DETAILS ON TEXAS ‘BATHROOM BILL’ UNVEILED

  

Senator Lois W. Kolkhorst and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick unveiled legislation Thursday that would require people to use the bathrooms based on their birth genders in public schools and state and local government facilities.

At a news conference in Austin, Sen. Kolkhorst- who authored Senate Bill 6, also known as the Texas Privacy Act- and Lt. Gov. Patrick gave details on the bill which is expected to spur a battle over transgender rights.

Under the proposed bill, businesses in Texas could create their own bathroom policies, and local governments would be barred from passing ordinances that interfered with them.

The bill would also create civil penalties against school districts or government entities that didn’t designate dressing rooms, locker rooms, and bathrooms for use based on a person’s biological sex listed on their birth certificate.

While a similar “Bathroom Bill” in North Carolina spurred a backlash last year, Senator Kolkhorst says this bill “is written not to begin a controversy, but to end one.”

"The Texas Privacy Act is a thoughtful solution to a sensitive issue. It preserves an expected level of privacy for our public schools and buildings. At the same time, it also allows for schools and universities to make personal accommodations for those requesting an alternate setting. Senate Bill 6 also allows Texas businesses to determine their own policy without government interference” said Kolkhorst.

Kolkhorst said the bill is unique to Texas in that it also enhances the penalties for a litany of crimes committed in a bathroom against any individual, regardless of their sex or gender identity.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, lawmakers in six other states (Alabama, Missouri, South Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky and Washington) have pre-filed or introduced legislation that would base access to bathrooms on birth gender.