New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu has recently put his signature on laws that prohibit gender-related genital surgeries for minors and block trans-identifying boys from participating in girls’ sports. The bill regarding gender surgeries offers disciplinary action against doctors who perform such procedures on children or refer them elsewhere for such surgeries. However, it does not address other gender surgeries, puberty blockers, or cross-sex hormones that some minors undertake.
Furthermore, Governor Sununu signed a second bill banning biological boys from competing in girls’ athletic teams. This regulation affects public and private schools from kindergarten through college and is in response to increasing concerns regarding biological males competing alongside girls and women in sports.
A third bill was signed by Sununu letting parents withhold their children from public school lessons on subjects like “sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or gender expression.”
These legislations being signed into law have received praise from Republicans, including state Representative Joe Sweeney, who described them as “pragmatic and reasonable.” However, Sununu vetoed another bill concerning the separation of individuals by sex in contexts such as restrooms, sports, jails, and mental health facilities, stating that it “invites unnecessary discord.”