Wyoming enacted SF0133, barring transgender students from girls' interscholastic sports in grades 7-12
On March 17, 2023, Wyoming SF0133 became law after Gov. Mark Gordon declined to veto it and allowed it to take effect without his signature. The law prohibits students of the male sex from competing on interscholastic sports teams designated for female students in grades 7 through 12 and establishes an administrative hearing process and an alternative eligibility commission. It took effect July 1, 2023.
Actors
On March 17, 2023, Wyoming Senate File 133 ("Student eligibility in interscholastic sports") became law after Gov. Mark Gordon declined to veto it and allowed it to take effect without his signature. Enrolled as Senate Enrolled Act No. 92, the law prohibits students of the male sex from competing on interscholastic sports teams designated for female students in grades 7 through 12. It provides an administrative hearing process and creates a five-member school activity commission to determine eligibility on a case-by-case basis in the event the ban is suspended or struck down. The measure took effect July 1, 2023.
In a decision letter explaining why he would not sign the bill, Gordon said he supported the goal of fairness in female sports but described the ban as "overly draconian," "discriminatory without attention to individual circumstances or mitigating factors," and paying "little attention to fundamental principles of equality." He declined to veto it, allowing it to become law. The bill's primary sponsor, Sen. Wendy Schuler, characterized the legislation as a matter of competitive fairness. The law bars transgender girls from female-designated teams from seventh grade upward and does not restrict transgender boys from any team.
Why we recorded this
The civil-rights principle that government treats people equally regardless of their gender identity extends to equal access to school athletics. SF0133 bars transgender girls from competing on female-designated interscholastic teams in grades 7-12, singling out a class of students on the basis of who they are and excluding them from a shared arena of public school life. Codifying that exclusion erodes the norm that the state does not disadvantage people because of their identity, a concern the governor himself acknowledged in calling the ban "discriminatory without attention to individual circumstances."
Sources
- SF0133 (2023) — Bill Information (LSO BillInformation API) — Wyoming Legislative Service Office primary accessed July 17, 2026
- Wyoming Senate File 133 (2023 Regular Session) — LegiScan primary accessed July 17, 2026
- Wyoming governor calls trans athlete ban bill 'draconian' and then allows it to pass — NPR investigative accessed July 17, 2026
- Gov. Gordon lets 'draconian' anti-trans sports bill pass into law — Wyoming Public Media investigative accessed July 17, 2026
See also
- Wyoming enacted SEA 8, requiring parental opt-in before instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity
- Wyoming Gov. Gordon signed SF 99 banning gender-transition care for minors
- Wyoming enacted SF0077 barring state and local government from requiring employees to use colleagues' preferred pronouns
- Wyoming Gov. Gordon signed HB 72 requiring birth-sex use of public restrooms, prison sleeping quarters, and college facilities
- Wyoming Gov. Gordon signed SF0062 requiring K-12 students to use restrooms and facilities matching sex assigned at birth
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