ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – One of the 2024 presidential election’s central issues is about to return to the Georgia legislative session’s forefront on Tuesday when House Speaker Jon Burns will unveil legislation he said is designed to protect girls in sports.
One of the state’s most influential lawmakers, the Newington Republican will unveil his bill during a 1:30 p.m. Tuesday news conference at the state capitol.
Along with immigration, the issue of transgender participation in sports was a central theme of now-President Donald Trump’s successful campaign to reclaim the White House in one of the most stunning political comebacks in American history.
Both Burns and Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones promised to prioritize banning transgender women and girls from competing in women’s school sports ahead of the current legislative session. Jones has said Senate Republicans will seek a ban at the college level, as well as in high school athletics.
In 2022, according to the Associated Press, the General Assembly left it up to the Georgia High School Association to make decisions about transgender women and girls in sports. The association, mostly made up of public high schools, then banned transgender women and girls from participating in its sports events.
Last year, the Georgia Senate Protecting Women’s Sports study committee held hearings on the issue. Its members said they were considering an all-out legislative ban on transgender participation in youth sports.
According to the Movement Advancement Project, more than half of U.S. states have passed legislation banning or restricting who can participate in sports.
After only two weeks in office, Trump has already signed an executive order banning transgender service members.
Trump banned transgender people from serving in the military when he was president in 2017, but former President Joe Biden repealed the ban in 2021. He has also signed an executive order directing the nation’s military to end any diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, programs.
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