Kansas will no longer change transgender people’s birth certificates to reflect their gender identities, the state health department said Friday, citing a new law that prevents the state from legally recognizing those identities.

The decision from the state Department of Health and Environment makes Kansas one of a handful of states that won’t change transgender people’s birth certificates. It already was among the few states that don’t change the gender marker on transgender people’s driver’s licenses.

Those decisions reverse policies that Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s administration set when she took office in 2019. They came in response to court filings by conservative Republican state Attorney General Kris Kobach to enforce the new state law. Enacted by the GOP-controlled Legislature over Kelly’s veto, it took effect July 1 and defines male and female based only on the sex assigned to a person at birth.

  • n2burns
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    1 year ago

    I’m also not from the US, but I can’t think of any laws/regulations that should be sex-based. Sex is often used as placeholder where a more specific term or definition would be more accurate. Sometimes, it should simply be replaced with the term gender, such as in discrimination and balanced hiring laws. Other times, such as in maternity leave, the option might be limited to AFAB, but there’s a more specific and accurate definition like, “a person who gave birth”.