Latest news with #HouseBill1041
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
State Library gets money that was going to be cut
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — The South Dakota State Library got some unexpected good news this week. It will receive a half-year grant of about $632,000 from the federal government. That means, for at least the next six months, the State Library can continue to function much as it previously had. The email from the federal Institute for Museum and Library Services arrived on Wednesday. 'It was a surprise,' South Dakota Education Secretary Joe Graves said. President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March directing the head of that federal agency to cut operations to the 'maximum extent' allowable by law. The grant funds roughly half of the State Library's services. Last week, Graves told the state Board of Education Standards that other states had received notices that their federal funding for library operations had been cut. But on Thursday, Graves said that he and State Librarian George Seamon are now trying to determine more about how the the federal funding would be applied. DSU's Noem choice gets mixed reaction Seamon informed the State Library Board about the restoration of the federal funding during the board's final meeting Thursday. Seamon said he interpreted the email as a positive indication that the State Library will receive the second half of federal funding later this year. However, the State Library must still fulfill the down-sizing ordered by the Legislature through House Bill 1041. Because of the new law that takes effect on July 1, the State Library no longer will be allowed to provide the public with specialized library services and materials 'not generally appropriate, economical, or available in other libraries of the state.' Nor will it any longer operate a state publications distribution program for other libraries throughout South Dakota. The State Library also will stop maintaining 'appropriate collections' of library materials to supplement the collections of other libraries in the state. Nor will it serve any longer as a research and informational center for the Legislature and state government employees. The final version of the legislation, which Gov. Larry Rhoden signed into law last month, eliminates the State Library Board, too. The governor-appointed advisory group met for the last time on Thursday in Pierre. Seamon briefed the board on the transition under way to what he described as the 'new state library.' He said materials in the federal documents collection are being offered to other libraries and any unwanted ones will be disposed. Books and documents in the State Library's non-fiction collection have been offered to the State Historical Society and academic libraries, with public libraries next in line, according to Seamon. He said there might be a public sale of any of those remaining items. Restaurant owner donates 2,600 chickens to community State government documents meanwhile are being moved into an area that has been used by State Library staff. He said the State Library will continue to collect and digitize state documents. At this point, the state-document collection is closed to the public, but Seamon said that could change. The State Library plans to begin working on contracts for courier data services, according to Seamon. He said there also are plans to provide an in-person workshop in the Black Hills as well as online workshops for public and school libraries to comply with House Bill 1239. In its original version, HB 1239 threatened librarians with jail for distributing to minors any books or materials that the child's parent considered obscene. The final version of HB 1239 sets up a more moderate process. It says a local public library board or a local school board must have a policy that allows for an individual to appeal to the board to determine whether any matter or material in the library is obscene. The new law goes on to say that any determination made by the board can be appealed in court. Seamon was generally upbeat about what is now ahead for the State Library overall. 'It's exciting to be shaping something new. We want to see what we can bring from our current situation,' Seamon said. The State Library staff however will still be reduced by 3.5 positions to comply with the Legislature's direction. Then-Gov. Kristi Noem, in her December budget recommendations, called for State Library funding to be substantially cut. Noem resigned as governor in January to become the new federal Homeland Security secretary. State Library Board president Tom Nelson of Spearfish asked Seamon to describe the past few months. 'It definitely has been an emotional ride. One thing I leaned on was my team,' Seamon said. 'We've definitely leaned and cried and been emotional over a lot of things,' he continued, saying they would be 'stronger' from the experience. Seamon said he was 'saddened' by Noem's December recommendation and the legislation that followed from her administration, but he chose to help move it forward. The South Dakota Library Association fought against the original legislation and eventually went along with a compromise worked out by Secretary Graves. 'There was a huge outpouring,' Seamon said about support that lawmakers heard from librarians and the public. He recalled walking into a local restaurant to meet with some of those supporters and was met with applause. 