Abbott signs Texas ‘bathroom bill’ limiting restroom access for transgender people

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signed a bill Monday that will require transgender Texas residents to use bathrooms in certain public spaces according to their sex assigned at birth. 

The law, passed by the Texas House via a 86-45 vote on Aug. 28, applies to government-owned buildings, including public schools and universities. It includes restrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms and shower rooms, which it defines as “multi-occupancy private spaces.”

It also instructs the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to “ensure inmates are housed in a correctional facility, including a dormitory or cellblock of a correctional facility, according to the inmate’s sex.” 

Under the law, Texas family violence shelters are barred from providing services to transgender women, unless they are 17 years old or younger and the child of a woman receiving services. 

Prior to its passage, an amendment offered by five Republican representatives raised fines for entities violating the law to $25,000 for first offenses and $125,000 for subsequent offenses. The initial fines were $5,000 for initial offenses and $25,000 for subsequent offenses. 

The amendment was adopted by a 84-41 vote. 

The law includes exceptions for certain cases, including custodial and maintenance purposes, to accompany an individual in need of assistance, law enforcement actions and children nine years old entering a space alongside a caretaker.

In a post on the social platform X, Abbott called the ban “a common sense public safety issue.” The law will go into effect on Dec. 4. 

When the bill was passed on Aug. 28, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Texas called it “unconscionable and unconstitutional” in a release. 

“Texans, including the transgender community, should be able to safely use public facilities that align with our gender identities as a basic matter of respect, safety, and privacy,” the ACLU added.

Including Texas, seven states ban transgender people from using bathrooms according to their gender identity in all government-owned buildings, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Thirteen other states limit transgender people from using bathrooms consistent with their gender identity in some government-owned buildings.