Kansas Gov. Vetoes Anti-Trans Sports Bill, 'Parents' Rights' Measure
second year in a row.Kelly, a Democrat in a Republican-majority state, also vetoed a bill aimed at making it easier for parents to challenge school materials they find objectionable, a type of legislation that has become popular among the far right this year.The anti-transgender sports measure, Senate Bill 160, would have barred trans girls and women from participating alongside cisgender females in public schools, including state colleges and universities, and any private schools that compete against them.
It would not have affected trans male athletes.“We all want a fair and safe place for our kids to play and compete,” Kelly wrote in a veto message Friday, The Topeka Capital-Journal reports. “However, this bill didn’t come from the experts at our schools, our athletes, or the Kansas State High School Activities Association.
It came from politicians trying to score political points.”She further cited the possibility of boycotts by businesses and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. “It would send a signal to prospective companies that Kansas is more focused on unnecessary and divisive legislation than strategic, pro-growth lawmaking,” she said.Senate President Ty Masterson, a Republican, pledged to try to override Kelly’s veto when the legislature reconvenes next week, but when lawmakers passed the bill, they didn’t have the two-thirds majority necessary for an override.
An attempt at overriding the veto failed last year as well.The so-called Parents’ Bill of Rights, Senate Bill 58, likewise failed to attract a veto-proof majority.