'And that wasn't for me, that was for the State Library,' he said. Seamon praised Secretary Graves for his efforts and said it was a relief to receive the Wednesday email on federal funding. 'It's been a roller coaster, but we had a lot of support,' Seamon said. 'It's definitely been something I don't think I want to go through again.' Board president Nelson praised the South Dakota Library Association. 'They grabbed this and hit it out of the park,' he said. Nelson spoke about a letter that he had sent to Gov. Rhoden. 'From my view, this should have been studied a little bit more,' Nelson said, pointing out that the State Library works 'quietly and efficiently.' 'There's nothing detrimental in it. I just wanted the governor to know my thoughts,' Nelson said. The state board's vice president, Jane Norling of Beresford, said the group functioned as a sounding board and as 'a voice' for the patrons of the State Library and for small libraries throughout South Dakota. Norling acknowledged that she felt 'a little saddened' that the board would no longer be there. She agreed with Nelson's suggestion that a smaller board might work better if there should ever be another. 'It's important,' she said about the State Library's role in South Dakota. Nelson wrapped up the meeting by telling Seamon and the half-dozen staff in the back of the room, 'You guys do a great job.' Then he called 'with a little bit of sadness' for a motion to adjourn the meeting. Any objections? he asked. 'Hearing none, the State Library Board is signing out,' Nelson said. 'We're done.' The State Library staff in the back answered with a parting round of applause. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Axios
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Indiana Democrats split on transgender athlete ban
Some Democrats in Indiana and across the country are starting to walk back from the party's stances on transgender rights — positions once embraced on principle but now increasingly seen as political liabilities. Why it matters: The reversal follows the 2024 campaign, during which the Trump team spent millions on ads targeting transgender women and girls in sports and criticizing Democratic nominee Kamala Harris' stance. At the same time, national party leaders are punting trans rights to local communities. The political effects are trickling down, and advocates fear for LGBTQ+ communities if their longtime allies no longer have the political will to stand with them. Driving the news: Statehouse Democrats split on House Bill 1041, which bans transgender girls and women from playing on women's collegiate sports teams. Gov. Mike Braun signed the bill into law this week. Flashback: HB 1041 expanded on a 2022 law that prohibited transgender girls from playing on K-12 girls sports teams. Not a single Democrat supported the 2022 bill. State of play: This year, four Democrats in the House and four in the Senate voted in favor of HB 1041. Those who supported it were Reps. Wendy Dant Chesser, Ed DeLaney, Chuck Moseley and Tanya Pfaff and Sens. David Niezgodski, Rodney Pol, Lonnie Randolph and Greg Taylor. "We each looked at the emails we received from our constituents," said Minority Leader Sen. Shelli Yoder (D-Bloomington), who voted against the bill. "So every person voted their district." Yoder said transgender rights have been weaponized and turned into a political football. "You see these political ads and the fear of the miscommunication that comes as a result of these bills, and unfortunately, that's where we've landed." What they're saying: "This is a very difficult vote," DeLaney said during a committee hearing earlier this session. The Indianapolis Democrat voted against the 2022 legislation. DeLaney had suggested leaving the decision to the NCAA, which had already barred transgender girls and women from female sports, but ultimately voted in favor of HB 1041. "Both … will keep males out of female sports, so on that broad principle we're in agreement," he said. "But I'm not part of the message that we want to belittle people who are having a difficult choice in life as to what they think their sex is." Zoom in: IYG, an Indianapolis-based nonprofit, said in a statement it was "deeply disturbed by the advancement of legislation targeting LGBTQ+ Hoosiers, particularly transgender individuals, with bipartisan support." "It's very disappointing," Zoe O'Haillin-Berne, IYG's director of engagement, told Axios. "It sends a message to our young people that they weren't worth fighting for, and that's devastating." O'Haillin-Berne said she's afraid Indiana could see a backslide in rights for the wider queer community. The big picture: Some top Democrats nationally have drifted rightward in an apparent attempt to make sense of the 2024 election losses. Rahm Emanuel — former Chicago mayor and U.S. ambassador to Japan, who has played coy about a 2028 White House run — told Axios: "Some kids in the classroom are debating which pronouns apply, and the rest of the class doesn't know what a pronoun is. That's a crisis." In a conversation with right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk on California Gov. Gavin Newsom's podcast, Newsom contended that trans athletes competing in girls' and women's sports was "deeply unfair." The other side: The Human Rights Campaign and other LGBTQ+ advocacy groups called on the Democratic Party "to do more" to stand up for LGBTQ+ rights.
