CHEYENNE—A proposed Wyoming bill defining “woman” and “man” passed its first committee hearing Wednesday morning, already making progress beyond that of a similar bill filed last year.
Rep. Jayme Lien (R-Casper) brought back the “What is a Woman Act,” a bill first introduced by former Rep. Jeanette Ward of Casper. Ward’s bill failed to get the necessary two-thirds introductory vote to be considered in the budget session. Lien’s bill passed through its hearing in the House Labor, Health and Social Services Committee with flying colors, with a single “no” vote from the sole Democratic member, Rep. Mike Yin (D-Jackson).
Yin asked Lien the same question he had for Ward about the bill last year during the committee meeting.
“(The bill) says ‘Notwithstanding any other provision of law,’ so meaning that it applies to basically every single law in the state,” Yin said. “But I’m not sure what laws we have specific to ‘male’ and ‘female.’”
The representative clarified he was not aware of any Wyoming statute to prevent a man from using a women’s restroom. Lien answered there is currently no legislation on bathrooms, but there is another proposed bill by Rep. Martha Lawley (R-Worland) that specifically pertains to bathrooms and women’s spaces.
HB 72, “Protecting women’s privacy in public spaces act,” prohibits transgender women’s access to “sex-designated restrooms, showers, sleeping quarters and locker room facilities at public facilities.”
“There’s currently not a statute on the book,” Lien said. “There is proposed legislation (HB 72) in this session, and I’m hopeful that it will also come before this committee, and then we may be able to get it passed.”
An amendment was successfully adopted in Lien’s bill so the definitions of “male,” “female” and “biological sex” are consistent with those in HB 72.
How would this work?
Those who testified against the bill questioned the reality of putting this legislation into place. Wyoming Equality Executive Director Sarah Burlingame asked exactly what law enforcement’s role would be in making sure those who use the restroom do so in accordance with the law.
“Who will the state hire to check the genitals of children and adults? Who will they compel to see a doctor that they don’t want to see?” Burlingame said. “And do we, as Wyoming citizens, believe that that was the role of the state?”
Wyoming Equality Communications Coordinator Santi Murillo, who is transgender, said she felt uncomfortable being forced to use a male restroom. Murillo said she’s faced harassment from both cisgender men and women, and asked lawmakers to consider the impacts this bill would have on transgender women.
“If I am to use the men’s restrooms, men’s locker rooms, that puts me in a level of danger,” Murillo said. “Please, I ask you to oppose this bill and think of the safety of the trans individuals in the state.”
Greyson Sanchez-Hall, a transgender man, expressed similar concerns about harassment. Both Murillo and Sanchez-Hall said they have used restrooms in the Capitol with the gender they’ve identified with for years and never experienced a problem.
“I’ve been transitioning for a little over five years now, and if I walk into a women’s restroom, I am pegged as a man. That makes women uncomfortable,” Sanchez-Hall said. “I never intend to make women uncomfortable, so I use the men’s restroom.”
‘Transgender agenda’
Gays Against Groomers spokesman Richard Guggenheim spoke in support of Lien’s bill, arguing that the “transgender agenda” has promoted homophobic ideologies. Gays Against Groomers is a national organization that advocates against “the sexualization, indoctrination, and mutilation of children under the guise of radical ‘LGBTQIA+’ activism,” according to its website. The Southern Poverty Law Center labels the organization as an anti-LGBTQ group.
Guggenheim said the transgender agenda implies it is better for a child to transition to the opposite sex than to be gay or lesbian.
“The transgender agenda is fundamentally homophobic, misogynist and harmful to the freedom and liberties of all of us,” Guggenheim said.
“Gender ideology and queer theory seeks to compel our speech and strip women of their right to consent and say no to men in their bathrooms, locker rooms, on their fields and courts and in their prisons.”
Public testimony in support of the bill expressed concern for protecting female spaces and sports teams. Many said there is a safety issue in cisgender women competing with transgender athletes and sharing locker rooms with transgender people.
A sorority sister who was part of a lawsuit against Kappa Kappa Gamma was among those who testified before the committee. In 2023, seven sorority sisters filed a lawsuit against KKG over the admittance of a transgender woman in their chapter at the University of Wyoming.
Hannah Holtmeier, a plaintiff in the case who has since transferred to the University of Nebraska, told committee members how uncomfortable it was to see a transgender sorority sister in her house.
“I believe that everyone deserves a safe space where they can relax and open up to others who understand them,” Holtmeier said. “For me, that space was my sorority house. … When men start to infiltrate these intimate spaces, women are exposed to and forced into uncomfortable situations.”
A federal judge dismissed the case on the grounds the government cannot interfere with determining the membership of a private organization like Kappa Kappa Gamma.
It’s been a shock to learn that there are people in our state and federal legislatures who actually spend time pondering and worrying about the genitalia of the people in an adjoining bathroom stall. In my 73 years using public restrooms I have never once given that a thought despite knowing since the 70s that there are transgender people. Whatever happened to our Wyoming value of live and let live?
The testimony on this bill made it clear that it had nothing to do with “protecting” women – this an anti- trans bill. Some of the testimony was ridiculous and some of it was just disheartening and sad.
WY lacks docs to deliver babies and jobs to keep our kids here, and the state’s one political party is preoccupied with genitals. Go cowboys!
Time to vote Lien out of office-just like her buddy from Illinois.
I know what a women is, and also what a man is…..I don’t need anybody in government to cram this down my throat. I don’t need or want tax payers money and legislative time spent on nonsensical social issues that we, as mature intelligent people can handle on our own. Don’t create laws that can not be enforced, and stop trying to pass idiotic laws that are supposedly offered with the caveat that they are trying to “protect” me. Horse Pucky! Ms Lien, take a close look in the mirror, are you the one that would be “uncomfortable”, or are you simply a pawn used to advance unnecessary, unenforceable legislation. Freedom Caucus might stand for smaller government, but also longer overreach. Wake up Wyoming, if it ain’t broke; don’t fix it!
Are we all going to have to get DNA tested to go to the bathroom?
Sad State of Society that it has come to this.
Agreed. This is such a non-issue in this state and a gigantic waste of time by out elected officials. We have much larger issues in this state that need to be tackled other than who’s in what bathroom.
Here’s the thing, it’s a bathroom. Who cares? We all use the same bathroom on airplanes with no issues as we do in a lot of places with unisex bathrooms. This is a giant waste of time in a legislative session with a finite amount of time that should be used to address things like our ambulance service shortage. You know, those things that come to save you when you’re dying. I’m pretty sure most, if not all voters in this state care more about things like that, not who’s in the bathroom stall next to them.
well said and on point.