Idaho Governor Signs 2 Bills into Law Denying Trans People Basic Rights

Idaho is facing a pair of lawsuits after its governor signed two of the nation’s harshest anti-transgender bills into law.

On Monday, Republican Gov. Brad Little approved two bills that had been met with widespread opposition. House Bill 500 bans transgender girls from playing on school sports teams in alignment with their gender identity, while House Bill 509 blocks trans people from correcting their birth certificates to match the person they know themselves to be. Forty local and national businesses, including Hewlett-Packard and Verizon, signed onto an open letter opposing the legislation, while Idaho’s own attorney general warned their passage could open up the state to costly litigation.

That is precisely what Idaho can now expect, according to Lambda Legal. Peter Renn, an attorney with the legal advocacy group, said that HB 509 is in direct violation of a 2018 court order which said the state cannot “automatically and categorically” prevent trans people from updating their birth documents.