports in the Commonwealth, said the organization did not have a comment at this time.
Ward and Phillips-Hill were joined by Sens. Kim Ward (R-Westmoreland), Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne/Pike/Susquehanna/ Wayne/Wyoming), Michele Brooks (R-Crawford/Lawrence/ Mercer), Camera Bartolotta (R-Beaver/Greene/Washington), Tracy Pennycuick (R-Berks/Montgomery), Rosemary Brown (R-Lackawanna/Monroe/Wayne), Lynda Schlegel Culver (R-Columbia/Luzerne/Montour/Northumberland/Snyder), and Dawn Keefer (R-Cumberland/York) as sponsors.
Ten Republican female senators have joined forces to reintroduce the so-called “Save Women’s Sports Act” that was originally proposed during the 2021-22 legislative session.
Primary co-sponsors Sen. Judy Ward (R-Blair/Fulton/ Huntingdon/Juniata/Mifflin) and Sen. Kristin Phillips-Hill (R-York) say they want to “ensure that female students compete in high school and college sports on a level playing field,” thereby ensuring that the increased athletic opportunities that female students have achieved will be preserved.
The legislation states that school athletic teams designated for women “may not be open to those of the male sex.” It goes on to say that “sex” is defined as the “biological distinction between male and female, based on reproductive biology and genetic make-up.”
“It’s imperative that we protect the opportunity for female athletes to compete on the athletic field in a fair and equal manner,” wrote the co-sponsors. “Allowing a biological male to compete on a women’s scholastic athletic team puts all women on the playing field at an automatic disadvantage.”
The controversy over transgender athletic participation continues to spill into the nation’s courts. A women’s volleyball player from San Jose State (Calif.) University filed two lawsuits arguing her teammate should not be on the team. An associate head coach for the program filed a Title IX complaint against the head coach and joined a lawsuit that says the team’s victories should be vacated.
The senior player played girls’ club and high school volleyball before playing four seasons of women’s college volleyball, and she has never been an All-American or contended for a national championship. Until this season, there has been no public outcry about safety or fairness related to her. But now her participation is the topic of debate on national talk shows and the subject of multiple lawsuits, and the president-elect has criticized her play.
The previous Pennsylvania bill – HB 972 – passed the state House by a 115-84-1 vote and the state Senate, 30-20, before being vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf.
“This discriminatory legislation would prohibit transgender girls and women from participating on women’s athletic teams or sports,” wrote Wolf in his veto. “Even if enacted, this bill would face legal challenges for violating federal law and constitutional guarantees of equal protection. To the LGBTQ+ community in Pennsylvania and around the country, and especially our transgender and nonbinary youth and young people; I see you, I support you, I respect you, and I stand with you.”
“Maintaining separate, biologically specific teams will ensure opportunities for women athletes, while fulfilling the goals of Title IX,” read the new co-sponsorship memo. “Title IX was designed to end discrimination and create equal athletic opportunities for women. Allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports threatens to undo the progress we’ve witnessed since the enactment of Title IX.
“Athletic competitions give women the opportunity to demonstrate their strength and skill, while also providing opportunities for recognition ranging from accolades to college scholarships. By opening women’s sports to includes males, we take away those opportunities from our women and girls who have worked tirelessly to achieve the equality they deserve.”
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) policy, established nearly three years ago, calls for transgender participation for each sport to be determined by the policy for the national governing body (NGB) of that sport, subject to ongoing review and recommendation by the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports to the Board of Governors. If there is no NGB policy for a sport, that sport’s international federation policy would be followed. If there is no international federation policy, previously established IOC policy criteria would be followed.
New Title IX regulations that became effective on August 1 state that “Sex discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity. This expanded definition shifts the focus from sexual harassment to sex-based harassment more broadly.”
In addition, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act require equitable access to sports for transgender, nonbinary, and intersex students.
“Students have the right to participate in school sports activities consistent with their gender identity; to deny students this right is discrimination on the basis of sex and gender identity under Title IX and the PHRA.”
A representative from the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA), the governing body that oversees scholastic sports in the Commonwealth, said the organization did not have a comment at this time.
Ward and Phillips-Hill were joined by Sens. Kim Ward (R-Westmoreland), Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne/Pike/Susquehanna/ Wayne/Wyoming), Michele Brooks (R-Crawford/Lawrence/ Mercer), Camera Bartolotta (R-Beaver/Greene/Washington), Tracy Pennycuick (R-Berks/Montgomery), Rosemary Brown (R-Lackawanna/Monroe/Wayne), Lynda Schlegel Culver (R-Columbia/Luzerne/Montour/Northumberland/Snyder), and Dawn Keefer (R-Cumberland/York) as sponsors.
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