Maryland 2024 Regular Session

Maryland House Bill HB47 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	hb0047
6	6
7	7	HOUSE BILL 47
8	8	F1, D5 4lr1132
9	9	HB 359/23 – W&M (PRE–FILED) CF 4lr1133
10	10	By: Delegates Szeliga, Arikan, Chisholm, Fisher, Grammer, Hutchinson, Kipke,
11	11	R. Long, Mangione, McComas, Miller, M. Morgan, T. Morgan, Munoz,
12	12	Nawrocki, Schmidt, and Tomlinson
13	13	Requested: October 24, 2023
14	14	Introduced and read first time: January 10, 2024
15	15	Assigned to: Ways and Means
16	16
17	17	A BILL ENTITLED
18	18
19	19	AN ACT concerning 1
20	20
21	21	Education – Interscholastic and Intramural Junior Varsity and Varsity Teams 2
22	22	– Designation Based on Sex 3
23	23	(Fairness in Girls’ Sports Act) 4
24	24
25	25	FOR the purpose of requiring certain interscholastic and intramural junior varsity and 5
26	26	varsity athletic teams or sports sponsored by certain schools to be expressly 6
27	27	designated based on biological sex; prohibiting certain entities from taking certain 7
28	28	adverse actions against a school for maintaining separate interscholastic and 8
29	29	intramural junior varsity and varsity athletic teams and sports for students of the 9
30	30	female sex; providing that certain individuals have the right to bring a civil action 10
31	31	under certain circumstances; and generally relating to interscholastic and 11
32	32	intramural junior varsity and varsity teams and sports of public and nonpublic 12
33	33	schools. 13
34	34
35	35	BY adding to 14
36	36	Article – Education 15
37	37	Section 7–118 16
38	38	Annotated Code of Maryland 17
39	39	(2022 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 18
40	40
41	41	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 19
42	42	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 20
43	43
44	44	Article – Education 21
45	45
46	46	7–118. 22
47	47	2 HOUSE BILL 47
48	48
49	49
50	50	(A) (1) IN THIS SECTION THE F OLLOWING WORDS HAVE THE MEANINGS 1
51	51	INDICATED. 2
52	52
53	53	(2) “STUDENT OF THE FEMALE SEX” MEANS A STUDENT WHOS E 3
54	54	BIOLOGICAL SEX IS FE MALE. 4
55	55
56	56	(3) “STUDENT OF THE MALE S EX” MEANS A STUDENT WHOS E 5
57	57	BIOLOGICAL SEX IS MA LE. 6
58	58
59	59	(B) THIS SECTION APPLIES TO: 7
60	60
61	61	(1) PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS ; AND 8
62	62
63	63	(2) NONPUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL S WHOSE STUDENT ATHL ETES OR 9
64	64	ATHLETIC TEAMS COMPE TE AGAINST STUDENT A THLETES OR ATHLETIC TEAMS 10
65	65	FROM PUBLIC HIGH SCH OOLS IN THE STATE. 11
66	66
67	67	(C) (1) AN INTERSCHOLASTIC OR INTRAMURAL JUNIOR VA RSITY OR 12
68	68	VARSITY ATHLETIC TEA M OR SPORT THAT IS S PONSORED BY A PUBLIC OR 13
69	69	NONPUBLIC HIGH SCHOO L SHALL BE EXPRESSLY DESIGNATED AS ONE OF THE 14
70	70	FOLLOWING BASED ON B IOLOGICAL SEX: 15
71	71
72	72	(I) A BOYS’, MALE, OR MEN’S TEAM OR SPORT; 16
73	73
74	74	(II) A GIRLS’, FEMALE, OR WOMEN’S TEAM OR SPORT ; OR 17
75	75
76	76	(III) A COEDUCATIONAL OR MIX ED TEAM OR SPORT . 18
77	77
78	78	(2) AN INTERSCHOLASTIC OR INTRAMURAL JUNIOR VA RSITY OR 19
79	79	VARSITY ATHLETIC TEA M OR SPORT DESIGNATE D FOR GIRLS, FEMALES, OR WOMEN 20
80	80	MAY NOT INCLUDE STUDENTS OF TH E MALE SEX. 21
81	81
82	82	(D) A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY , A LICENSING OR ACCRE DITING 22
83	83	ORGANIZATION , OR AN ATHLETIC ASSOC IATION OR ORGANIZATI ON MAY NOT ACCEPT 23
