Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland House Bill HB156 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	hb0156
6	6
7	7	HOUSE BILL 156
8	8	F1, D5 5lr0796
9	9	HB 47/24 – W&M (PRE–FILED)
10	10	By: Delegates Szeliga, Adams, Arentz, Arikan, Beauchamp, Buckel, Chisholm,
11	11	Fisher, Grammer, Hornberger, R. Long, Mangione, Metzgar, Miller,
12	12	M. Morgan, T. Morgan, Nawrocki, Pippy, Reilly, Rose, Schmidt, Tomlinson,
13	13	Valentine, and Wivell
14	14	Requested: September 10, 2024
15	15	Introduced and read first time: January 8, 2025
16	16	Assigned to: Ways and Means
17	17
18	18	A BILL ENTITLED
19	19
20	20	AN ACT concerning 1
21	21
22	22	Education – Interscholastic and Intramural Junior Varsity and Varsity Teams – 2
23	23	Designation Based on Sex 3
24	24	(Fairness in Girls’ Sports Act) 4
25	25
26	26	FOR the purpose of requiring certain interscholastic and intramural junior varsity and 5
27	27	varsity athletic teams or sports sponsored by certain schools to be expressly 6
28	28	designated based on biological sex; prohibiting certain entities from taking certain 7
29	29	adverse actions against a school for maintaining separate interscholastic and 8
30	30	intramural junior varsity and varsity athletic teams and sports for students of the 9
31	31	female sex; providing that certain individuals have the right to bring a civil action 10
32	32	under certain circumstances; and generally relating to interscholastic and 11
33	33	intramural junior varsity and varsity teams and sports of public and nonpublic 12
34	34	schools. 13
35	35
36	36	BY adding to 14
37	37	Article – Education 15
38	38	Section 7–118 16
39	39	Annotated Code of Maryland 17
40	40	(2022 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 18
41	41
42	42	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 19
43	43	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 20
44	44
45	45	Article – Education 21
46	46
47	47	7–118. 22 2 HOUSE BILL 156
48	48
49	49
50	50
51	51	(A) (1) IN THIS SECTION THE F OLLOWING WORDS HAVE THE MEANINGS 1
52	52	INDICATED. 2
53	53
54	54	(2) “STUDENT OF THE FEMALE SEX” MEANS A STUDENT WHOS E 3
55	55	BIOLOGICAL SEX IS FE MALE. 4
56	56
57	57	(3) “STUDENT OF THE MALE SEX” MEANS A STUDENT WHOS E 5
58	58	BIOLOGICAL SEX IS MA LE. 6
59	59
60	60	(B) THIS SECTION APPLIES TO: 7
61	61
62	62	(1) PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS ; AND 8
63	63
64	64	(2) NONPUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL S WHOSE STUDENT ATHL ETES OR 9
65	65	ATHLETIC TEAMS COMPE TE AGAINST STUDENT A THLETES OR ATHLETIC TEAMS 10
66	66	FROM PUBLIC HIG H SCHOOLS IN THE STATE. 11
67	67
68	68	(C) (1) AN INTERSCHOLASTIC OR INTRAMURAL JUNIOR VA RSITY OR 12
69	69	VARSITY ATHLETIC TEA M OR SPORT THAT IS S PONSORED BY A PUBLIC OR 13
70	70	NONPUBLIC HIGH SCHOO L SHALL BE EXPRESSLY DESIGNATED AS ONE OF THE 14
71	71	FOLLOWING BASED ON B IOLOGICAL SEX: 15
72	72
73	73	(I) A BOYS’, MALE, OR MEN’S TEAM OR SPORT ; 16
74	74
75	75	(II) A GIRLS’, FEMALE, OR WOMEN’S TEAM OR SPORT ; OR 17
76	76
77	77	(III) A COEDUCATIONAL OR MIX ED TEAM OR SPORT . 18
78	78
79	79	(2) AN INTERSCHOLASTIC OR INTRAMURAL JUNIOR VA RSITY OR 19
80	80	VARSITY ATHLETIC TEA M OR SPORT DESIGNATE D FOR GIRLS, FEMALES, OR WOMEN 20
81	81	MAY NOT INCLUDE STUD ENTS OF THE MALE SEX . 21
82	82
83	83	(D) A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY , A LICENSING OR ACCRE DITING 22
