Texas Senate Bill SB1953

Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

• Filed: 3/5/25

Caption

Relating to the inclusion of a person's biological sex on certain government documents and identification cards.

Impact

The implications of SB1953 extend to several existing statutes within the Health and Safety and Transportation Codes, modifying how individuals' biological sex is recorded and amended across governmental platforms. Specifically, the bill seeks to prevent any changes to biological sex entries on death certificates or birth certificates, except in cases of clerical errors or when biological sex remains undetermined at birth. The expected result of this legislation is an increased consistency in how biological sex is recognized in official documents, aligning with the bill's intent to limit the recognition of gender identities diverging from biological sex.

Summary

Senate Bill 1953 is designed to dictate the registration of biological sex on various government documents, including birth certificates, death certificates, and identification cards. This legislation mandates that a child’s biological sex be recorded as male or female based on biological determinants at birth. The law stipulates how this information must be presented, ensuring that any later amendments regarding an individual's sex must strictly adhere to the biological definition provided in the bill. Under the proposed amendments, any identification documents, such as driver’s licenses, must also reflect this biologically determined sex.

Contention

Supporters of SB1953 argue it brings clarity and uniformity to government documentation, ensuring that biological sex is unambiguous. However, there has been significant pushback from advocacy groups and opponents who contend that the bill may discriminate against transgender individuals. Critics argue that disallowing amendments to identification documents based on gender identity disregards the evolving understanding of gender and could lead to harmful legal ramifications for those whose gender identity does not align with the sex assigned at birth. This tension between adherence to biological definitions and the need for recognition of individual gender identities underscores the critical debates surrounding the bill.

Texas Constitutional Statutes Affected

Health And Safety Code

• Chapter 192. Birth Records
  • Section: 011

• Chapter 193. Death Records
  • Section: New Section

Transportation Code

• Chapter 521. Driver's Licenses And Certificates
  • Section: 101
  • Section: 121
  • Section: 142

• Chapter 522. Commercial Driver's Licenses
  • Section: 021
  • Section: 030