May 2025 Legislative Recap
What happened this month with anti-trans legislation
Disclaimer: The legislative status of these bills is subject to change. This list reflects the most recent updates as of May 31st, 2025. For the latest developments, check official government sources or advocacy organizations monitoring these policies.
As we gear up for Pride Month and move into the second half of 2025, we have seen unprecedented attacks on transgender people—both nationally and at the state-level.
According to the Trans Legislation Tracker, this year has already shattered records in anti-trans legislation:
This recap outlines the major bills, executive actions, and legal developments from the month of May. If you find this recap helpful, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to help support this trans BIPOC writer.
Without further ado, here’s what happened this month and where we currently stand:
Executive Orders and Additional Actions
H.R.1 (One Big Beautiful Bill Act)
A GOP-tax and immigration bill that prohibits federal Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funding for gender-affirming care for individuals of all ages, including hormone therapy, puberty blockers, and gender-affirming surgeries. Additionally, the bill amends the Affordable Care Act to exclude gender transition procedures from essential health benefits starting in 2027. Passed the House on May 22nd, 2025 by 215-214 vote and now moves to the Senate.
Bills Passed & Signed Into Law
Alabama
Senate Bill 101: Raises the medical age of consent from 14 to 16, requiring parental consent for any medical, dental, or mental health services to minors under 16. It bars health providers and government entities from denying parents access to a child’s health records. Exceptions allow minors under 16 to consent only for emergency care or in cases of pregnancy, STDs, or substance abuse treatment. Passed the House on May 7th, 2025 with a 85–0 vote, and the Senate concurred on May 14th, 2025. This bill was signed into law by Governor Kay Ivey on May 22, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Sen. Larry Stutts (R)
Georgia
Senate Bill 185: Prohibits the use of state funds or resources for gender-affirming care for inmates, including surgeries and hormone replacement therapy. Signed into law by Governor Brian Kemp on May 8th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
Montana
Senate Bill 218: Allows patients (or their guardians) to sue medical providers for up to 25 years after a minor received gender-affirming treatment if they later experience “any injuries” from that treatment. The bill was signed into law by Governor Greg Gianforte on May 13th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Sen. John Fuller
House Bill 400: Prohibits taking disciplinary action against students or public school employees who refuse to use names or pronouns that align with an individual's gender identity. Signed into law by Governor on May 1st, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Rep. Braxton Mitchell
House Bill 690: Amends child welfare statutes to ensure that a parent’s refusal to affirm a child’s gender identity cannot be considered abuse or neglect.
Sponsor(s): Rep. Bill Mercer
Texas
Senate Bill 1257: Requires health benefit plans that provide coverage for gender transition procedures to also cover treatment for any adverse effects and reversals, including follow-up procedures and therapy related to gender transition. Passed the House on May 12th, 2025, and signed by Governor Abbott on May 24th, 2025. This bill will go into effect on September 1st, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
Bills Introduced & Under Consideration
Iowa
Senate File 473: Allows foster care providers and adoptive parents to refuse placements or services due to “sincerely held religious or moral beliefs,” effectively permitting discrimination against LGBTQ+ youth or prospective parents. Passed the Senate but stalled in the House Judiciary Committee as of May 15th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Senate Health And Human Services Committee
House File 1049: Bans Medicaid funding for gender-affirming surgeries and hormone replacement therapy. Passed by the House on May 13th, 2025, with a 63–28 vote, and by the Senate on May 14th, 2025, with a 31–15 vote. Sent to Governor Kim Reynolds on May 22nd, 2025.
Sponsor(s): House Appropriations Committee
Michigan
House Bill 4066: Requires all public school sports teams to be designated as male, female, or co-ed based on students’ biological sex, and bars transgender girls from competing on girls’ sport teams.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
House Bill 4469: Amends the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to allow K–12 schools to base athletic participation strictly on “biological sex” without it being considered discrimination. Passed the House on May 22nd, 2025, with a 59-45 vote, and moved to the Senate.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
Missouri
House Bill 1053: Provides strict biological definitions of “male” and “female” solely by anatomy and genetics at birth.
