Proposed restrictions on trans athletes get public hearing

By Fred Knapp , Senior Reporter/Producer Nebraska Public Media

Feb. 7, 2025, 5 p.m. ·

Sen. Kathleen Kauth testifies at a hearing on her LB89 Friday (Photo by Fred Knapp, Nebraska Public Media News)

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A proposal restricting transgender athletes and others to teams, locker rooms and bathrooms corresponding to their sex at birth got a public hearing in the Legislature Friday.

Sen. Kathleen Kauth is the lead sponsor of the proposals, contained in LB89. Kauth told the Legislature’s Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee the legislation is important.

“LB89, also known as the Stand with Women Act, is a crucial piece of legislation that aims to protect the integrity of athletic competitions and ensure the safety and privacy of women and girls in schools and state agencies,” she said.

In addition to the restrictions on Nebraska schools and colleges, the bill would also require state agencies to classify people as male or female, which Kauth said would prevent biological males from being housed in women’s prisons, for example.

Under questioning from Sen. John Cavanaugh, Kauth was clear about her view of transgender people.

“Is it your opinion that people with -- that trans people have a mental disorder?” Cavanaugh asked.

“Yes,” Kauth replied.

That view drew strong pushback from Jessie McGrath, a transgender woman who testified at the hearing.

“Why is my freedom and trans joy so scary to so many of you people? I really would like to know that,” McGrath said.

McGrath said it is a positive.

“I consider my being trans to be an incredible gift from God. I am blessed because I am able to see things through the world in two completely different ways. I lived half of my life as a man, and I have lived the last 10 years as a woman. I've got to see my life and the loves and the other things through two completely different lenses, and I am better for that,” she said.

Much of the hearing centered on practical aspects of the bill, which Gov. Jim Pillen supported.

“Who are we if we're not willing to create protection for girls, young women and women by simply acknowledging that they deserve the courtesy of having privacy in a bathroom or a locker room?” Pillen asked. “This is obvious Nebraska common sense values.”

Selina Soule, a former high school athlete in Connecticut, described the frustration of competing against two trans athletes.

“I lost countless opportunities during my time as a high school athlete. I lost opportunities to compete on World Class tracks and opportunities to win titles. During my junior year, I was denied the chance to compete at the New England Regional Championship. I missed advancing to the next level of competition in the 55 meter dash by just two spots -- two spots that were taken by males because they were permitted to participate in a girls division. I was forced to become a spectator in my own sport,” she said.

The Nebraska State Activities Association said last month it had received only eight applications from transgender athletes to compete since 2018. But Greg Brown, a professor of exercise science at the University of Nebraska Kearney who supports the bill, said numbers are beside the point.

“You will hear lots of people say that that it's only a few trans women competing in women's sports, or trans girls competing in girls sports. That acknowledges that there is, in fact, a difference between males and females, and that males have inherent biologically-based athletic advantages. Secondly, when people say that or ask that question, what they're saying is that we should be willing to tolerate a little bit of unfairness in our sports,” he said.

Opposing the bill for the Omaha Board of Education, Board President Jane Erdenberger questioned whether a desire to play sports was anyone’s motivation for being transgender.

“I just find it hard to believe that someone would go through the challenges and the frankly disrespect in being called mentally ill and whatnot, of being trans, to be able to play volleyball,” she said.

Also opposing the bill, Erin Feichtinger of the Women’s Fund of Omaha disputed the notion that it aims to protect women.

“There are many policies that protect and advance the wellbeing of women and girls in our community. LB 89 is not one of those policies. We would respectfully ask that this Legislature not use women, in a professed concern for our equality, to oppress others. States that have transgender-inclusive sports policies demonstrate increased participation of girls in sports, unlike those states that exclude transgender youth from sports,” she said.

And Abbi Swatsworth of Out Nebraska, an LGBTQ advocacy organization, said its restrictions on restrooms in schools and state agencies could backfire.

“Under this law, any person, including a woman, could be forced to show her ID or otherwise prove her gender before entering a restroom. This bill is impossible to enforce and dangerous to all women. The law is an invitation for abuse and harassment, and it makes all people less safe,” she said.

For the first few hours of the hearing, testimony alternated between supporters and opponents of the bill. But as afternoon turned into evening, more and more opponents - many of them transgender themselves or family members and allies, took their turns testifying against the bill. In all, 19 people testified for the bill while 120 opposed it, in the hearing that lasted until 11:55 p.m.

If advanced by the committee, the bill would require a two-thirds majority -- 33 votes in the 49 member Legislature, to overcome a filibuster and pass.