Numerous states are considering legislation hurtful and harmful to our LGBTQ+ loved ones. We encourage you to visit the State Legislative Tracker from the ACLU (at aclu.org/legislation-affecting-lgbt-rights-across-country) to see the states with bills in alphabetical order. Freedom For All Americans also keeps tabs and lists bills in order of when committee hearings and votes are scheduled (https://www.freedomforallamericans.org/2020-legislative-tracker/). Be on the lookout for Action Alerts targeted for state actions during the coming weeks and months. Alabama - Bill banning trans children from sports participation advanced. House Bill 35 would force K-12 trans athletes to compete as their sex assigned at birth, instead of their true gender. The bill passed a House committee this week and will move on to the entire House. California - Proposed bill would allow access to rapid STI testing. Senator Scott Weiner introduced SB 932, which would authorize HIV counselors to perform rapid STI tests for syphilis as well as HIV, hepatitis C, and other STI combination tests. These tests are faster, more convenient, and less invasive, and Weiner believes more people will get tested as a result. Florida - Two men and one woman injured in ATV drive-by shooting. Clive Khouri, who sustained non-life threatening injuries after several men on ATVs opened fire on his car, said he thought the attack had taken place because the men had seen him kissing his boyfriend. The boyfriend was left in critical condition. A stray bullet struck a woman nearby, who was also gay. Idaho - Transgender sports bill heads to full House. The bill’s sponsor Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, a former high school and college basketball player who went onto a 15-year career as a college basketball coach, says it is not intended to be discriminatory but would protect girls and women from having to compete against biological males. Iowa - Proposed legislation requires parents to be notified of LGBTQ+- related curriculum. The bill would require schools to notify parents about any lesson or curriculum related to sexual orientation or gender identity and give parents the option to excuse their child from class. Proposed legislation requires couples to disclose sexual orientations. The legislation requires that couples indicate their sexual orientations on their marriage license application before a license could be granted. Misrepresentation or nondisclosure would constitute fraudulent concealment, which would be a factor used to determine custody for a child if the marriage were dissolved. Conversion therapy ban bill dies. Representative Bobby Kaufman, R-Wilton, stopped the bill he introduced from advancing this year, citing complaints from LGBTQ+ organizations about the bill’s phrasing. He says after continuing to work on the bill, he will reintroduce it next year. Kentucky - Governor makes history by attending LGBTQ+ rights rally. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear spoke about banning discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals in employment, housing, and public accommodations and supported a ban on youth conversion therapy. Maryland - House Committee holds hearing on name change bill. The proposed bill would waive the requirement for individuals who are changing their name to publish their old name and their current name in the newspaper. Many believe that this requirement has dangerous consequences for victims of domestic violence and transgender individuals. Maryland legislative committees hold hearings on panic defense bills. The Judiciary Committees in the Maryland House and Senate both held hearings bills that would ban the use of so-called LGBTQ panic defenses in court. Both bills ban the use of a crime victim’s actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity as a mitigating factor in the court. Ohio - Bill would criminalize gender affirming healthcare. After a bill in South Dakota was killed in the state Senate, Ohio Representatives Hood and Dean announced they would introduce a similar bill in Ohio that would make provision of gender affirming care a third degree felony for medical practitioners and open them to lawsuits. Proposed bill to ban conversion therapy. A bill in the Ohio House would ban the use of so-called ‘conversion therapy’ on minors. Several Ohio cities have already banned the practice and the state-wide ban has garnered bipartisan support. Oklahoma - Oklahoma moves towards banning conversion therapy. The Oklahoma House of Representatives has advanced a bill out of committee with bipartisan support that bans so-called ‘conversion therapy’ for minors. The bill will soon move to the full legislature for a vote. South Dakota - Anti-trans healthcare bill dead. After approval in the House, HB 1057 was voted down in the Senate. This bill would have criminalized providing affirming medical care to minors, threatening doctors who provide gender affirming surgeries, hormone treatments, or puberty blockers with jail time and fines. Virginia - Comprehensive nondiscrimination protections passed. Legislation outlawing discrimination against LGBTQ people in across contexts from housing to credit transactions. The measure also extends protections based on age, veteran status, and medical conditions such as pregnancy or childbirth. Virginia Senate passes conversion therapy ban. The Virginia Senate passed a bill prohibiting health care providers from engaging in so-called conversion therapy with minors. The bill passed the Virginia House of Delegates on February 3 and Governor Ralph Northam is now expected to sign it into law. A third bill to protect transgender youth in school is also on its way to the governor’s desk. The bill would require the state Department of Education to develop model policies for issues affecting transgender students. | 
