Montana lawmakers have amended a bill to define sex as binary in state law with language proposed by Gov. Greg Gianforte for a separate bill.
The House Judiciary Committee passed Senate Bill 458 as amended out of committee on Tuesday. It contains wording from Gianforte’s amendments to a separate bill that would ban gender-affirming care for transgender minors. The governor voiced support for the policy while offering the new language he says will include people with biological or genetic conditions who don’t fit in a binary definition.
That language is also now contained in the bill to define sex, which defines male and female based on whether a person produces eggs or sperm and would amend 40 sections of state law.
Democrats argue the bill will eliminate legal recognition of transgender, nonbinary and Two Spirit Montanans. Republicans argue the bill is necessary to make state law more clear. The addition of language that Gianforte proposed adds to the bill’s momentum as it continues to advance in the statehouse.
The bill will move next to the House floor for debate.