Arkansas will no longer allow residents to write “X” instead of male or female on state-issued driver’s licenses or identification cards, officials announced Tuesday.
The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration announced it would eliminate rules that allowed license holders to change their gender or use “X” in place of gender “without verifiable information.” These rules were implemented in 2010 to allow transgender, nonbinary, or intersex residents to change the gender listed on their driver’s license or ID.
Republican Gov. Sarah said, “This policy is common sense. Only women should give birth, and men should not play women’s sports. There are only two genders. As long as I am governor, the Arkansas government will continue to make nonsense.” I don’t support that.” Huckabee Sanders.3
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Arkansas will no longer allow residents to use “X” in place of male or female on state-issued driver’s licenses or identification cards, officials say Tuesday, March 12, 2024, under new rules. It was announced on . Mr Sanders defended the new rules as “common sense”. (Pool photo via Al Drago/AP)
Any rule changes must be approved by the Arkansas General Assembly’s Legislative Committee. If the policy goes ahead, all previously issued licenses and IDs with the “X” mark will remain valid until their existing expiry date, the ministry said. Residents must update their gender when renewing their driver’s license or ID card.
The move is the latest effort by Republican states to legally define sex as binary, which critics say is discriminatory against transgender and non-binary people and that intersex people, or They argue that it creates uncertainty for people born with chromosomes, external genitalia, or otherwise internal reproductive systems. It is considered to be typical of men or women.
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Critics of the policy argue that removing the “X” option from driver’s licenses and state IDs discriminates against transgender and non-binary people, and that intersex people, both men and women, are discriminatory against transgender and non-binary people. They also argue that it creates uncertainty for people with atypical sexual characteristics. (Adobe Stock)
“This proposed policy would deny non-binary and intersex Arkansans identification documents that reflect their true selves, placing them in a category that is not representative of their identities,” the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas said in a statement. “By forcing them, we are trying to erase their existence.” .
At least 22 states and the District of Columbia allow “X” as an option for licenses and IDs. There are more than 2.6 million valid driver’s licenses in Arkansas, 342 of which are marked with an “X.” The state has approximately 503,000 IDs, 174 of which have an “X” designation.
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A legislative committee in the Arkansas General Assembly must approve changes to driver’s license and state ID rules. (Don & Melinda Crawford/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
DFA Secretary Jim Hudson said the canceled policy is not supported by state law and has not gone through the public comment process or legal review required by state law.
“The changes announced today reflect a common-sense approach to ensuring that the licenses and identification documents issued by the State of Arkansas are based on objective and verifiable information.” Jim Hudson said. “Law enforcement, other government agencies, caregivers, schools, and businesses all rely on DFA-issued licenses and IDs to keep our communities safe and prevent fraud.”
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
