Ohio lawmakers have passed a bill that would ban students who identify as transgender from using bathrooms and locker rooms of the opposite sex.
invoice, Are known House Bill 183 (HB 183) was introduced by state Representatives Beth Leah (R-Ill.) and Adam Byrd (R-Ill.), Added According to the Ohio Capital Journal, the amendment was introduced in Senate Bill 104 (SB 104) by a vote of 60-31.
Responding to the bill signed on Wednesday, Lear said men and women would not be allowed in “locker rooms” or bathrooms together and “would not be permitted to share lodgings.”
“Boys and girls should not share locker rooms together,” Lear said in a statement, “or use bathrooms together, or spend the night together.”
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (Republican) stated “I will sign the bill,” he said. The bill now heads to the Ohio Senate for consideration when lawmakers return after November.
Under the bill, students who identify as transgender and attend elementary, middle, and high schools and universities in the state would be allowed to use only the restrooms and locker rooms that correspond to the sex they were assigned at birth.
The media noted that the bill would not apply to “people providing assistance to persons with disabilities” or “parents providing assistance to children under the age of 10.”
The bill would not prohibit schools from having single-room facilities and would not apply to people assisting people with disabilities or children under the age of 10 who are supported by a parent, guardian or family member.
During debate on the House floor, several Ohio Democrats criticized the bill, calling it a “contrived issue.”
House Minority Leader Allison Russo, a Democrat, accused Republicans of focusing on the “wrong” issues.
“Once again, I think we’re focusing on the wrong thing,” Russo said. “There’s a lot of work that needs to be done for our district, our schools and our students, but this organization continues to focus on a small group of kids and target them and bully them over and over again.”
“Some school districts are unable to provide bus service to transport students and teachers to classrooms, but after a nearly 12-hour session focused on bathrooms, here we are,” Russo wrote in the X post.
Some school districts can’t afford bus service to transport students and teachers to classrooms, but after a roughly 12-hour bathroom-focused session, here we are. #Ohio
— Allison Russo 🌻 (@Russo4Ohio) June 27, 2024
State Assemblywoman Beryl Brown Picolantonio (D) said the bill targets “some of the most marginalized students.”
Governors in states including Louisiana and Mississippi have signed bills banning students in public schools and public buildings from using restrooms that do not match their biological sex.