Chicago Tribune
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Bill banning trans women from college sports heads to Indiana governor's desk
A bill that would ban transgender women from collegiate sports in Indiana will head to Gov. Mike Braun's desk after the Senate gave final approval to the bill Thursday. State Rep. Michelle Davis, R-Whiteland, authored House Bill 1041 prohibiting a male, based on the student's biological sex at birth, from participating on a women's athletic team. The bill also allows for a student or parent to file a grievance if a college isn't following the law. Davis, R-Whiteland, previously testified before the Senate Education and Career Development Committee that House Bill 1041 mirrors — in language and bill title — the piece of legislation the legislature passed in 2022 banning transgender athletes from girls sports at the K-12 level, but it extends it to the collegiate level. Sen. Stacey Donato, who is one of the Senate sponsors of the bill, said Thursday that House Bill 1041 is 'a common sense' piece of legislation. 'We will be protecting the integrity of female sports in Indiana at the collegiate level on a fair and equal playing field,' Donato, R-Logansport, said. The bill passed 42-6, with four Democrats joining all Republicans present to support the bill. Sen. Rodney Pol Jr., D-Chesterton, and Sen. Lonnie Randolph, D-East Chicago voted in favor of the bill. Randolph said he voted in favor of the bill because he has many religious constituents who supported the bill, and because men and women have different physical builds. Pol did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Sen. J.D. Ford, D-Indianapolis, said President Donald Trump in February signed an executive order banning transgender athletes from girls' and women's sports. The next day, the National Collegiate Athletic Association amended its transgender athlete policy to limit competition in women's sports to student-athletes assigned female at birth, he said. Ford also said NCAA President Charlie Baker recently testified before a U.S. Senate committee that fewer than 10 student-athletes were transgender. Ford raised concerns that the bill allows anyone to file a complaint against an athlete they believe to be transgender, even if the complaint was made in bad faith. The bill also doesn't prohibit a student-athlete from having to expose intimate body parts during the grievance process, he said. 'I just don't feel like this bill is about fairness or about protecting women's sports,' Ford said. 'Women who work really hard, spending their lives training tirelessly to be an elite athlete, will be accused of being trans because their work has made them bulky or too muscular or not feminine enough.' Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, said the bill isn't about fairness in women's sports, but 'it's about fear, it's about control, it's about gender policing.' Yoder said the bill won't protect student-athletes from inappropriate physical interactions under the guise of settling a grievance process. 'There's no language that protects against genital inspections, forced disclosure of medical history or invasive questioning by coaches or school officials,' Yoder said. 'What is in this bill is the license to discriminate, a license to sexually harass. We've seen what happens when adults in positions of authority abuse that power.' Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, said she was a collegiate athlete, and she would often practice and run drills with the men's team. But, there are physical differences between men and women, she said, 'and it matters.' 'I don't want to compete against a man. There were certainly women who I competed against who were far superior to where I was, but I knew I had literally and figuratively a fighting chance,' Brown said. The bill doesn't require physical examinations, Brown said. Viral videos circulating on social media showing girl athletes being injured by another player, who others state are transgender athletes, justify the bill, Brown said. 'The only reason we're passing these bills now is because opportunities are being taken away from women,' Brown said. Donato recalled the committee testimony of Elle Patterson, a sophomore who plays NCAA Division I volleyball for the Indiana University-Indianapolis Jaguars, who said she was recruited to San Jose State University in California 'with the understanding' that she would be a scholarship athlete on the volleyball team. While at San Jose State, Patterson said 'unbeknownst' to her she played with an athlete who she claimed was a transgender woman. Ahead of her sophomore year, Patterson said she was told she wouldn't receive a scholarship, while Patterson said her teammate received a full scholarship. 'This bill is about maintaining the integrity of women's sports and the scholarships that have been earned by these women who train and work to be an athlete. I ask for your support on this women's sports bill and I ask for Elle.' Donato said.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill banning transgender female athletes from women's college teams passes with bipartisan support
Sen. Chris Garten, R-Charlestown, delivers an impassioned speech from the Senate floor on April 3, 2025. (Whitney Downard/Indiana Capital Chronicle) A bill that would prohibit transgender female athletes from playing on college teams that align with their gender identity passed the Indiana Senate on Thursday with bipartisan support on a 42-6 vote. It now goes to Gov. Mike Braun for his signature. Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport, sponsored House Bill 1041, painting it as a 'common sense' measure 'that ensures female athletes have a fair and equal playing field.' 