Governor Chris Sununu has signed two significant anti-transgender measures into law last week, affecting both health care and sports for transgender minors.
The first measure, House Bill 619, prohibits transgender minors from undergoing transition-related surgeries and bars doctors from referring patients to out-of-state facilities for such procedures. However, it does not restrict access to other forms of gender-affirming care like puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy. This law, signed on Friday, will take effect at the beginning of next year.
The second measure, House Bill 1205, mandates that students in grades 5 through 12 must compete in school sports based on the gender listed on their birth certificates. This law is set to be enforced starting next month.
Proponents of these laws argue that minors are not mature enough to make decisions about life-changing surgeries and that transgender girls might have physical advantages in sports compared to cisgender girls.
Governor Sununu defended the legislation, stating, “New Hampshire always takes a balanced approach, and HB 619 and 1205 reflect commonsense, bipartisan solutions that reflect the values of parents across our state. The vast majority of Granite Staters share in this approach — because it is fair, balanced, and void of political considerations.” He also emphasized, “By enacting these measures, we continue to uphold the principles of safety, fairness, and common sense for all our citizens.”
On the same day, Sununu vetoed a bill that would have restricted transgender people from using bathrooms and locker rooms corresponding to their gender identities.
With Sununu’s signing, New Hampshire joins 25 other states with laws limiting or banning transgender students’ participation in sports that match their gender identity. In total, 26 states now have laws restricting or banning transition-related care for minors, according to the Movement Advancement Project (MAP), an LGBTQ rights organization.
Idaho was the first state to enact such restrictions on sports participation in 2020, and Arkansas was the first to limit gender-affirming care in 2021. These recent developments reflect the rapid adoption of Republican policies on these issues, which have been debated in state legislatures in recent years.
Chris Erchull, a staff attorney at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), commented before Sununu signed the bills, “There’s been a strong nationwide push to block access to medical care for transgender people and to pass laws impacting their rights to live publicly, access health care, and attend school. This political movement has influenced New Hampshire politics, leading to the passage of such legislation.”
This legislative shift marks a significant change for Governor Sununu, who previously supported anti-discrimination protections for transgender residents in employment, education, housing, and public spaces during his terms in 2018 and 2019.