84	84	ORGANIZATION , OR AN ATHLETIC ASSOC IATION OR ORGANIZATI ON MAY NOT ACCEPT 23
85	85	A COMPLAINT, CONDUCT AN INVESTIGA TION, OR TAKE ANY OTHER AD VERSE ACTION 24
86	86	AGAINST A SCHOOL FOR MAINTAINING SEPARATE INTERSCHOLASTIC OR 25
87	87	INTRAMURAL JUNIOR VA RSITY OR VARSITY ATH LETIC TEAMS OR SPORT S FOR 26
88	88	STUDENTS OF THE FEMA LE SEX. 27
89	89
90	90	(E) (1) (I) A STUDENT WHO IS DEPRI VED OF AN ATHLETIC 28
91	91	OPPORTUNITY OR SUFFE RS ANY DIRECT OR I NDIRECT HARM AS A RE SULT OF A 29
92	92	VIOLATION OF THIS SE CTION MAY BRING A CI VIL ACTION AGAINST T HE SCHOOL THE 30 HOUSE BILL 156 3
93	93
94	94
95	95	STUDENT ATTENDS . 1
96	96
97	97	(II) A STUDENT WHO IS SUBJE CT TO RETALIATION OR OTHER 2
98	98	ADVERSE ACTION BY A SCHOOL OR AN ATHLETI C ASSOCIATION OR ORG ANIZATION 3
99	99	AS A RESULT OF REPORTING A VIOLATION OF THIS SE CTION TO AN EMPLOYEE OR 4
100	100	REPRESENTATIVE OF TH E SCHOOL, ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION OR ORGANIZATION , OR 5
101	101	ANY STATE OR FEDERAL AGEN CY WITH OVERSIGHT OF SCHOOLS IN THE STATE MAY 6
102	102	BRING A CIVIL ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL O R ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION OR 7
103	103	ORGANIZATION . 8
104	104
105	105	(III) A SCHOOL THAT SUFFERS ANY DIRECT OR INDIRE CT HARM 9
106	106	FROM A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY, A LICENSING OR ACCRE DITING ORGANIZATION , 10
107	107	OR AN ATHLETIC ASSOC IATION OR ORGANIZATI ON AS A RESULT OF A VIOLATION OF 11
108	108	THIS SECTION MAY BRI NG A CIVIL ACTION AGAIN ST THE GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY, 12
109	109	LICENSING OR ACCREDI TING ORGANIZATION , OR ATHLETIC ASSOCIAT ION OR 13
110	110	ORGANIZATION . 14
111	111
112	112	(2) A CIVIL ACTION INITIAT ED UNDER THIS SECTIO N MUST BE 15
113	113	INITIATED WITHIN 2 YEARS AFTER THE HARM OCCURRED. 16
114	114
115	115	(3) AN INDIVIDUAL WHO PREVAILS IN A CIVIL ACTION UNDER T HIS 17
116	116	SECTION MAY RECOVER : 18
117	117
118	118	(I) MONETARY DAMAGES , INCLUDING DAMAGES FO R ANY 19
119	119	PSYCHOLOGICAL , EMOTIONAL, AND PHYSICAL HARM SU FFERED; 20
120	120
121	121	(II) REASONABLE ATTORNEY ’S FEES AND COSTS ; AND 21
122	122
123	123	(III) ANY OTHER RELIEF , INCLUDING AN INJUNCT ION, AS THE 22
124	124	COURT MAY DETERMINE APPROPRIATE . 23
125	125
126	126	(F) THIS SECTION MAY BE K NOWN AND CITED AS TH E FAIRNESS IN GIRLS’ 24
127	127	SPORTS ACT. 25
128	128
129	129	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That, if any provision of this Act or 26
130	130	the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid for any reason in a 27
131	131	court of competent jurisdiction, the provision shall be construed to give the provision the 28
132	132	maximum effect permitted by law unless the provision is held to be absolutely invalid. 29
133	133
134	134	SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That, if any provision of this Act or 30
135	135	the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid for any reason in a 31
136	136	court of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or any other 32
137	137	application of this Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, 33
138	138	and for this purpose the provisions of this Act are declared severable. 34 4 HOUSE BILL 156
139	139
140	140
141	141
142	142	SECTION 4. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 1
143	143	1, 2025. 2
144	144
145	145