HARRISBURG, Pa. — All three of the Lehigh Valley's state senators voted Tuesday for a bill that would bar transgender girls from competing in school athletics from the college to elementary school levels.
The bill, which passed 32-18, would require all teams sponsored by a Pennsylvania public school or that compete against a Pennsylvania public school to designate teams by sex — either boys (or men), girls (or women) or co-ed.
It also categorized students' sex by their reproductive systems at birth. Students born with male reproductive systems would be barred from competing in girls sports, under the bill.
The bill would also allow female athletes made to compete against athletes born with male reproductive systems to seek legal action against the school. It further provides legal protections for schools and athletes that face retaliation for reporting violations of the law.
The bill passed with five Democrats joining all Republicans in favor of the bill, including Sens. Nick Miller, D-Lehigh/Northampton, and Lisa Boscola, D-Lehigh/Northampton.
Boscola, a political maverick who's broken from her party over her 30 years in Harrisburg, voted in favor of similar legislation in 2022. At the time, she was the only Democrat who broke ranks.
"You can't tell me there isn't a difference. After puberty, males and females are different, and the impact on athletic performance is evident."State Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Northampton/Lehigh
Boscola was not available for comment Thursday, but during Tuesday's debate, she noted she introduced a constitutional amendment that would bar discrimination of members of the LGBTQ community.
However, she said that allowing transgender athletes to compete against others would create an unlevel playing field. She quoted the winning times from recent high school cross-country championship events; the fastest boys were about three minutes faster than the fastest girls. If the events were merged, the fastest female athlete would have placed 124th.
"You can't tell me there isn't a difference," Boscola said. "After puberty, males and females are different, and the impact on athletic performance is evident."
All or nothing
Boscola expressed frustration that both sides of the debate were taking an all-or-nothing approach to athletics. Students needed to be treated with compassion, she said, and the state needs to create opportunities for transgender athletes to compete. She advocated for more mixed sports where students of all gender identities could compete.
"This policy will not go away until we create a policy that works for all involved," Boscola said.
Miller and Sen. Jarrett Coleman, R-Lehigh/Bucks, did not immediately return calls seeking comment Thursday. Neither was in office in 2022 when the issue last came up for a vote in the Senate. While the Republican majorities in both chambers passed the bill then, Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed it.
President Donald Trump, U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa., and other Republican candidates prioritized the issue of transgender athletes in women's sports during their campaigns last year, placing what's in practice a niche issue on the national stage.
The Associated Press reported that the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, the state's governing body for high school sports, is aware of just one transgender student currently participating in high school sports.
Democratic leadership in Pennsylvania has panned the legislation, questioning where the legislation is needed or constitutional.
It's unlikely the legislation will advance in the Democratic-controlled House. Gov. Josh Shapiro declined to comment on the legislation Tuesday, but he opposed the 2022 legislation as cruel, the Associated Press reported.
