Self-care note: While some of the following stories celebrate and affirm LGBTQ+ people, many cover legislation targeting the LGBTQ+ community, particularly trans and nonbinary youth. Please be kind to yourself and use your discretion while reading this section. Advisory: State news is representative but not exhaustive due to space constraints; feel free to forward news about your state to [email protected] to consider for inclusion. District of Columbia - Councilmember introduces bill to study trans and gender diverse deaths in the district. Councilmember Brooke Pinto’s (D-Ward 2) bill would create a special committee to determine and study trends related to the cause of death of transgender and gender diverse people in the District. Some LGBTQ+ activists have expressed concerns about the bill, arguing the resources to implement it would be better spent elsewhere and that the committee could violate the privacy of deceased trans people and their families. Maryland - Deep funding cuts for HIV programs to go into effect this summer. Ryan White program funds Maryland gets from the federal government are being cut by 76%. AIDS Action Baltimore and other partners sent a letter to the Maryland Department of Health asking them to give at least 12 months of bridge funding using state discretionary funds to make up the budget shortfalls HIV support service providers will face. Mississippi - Gov. Reeves signs anti-trans bathroom ban into law. The legislation mandates that the state’s schools have single-sex restrooms, changing rooms and dormitories. Its text narrowly defines someone’s sex as sex assigned at birth. New Hampshire - Anti-trans legislation met with opposition from dads. Anti-equality legislators have introduced several bills this session to limit the rights of trans youth, including banning them from playing school sports. Self-identified conservative dads have come to the State Capital to oppose these bills and talk about how important sports were to their trans kids. New York - Judge strikes down Nassau County executive order banning trans athletes from county facilities. Judge Francis Ricigliano ruled that Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman didn't have the authority to deny park permits to women’s and girl’s teams, leagues, and organizations that allow trans women athletes to participate. Same-sex couple files class-action lawsuit against New York City for denying them in-vitro fertilization benefits. Corey Briskin and Nicholas Maggipinto planned on having children via a surrogate, but they cannot qualify for IVF insurance coverage under New York City’s health care plan. The couple argues that they are being discriminated against on the basis of sexual orientation because same-sex couples cannot meet the definition of infertility which would entitle them to IVF benefits. Ohio - Trans candidates support bill to change name change disclosures on candidacy forms. Under current Ohio law, candidates must list any prior name they’ve used in the last five years on their candidacy petitions, which caused issues for several trans candidates for office this year. Some of those candidates are publicly supporting a bill which would end the requirement that candidates disclose previously used names if they obtained a legal name change. Pennsylvania - Pennridge School District votes to overturn anti-trans bathroom ban. By a 5-to-4 vote, the school board adopted a policy to provide separate bathrooms for students and faculty use based on gender identity as well as single use restrooms. Utah - State Auditor criticizes new anti-trans bathroom ban. State Auditor John Dougall released a statement saying he didn't sign up to become a "bathroom monitor" and then posted a video to X, formerly known as Twitter, saying "If this bill were actually about making girls safer, you would think that the legislature would actually spend some money retrofitting bathrooms and providing greater privacy and greater safety.” | 