'This bill is about maintaining the integrity of women's sports and the scholarships (of) these women who train and work to be an athlete,' said Donato in her closing remarks. Democrats disputed Donato's characterization of fairness, noting that the bill does nothing to ensure equal pay for female coaches or address disparate funding. Furthermore, Democrats argued that the bill was unnecessary since the National Collegiate Athletic Association, Trump administration and Braun administration have all enacted their own policies barring transgender female athletes from playing on college teams. '(The bill) is yet another example of unnecessary language that serves no other purpose than to remind someone that they are 'other.' That they are not accepted here. That their own (elected) representation looks down on them,' said Sen. J.D. Ford. '… I think we should be better than this and I think Hoosiers deserve better.' Legislation from the 2022 session barred transgender female athletes from playing in K-12 sports. Ford and another Democrat, Minority Senate Leader Shelli Yoder, blasted the bill for a lack of protections for accused students from harassment. The six Democrats voting against House Bill 1041 are: Sen. J.D. Ford, Indianapolis Sen. Andrea Hunley, Indianapolis Sen. La Keisha Jackson, Indianapolis Sen. Fady Qaddoura, Indianapolis Sen. Mark Spencer, Gary Sen. Shelli Yoder, Bloomington 'Women who work really hard — spending their lives training tirelessly to be an elite athlete — will be accused of being trans because their work has made them too bulky or too muscular or not feminine. And all it takes is one person to point that out and (they'll) have complete immunity,' Ford said. Such accusations have already occurred on the Olympic level, notably with Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, he said. Yoder piled on, naming several coaches around the state who had been sentenced for sexually abusing their athletes, including the infamous Larry Nassar, who abused over 100 female gymnasts. 'There is no language that protects against genital inspections, forced disclosure of medical history or invasive questioning by coaches or school officials. There is nothing in (House Bill) 1041 to stop a coach, athletic trainer or administrator from asking a student to prove their gender. Nothing,' said Yoder, of Bloomington. 'What is in this bill is the license to discriminate. A license to sexually harass. And we've seen what happens when adults in positions of authority abuse that power.' Instead, Yoder said the bill would invite more scrutiny and endanger students who don't otherwise fit into a mold — such as intersex students, who are not mentioned in the bill's language. Republicans who spoke on the bill saw otherwise. Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, shared her experience playing on college teams as an athlete. She said she practiced with the man, used the same equipment, ate the same food and stayed in the same hotels. 'I don't want to compete against a man. There are certainly women who I competed against who were far superior to me, but I knew I had, literally and figuratively, a fighting chance,' Brown said. '… The only reason we're passing this bill now is because opportunities are being taken away from women.' She and other Republicans pointed to viral videos of female athletes getting injured playing against a transgender female volleyball player or wins from transgender female swimmers. Sen. Spencer Deery, R-West Lafayette, specifically targeted a statistic from the NCAA president, who told a Congressional panel that there are 'fewer than 10' transgender athletes on college teams. 'It may be 10 today, but I assure you: if we look the other way, it will not be ten tomorrow,' said Deery. In an impassioned rebuttal, Sen. Chris Garten said the examples of sexual harassment had 'nothing to do with' House Bill 1041, naming female athletes harmed while playing. 'This is us taking a stand and protecting girls from injuries in competitive sports against biological males,' said Garten, R-Charlestown. None of the supporting Democrats spoke on the bill. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Axios
03-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Indiana poised to pass ban on transgender collegiate athletes
Indiana may pass a bill to ban transgender women and girls from playing on women's sports teams at the collegiate level as early as today. The big picture: The legislation expands the state's existing policy that bans transgender girls from playing girls sports at the K-12 level, which became law in 2022. It's aligned with the GOP's official 2024 party platform, which vowed to "keep men out of women's sports." Republican lawmakers have led similar efforts in other states and at the national level. Catch up quick: President Trump signed an executive order in February barring transgender women and girls from competing in girls' and women's sports, threatening to withhold federal funds for schools that allow trans women or girls to play on female teams. That executive order prompted the Indianapolis-based NCAA to update its participation policy for transgender student-athletes, limiting competition in women's sports to those assigned female at birth only, which includes more than 530,000 student-athletes nationwide, per the NCAA. Previously, the NCAA policy dictated that transgender athlete participation should follow the guidelines set by the international governing bodies of each sport. Driving the news: House Bill 1041 prohibits transgender women and girls from playing on post-secondary female sports teams. The Indiana Senate could take its final vote on it as soon as this afternoon, and with a Republican supermajority, it is likely to pass. It would then be sent to Gov. Mike Braun, who is expected to sign it. State of play: Earlier this year, Braun issued his own executive order to prohibit transgender women and girls from participating in women's college sports. "Title IX has been needlessly complicated by those who have sought to impose their views of gender identity onto education and sports programs," his order said. Flashback: When lawmakers banned trans girls from playing K-12 girls sports in 2022, then-Gov. Eric Holcomb vetoed the bill. The General Assembly overrode Holcomb's veto later that year. What they're saying: "In reality most transgender youth avoid sports altogether," said Zoe O'Haillin-Berne, director of engagement for Indiana Youth Group, which serves LGBTQ+ young people. "They do this because of the scrutiny and bullying they face on a day-to-day basis." "With no evidence of a problem in our state and an executive order already in place, this bill does nothing to address real problems faced by Hoosiers," O'Haillin-Berne told a legislative committee last month. The other side: Rep. Michelle Davis (R-Whiteland) said she wrote HB 1041 to ensure "a safe and even playing field at the collegiate level" and protect the integrity of women's sports. Reality check: Very few transgender girls and women play K-12 sports and even fewer at the level of competitive NCAA teams. One researcher estimated there were fewer than 100 transgender women among NCAA athletes nationwide.
