Georgia lawmakers plan to introduce legislation in the 2025 session to prohibit transgender students from competing on sports teams or using locker rooms that align with their gender identity. This follows recommendations from the Special Committee on the Protection of Women’s Sports, commissioned by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and chaired by Sen. Greg Dolezal (R-Cumming), who emphasized the need for “competitive fairness” in athletics.
“This recommendation goes in one direction,” said Dolezal. “It’s recognizing that we should not have men playing in female sports because we recognize that men are the ones that have the biological advantages.”
The proposed legislation would revoke the Georgia High School Association’s (GHSA) authority to regulate transgender athletes and require public schools and universities to enforce participation based on biological sex. Schools refusing to comply could face loss of state funding. Dolezal expressed a commitment to fairness, stating, “We can both treat people respectfully, but we can also have an eye towards fairness in the legislative process.”
Critics argue the committee’s process was biased, with Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, calling it “unfair” and asserting, “It’s unfair to require that any group of people come before a legislative body to defend their humanity and defend their very identity.” He also noted, “We still, after all these years, have not identified transgender athletes that are taking opportunities away from any other athlete here in Georgia.”
The GHSA has already prohibited transgender high school athletes from competing on teams aligning with their gender identity since 2022. However, the committee’s report reflects a broader push to legislate restrictions on transgender rights, with past efforts including failed bills to ban puberty blockers for transgender youth.
Despite opposition, lawmakers like House Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) support limiting transgender athletes’ participation in girls’ sports, potentially increasing the likelihood of the legislation passing in 2025. LGBTQ advocates, however, remain concerned. Graham warned, “We are anticipating that this is the beginning of another rough legislative session for the LGBT community… We will work as hard as we possibly can to show the humanity of the transgender community.”
