On Tuesday, House Democrats in Pennsylvania blocked the advancement of several bills aimed at preventing transgender women from participating in women’s sports. The Protect Women’s Sports Act, the Save Women’s Sports Act, and the Dads Defending Daughters Act were moved out of the House Education Committee and reassigned to the Judiciary Committee without prior notice. Senate Bill 9 had previously been sent to the House Health Committee.
All Democratic members of the committee supported this decision.
State Representative Barb Gleim (R-Cumberland), who authored House Bill 158 and serves on the committee, criticized the move. She stated: “Why are House Democrats afraid to debate an issue which 80% of Pennsylvanians support? Why are three clearly education-related pieces of legislation now buried in and incorrectly assigned to the House Judiciary Committee? When will House Democrat leaders allow their members to vote to protect women and girls in sports?
“These bills regulate interscholastic and intercollegiate sports and have nothing to do with legislation handled by the House Judiciary Committee. Democrats are trying to fool Pennsylvanians with a political tactic that allows them to avoid going on record to support or oppose protecting women’s sports and curtail free speech and local representation.
“It’s a commonsense issue that should justly and fairly be decided by the General Assembly. Senate Bill 9 advanced with bipartisan support, a fact that will obviously need to be addressed in the House this session. It’s time to stand with the overwhelming majority of Pennsylvanians who want fair play in PA and protection from physical and mental harm for girls who deserve to have the opportunities afforded under Title IX.
“House Republicans have and will continue to state our case in support of female athletes. We challenge our House Democrat colleagues to do the same.”
The bills focus on regulating participation in school sports based on biological sex, an issue that has drawn attention both within Pennsylvania’s legislature and across other states.