84	84	A COMPLAINT, CONDUCT AN INVESTIGA TION, OR TAKE ANY OTHER AD VERSE ACTION 24
85	85	AGAINST A SCHOOL FOR MAINTAINING SEPARATE IN TERSCHOLASTIC OR 25
86	86	INTRAMURAL JUNIOR VA RSITY OR VARSITY ATH LETIC TEAMS OR SPORT S FOR 26
87	87	STUDENTS OF THE FEMA LE SEX. 27
88	88
89	89	(E) (1) (I) A STUDENT WHO IS DEPRI VED OF AN ATHLETIC 28
90	90	OPPORTUNITY OR SUFFE RS ANY DIRECT OR IND IRECT HARM AS A RESU LT OF A 29
91	91	VIOLATION OF THIS SECT ION MAY BRING A CIVI L ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL THE 30
92	92	STUDENT ATTENDS . 31 HOUSE BILL 47 3
93	93
94	94
95	95
96	96	(II) A STUDENT WHO IS SUBJE CT TO RETALIATION OR OTHER 1
97	97	ADVERSE ACTION BY A SCHOOL OR AN ATHLETI C ASSOCIATION OR ORG ANIZATION 2
98	98	AS A RESULT OF REPOR TING A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION TO AN E MPLOYEE OR 3
99	99	REPRESENTATIVE OF TH E SCHOOL, ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION OR ORGANIZATION , OR 4
100	100	ANY STATE OR FEDERAL AGEN CY WITH OVERSIGHT OF SCHOOLS IN THE STATE MAY 5
101	101	BRING A CIVIL ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL O R ATHLETIC ASSOCIATI ON OR 6
102	102	ORGANIZATION . 7
103	103
104	104	(III) A SCHOOL THAT SUFFERS ANY DIRECT OR INDIRE CT HARM 8
105	105	FROM A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY, A LICENSING OR ACCRE DITING ORGANIZATION , 9
106	106	OR AN ATHLETIC ASSOC IATION OR ORGANIZATI ON AS A RESULT OF A VIOLATION OF 10
107	107	THIS SECTION MAY BRI NG A CIVIL ACTION AG AINST THE GOVER NMENTAL ENTITY , 11
108	108	LICENSING OR ACCREDI TING ORGANIZATION , OR ATHLETIC ASSOCIAT ION OR 12
109	109	ORGANIZATION . 13
110	110
111	111	(2) A CIVIL ACTION INITIAT ED UNDER THIS SECTIO N MUST BE 14
112	112	INITIATED WITHIN 2 YEARS AFTER THE HARM OCCURRED. 15
113	113
114	114	(3) AN INDIVIDUAL WHO PRE VAILS IN A CIVIL ACT ION UNDER THIS 16
115	115	SECTION MAY RECOVER : 17
116	116
117	117	(I) MONETARY DAMAGES , INCLUDING DAMAGES FO R ANY 18
118	118	PSYCHOLOGICAL , EMOTIONAL, AND PHYSICAL HARM SU FFERED; 19
119	119
120	120	(II) REASONABLE ATTORNEY ’S FEES AND COSTS ; AND 20
121	121
122	122	(III) ANY OTHER RELIEF , INCLUDING AN INJUNCT ION, AS THE 21
123	123	COURT MAY DETERMINE APPROP RIATE. 22
124	124
125	125	(F) THIS SECTION MAY BE K NOWN AND CITED AS TH E FAIRNESS IN GIRLS’ 23
126	126	SPORTS ACT. 24
127	127
128	128	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That, if any provision of this Act or 25
129	129	the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid for any reason in a 26
130	130	court of competent jurisdiction, the provision shall be construed to give the provision the 27
131	131	maximum effect permitted by law unless the provision is held to be absolutely invalid. 28
132	132
133	133	SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That, if any provi sion of this Act or 29
134	134	the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid for any reason in a 30
135	135	court of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or any other 31
136	136	application of this Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, 32
137	137	and for this purpose the provisions of this Act are declared severable. 33
138	138	4 HOUSE BILL 47
139	139
140	140
141	141	SECTION 4. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 1
142	142	1, 2024. 2
143	143