The Tennessee Statehouse, controlled by a Republican supermajority, has passed legislation that penalizes adults who help minors receive gender-affirming care without parental consent. This proposal is the first of its kind in the nation and has now been sent to Governor Bill Lee for his signature. The bill is similar to a previous anti-abortion trafficking proposal passed by Tennessee Republican lawmakers. Supporters believe that these laws are necessary to protect parental rights, while critics fear the broad implications of such legislation, which could potentially include penalties for helping young people access care in states with more lenient regulations.
The bill, sponsored by Republican Rep. Bryan Richey, originally included criminal penalties for violators but was amended to include civil penalties instead. Richey emphasized that the legislation is meant to protect parental rights and ensure that parents have the final say in the medical procedures their children receive. Governor Bill Lee, who has a history of signing similar bills into law, has not publicly commented on the legislation, but supporters are confident that he will approve it. Tennessee has enacted a series of anti-LGBTQ+ laws in recent years, with more than 20 bills advancing through the Legislature. These laws have targeted a range of issues, from banning state funding for hormone therapy to requiring public school employees to disclose information about transgender students to their parents.
The Human Rights Campaign has criticized Tennessee lawmakers for their actions, calling the onslaught of anti-LGBTQ+ laws a “staggering assault on their own constituents.” The state has also passed a measure allowing LGBTQ+ foster children to be placed with families that hold anti-LGBTQ+ beliefs, a move that has been met with backlash from advocacy groups. While Republican-led states have been pushing to ban gender-affirming care for minors, some Democratic-led states have taken steps to protect health care providers who offer services that are banned in a patient’s home state. Maine recently signed a bill protecting providers of abortion and gender-affirming care from legal action brought by other states, leading to disagreements between state attorneys general.
The proposal in Tennessee has sparked a dispute between Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey and attorneys general from other states, including Tennessee. While some have threatened legal action over the new law, Frey has dismissed these threats as “meritless.” Despite the push to restrict gender-affirming care for minors in several states, no state has yet implemented such restrictions. The legislation in Tennessee reflects a larger trend among Republican-led states to limit access to gender-affirming care, while Democratic-led states have taken steps to protect providers and patients from legal repercussions. As the debate over these laws continues, advocacy groups and lawmakers will be closely monitoring the implementation and impact of such policies on LGBTQ+ communities.
