Utah House Bill 11
| Utah House Bill 11 | |
|---|---|
| Utah Legislature | |
| Citation | [1] |
| Territorial extent | Utah |
| Enacted by | Utah House of Representatives |
| Enacted by | Utah Senate |
| Vetoed by | Spencer Cox |
| Vetoed | March 15, 2022 |
| Veto overridden | March 25, 2022 |
| Abrogated | August 19, 2022 |
| Legislative history | |
| First chamber: Utah House of Representatives | |
| Introduced | December 13, 2021 |
| First reading | January 18, 2022 |
| Second reading | February 14, 2022 |
| Third reading | February 16, 2022 |
| Second chamber: Utah Senate | |
| Received from the Utah House of Representatives | February 17, 2022 |
| First reading | February 17, 2022 |
| Second reading | March 3, 2022 |
| Third reading | March 4, 2022 |
| Final stages | |
| Reconsidered by the Utah House of Representatives after veto | March 25, 2022 |
| Reconsidered by the Utah Senate after veto | March 25, 2022 |
| Status: Blocked | |
Utah House Bill 11 (HB 11) is a 2022 law in the state of Utah that prohibits transgender girls from competing in women's school sports. It was vetoed by Governor Spencer Cox on March 15, 2022,[1] but was overridden on March 25, 2022.[2][3][4] It was blocked by a temporary injunction from the Third District Court of Utah on August 19, 2022, preventing the enforcement of House Bill 11.[5][6][7] As of June 2025, the lawsuit is still pending a final decision.[8][9][10] Only four transgender children are known to have been playing in sports in Utah at the time House Bill 11 passed.[11][12]
Provisions
House Bill 11 generally prohibits transgender girls from competing in girls' sports. More specifically, it restricts access for anyone grades K–12.[13] If a student's gender marker does not align with the sport they wish to compete in, a commission would be organized to determine eligibility, mostly based on physical characteristics.[14]
Reactions
Opposition
Multiple protests were organized in opposition to House Bill 11. A major protest was held outside of the Utah State Capitol on February 25, 2022, the day Cox's veto was overridden.[15][16] Over a thousand students walked out on April 6.[17]
Spencer Cox
The Governor of Utah at the time of passage of House Bill 11, Spencer Cox, opposed the bill and promised to veto it.[18] He stated that he did not support a total ban on transgender athletes.[19][20] He also stated that were "several fundamental flaws" with the bill.[21] Cox would later go on to say part of his motivation to veto House Bill 11 was due to high transgender suicide rates.[22]
See also
References
- ^ Cox, Spencer (2022-03-22). "Here's Utah Gov. Cox's statement on vetoing the transgender sports bill". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Medina, Eduardo (2022-03-25). "Utah Legislature Overrides Governor's Veto of Transgender Athlete Bill". The New York Times. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Cox, Spencer (2022-03-25). "Gov. Cox addresses legislative action regarding House Bill 11". Office of the Governor of Utah. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Vandenack, Tim (2022-03-28). "Schultz: Appeals by Utah moms, girls propelled override of transgender bill veto". Standard Examiner. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ "Roe v. Utah High School Activities Associaton". ACLU of Utah. 2022-05-31. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ McCombs, Brady; Metz, Sam (2022-08-19). "Utah judge reverses law banning transgender girls from sports". PBS News. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Afshar, Paradise (2022-08-20). "Judge grants preliminary injunction allowing transgender girls to compete on girls' teams in Utah". CNN. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Woodruff, Daniel (2022-08-10). "Judge declines to dismiss lawsuit over Utah transgender sports ban". KUTV 2. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ de la Cretaz, Frankie (2024-02-15). "Opinion: Utah incident reveals this inherent threat in anti-trans efforts to 'protect' girls in sports". CNN. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Riedel, Samantha (2023-09-13). "Trans Teens Challenging Utah's Sports Ban Ordered to Share Their Medical Records". Them. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Christen Jones, Zoe (2022-03-25). "Utah legislature overrides Governor Spencer Cox's veto to ban transgender athletes from girls sports". CBS News. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Tanner, Courtney (2022-04-18). "She's 13, transgender and stopped swimming because of Utah's law against athletes like her". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Thatcher, Leslie (2022-06-01). "HB 11 - banning transgender school-aged girls from playing youth sports - will be tested in court". KPCW. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Hutson, Sonja (2022-02-14). "'No one's happy' with Utah's latest transgender student-athlete eligibility bill". KUER. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Olander, Daedan (2022-03-25). "Protesters say Utah's transgender sports bill is an act of legislative 'violence'". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Winslow, Ben (2022-02-25). "Protest outside the Capitol over transgender student athlete bill". FOX13 Salt Lake City. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Crombleholme, Hayley; Woodruff, Daniel; Jacobson, Matthew (2022-04-06). "West High Students stage walkout in protest to Utah trans athlete bill". KJZZ 14. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Woodruff, Daniel (2022-03-04). "Gov. Cox promises to veto transgender athlete bill when it reaches his desk". CBS Austin. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Winslow, Ben (2022-03-05). "Cox to veto bill banning transgender children from sports". FOX13 Salt Lake City. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Cabrero, Alex (2022-03-05). "Utah Senate, House pass controversial transgender sports bill in final hours of session". KSLTV 5. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Bojórquez, Kim; Schott, Bryan (2022-03-22). "Utah lawmakers to meet Friday to override Gov. Cox's veto on bill to ban transgender girls in female school sports". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
- ^ Branigin, Anne (2022-03-23). "Utah Gov. Cox vetoes transgender athlete bill, citing suicide rates". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2025-06-29.