Transgender Kansans File Lawsuit To Block Sweeping New State ID and Bathroom Law

Two transgender residents of Kansas have filed a lawsuit seeking to block a sweeping new state law that immediately invalidated hundreds of driver’s licenses and restricts public bathroom usage. The plaintiffs, filing under the pseudonyms Daniel Doe and Matthew Moe and represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, are asking the court to declare the law unconstitutional and halt its enforcement. They argue it strips transgender Kansans of their right to operate vehicles and access public spaces without due process.The ACLU’s lawsuit claims the measure violates guarantees of equality, privacy, and due process under the Kansas constitution, stating that the law was “meant to discriminate against and dehumanize transgender people.”“This legislation is a direct attack on the dignity and humanity of transgender Kansans,” Monica Bennett, the legal director of the ACLU of Kansas, said in a statement. “It undermines our state’s strong constitutional protections against government overreach and persecution.”The law, known as SB 244, was approved last month after the Republican-controlled legislature successfully overrode a veto from Governor Laura Kelly, a Democrat. It went into effect on Thursday.By defining “gender” exclusively as a person’s biological sex at birth, the legislation requires that state-issued identification and birth certificates reflect that assignment. State officials estimate that as many as 1,700 driver’s licenses and about 1,800 birth certificates will be invalidated.State lawmaker Abi Boatman, Kansas’ only transgender lawmaker, criticized the new law. “The intended effect was to unequivocally let the trans community know that they are not safe or welcome in Kansas,” Ms. Boatman said in a statement. “It is a literal one-stop-shop bill of hate.”The legislation also includes a provision that critics have dubbed a “bathroom bounty.” It requires transgender individuals to use restrooms and locker rooms aligning with their sex assigned at birth when inside government buildings, schools, and courthouses. The law establishes steep fines for agencies and allows anyone who feels “aggrieved” by a transgender person’s presence in these spaces to sue for up to $1,000 in damages.Conservative lawmakers who championed the bill argue it is necessary to protect women and girls. Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson praised the override of Ms. Kelly’s veto, saying that “common sense has prevailed.”“SB 244 restores sanity in Kansas,” Mr. Masterson said in a statement. “We swiftly overrode Laura Kelly’s radical veto that would have forced our mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters to share their bathrooms with biological men in government buildings.”Republican lawmaker Bob Lewis also supported the measure, saying it “codifies societal norms” and ensures that “public spaces used for private purposes will be single-sex and that a person’s identification documents will accurately reflect their biological sex.”The governor referred to the legislation as “poorly drafted” when she issued her initial veto. “I believe the legislature should stay out of the business of telling Kansans how to go to the bathroom and instead stay focused on how to make life more affordable for Kansans,” she said.

Transgender Kansans File Lawsuit To Block Sweeping New State ID and Bathroom Law

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