Ballot fight looms over trans sports and parental rights in Washington
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Washington state voters are poised to decide two ballot measures this fall: one restricting transgender girls' participation in school sports and another revisiting changes to the state's "Parents Bill of Rights."
The latest: Washington's secretary of state confirmed Monday that the second initiative qualified for the November ballot, joining the other measure, which was certified earlier.
The big picture: Democratic legislative leaders say they don't plan to act on the initiatives this year or hold hearings on them, sending both measures straight to voters.
Zoom in: One of the ballot measures, IL26-638, would bar transgender girls from competing on girls' school sports teams if their sex assigned at birth was male.
- The other ballot measure, IL26-001, would undo changes the Legislature made last year to I-2081, a parents' rights initiative that lawmakers initially approved in 2024.
- Those changes included removing I-2081's requirement that schools notify parents when students receive medical services at school or when schools arrange medical treatment outside school hours.
- Democratic lawmakers said at the time that those provisions conflicted with other state laws protecting students' medical privacy.
What they're saying: "This measure is about reestablishing a simple, non-negotiable standard: Parents are the primary stakeholders in their child's upbringing," said Brian Heywood, co-founder of the group behind this year's initiatives, in a news release Monday.
What's next: If state lawmakers follow through on their pledge to take no action on the initiatives, the secretary of state will certify the ballot measures for the November election after the Legislature adjourns March 12.