Sponsor(s): Rep. Jamie Gragg
House Bill 1085: Requires schools to obtain parental consent before honoring students’ requests to use a different name or pronoun, which effectively bans any accommodations for transgender youth without parental support.
Sponsor(s): Rep. Jamie Gragg
House Bill 1354: Requires that student athletes compete according to the sex on their birth certificate in any school sports contests.
Sponsor(s): Rep. Lisa Durnell
House Bill 156 / House Bill 157: Companion bills that would codify biological definitions of “male” and “female” and prohibit gender markers other than “M” or “F” on state-issued documents. Introduced and referred to the House Emerging Issues Committee on May 15th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Rep. Justin Sparks
North Carolina
House Bill 560: Bars state authorities from treating a parent’s refusal to affirm a child’s transgender identity as abuse or neglect and protects foster and adoptive parents from legal action due to not affirming LGBTQ+ identities. Re-referred to Rules on May 12th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
House Bill 606: Extends the statute of limitations for medical malpractice lawsuits related to gender-affirming care for minors to 25 years after the patient turns 18 years of age. Passed the House on May 6th, 2025, with a 69-41 vote and sent to the Senate.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
Texas
House Bill 229: Defines "man" and "woman" based on reproductive anatomy, specifying that a "female" is someone whose biological reproductive system is developed to produce ova, and a "male" is someone whose biological reproductive system is developed to fertilize the ova of a female. Mandates that state documents reflect individuals' birth-assigned biological sex. Passed the House on May 12th, 2025, with an 87–56 vote and the Senate on May 28th, 2025, with a 20–11 vote. Bill was sent to Governor Greg Abbott on May 30th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
House Bill 1106: Amends the Texas Family Code to specify that a parent's refusal to affirm a child's gender identity or sexual orientation, including refusal to use a child's chosen name or pronouns, does not constitute child abuse or neglect under state law. Passed the House on May 14th, 2025, and the Senate on May 28th, 2025. Bill was sent to Governor Greg Abbott on May 30th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
Senate Bill 1188: Requires health care providers to include a patient's sex assigned at birth in medical records and allows parental access to a minor's health records. Passed the Texas House on May 23, 2025, and the Texas Senate concurred with House amendments on May 28, 2025. Bill was sent to Governor Greg Abbott on May 30th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, Rep. Greg Bonnen, Rep. Janis Holt and Rep. Cody Harris
Bills Struck Down
Arizona
Senate Bill 1002: Prohibits public schools from requiring or asking students to use pronouns that don’t align with a student’s sex assigned at birth without parental permission. Passed the House on May 1st, 2025, with a 31–27 vote. Vetoed by Governor Katie Hobbs on May 12th, 2025
Sponsor(s): Sen. John Kavanaugh
Senate Bill 1003: Requires public schools to provide separate restrooms/locker rooms by biological sex and forbid transgender students from using facilities matching their gender identity, instead offering “reasonable accommodations” (e.g. single-user facilities). Passed the Senate on May 1st, 2025, but vetoed by Governor Katie Hobbs on May 12th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Sen. John Kavanaugh
Senate Bill 1586: Allow patients (including minors that later reach adulthood) to sue medical providers for damages related to gender-affirming surgeries. Approved by the Senate on May 6th, 2025, but Governor Katie Hobbs vetoed it on May 12th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Multiple sponsors
House Bill 730: Allows the state to remove a child from parents’ custody if the child is “socially” or medically transitioning and the parents consented or facilitated it.
Sponsor(s): Rep. Lukas Schubert
Montana
Senate Bill 218: Allows patients (or their guardians) to sue medical providers for up to 25 years after a minor received gender-affirming treatment if they later experience “any injury” from that treatment. The bill was signed into law by Governor Greg Gianforte on May 13th, 2025.
Sponsor(s): Sen. John Fuller
Previous Legislative Recaps
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Nebraska just passed a trans sports ban this week too. 💔