2,044 events on record Subscribe September 10, 2026
Standing Record home The Standing Record A non-partisan record of US democratic norms —
and the events that erode them.

Kansas Legislature overrode Gov. Kelly's veto to enact SB180, fixing legal sex to birth biology across facilities and vital records

On April 27, 2023, the Kansas Legislature enacted SB180, the "Women's Bill of Rights," by overriding Gov. Laura Kelly's veto, with the Senate voting 28-12 on April 26 and the House completing the override 84-40 the next day. The law defines "sex," "male," and "female" for all purposes of state law strictly by reproductive biology at birth and directs that this binary definition govern access to sex-segregated facilities and the recording of sex in state vital statistics. It took effect July 1, 2023.

Jurisdiction
Kansas
Location
Topeka, Kansas

Abuses documented

Actors

On April 27, 2023, the Kansas Legislature enacted Senate Bill 180, the "Women's Bill of Rights," by overriding Gov. Laura Kelly's veto. The Senate voted 28-12 to override on April 26, 2023, and the House of Representatives completed the override 84-40 the following day, finalizing enactment. Kansas was the first state to enact the model "Women's Bill of Rights" measure.

The law defines "sex," "male," "female," "man," and "woman" for all purposes of state law strictly by biological and reproductive characteristics at birth. It directs that this binary, birth-based definition govern separate accommodations in athletics, prisons and other detention facilities, domestic-violence shelters, rape crisis centers, locker rooms, and restrooms. It further requires any school district, state agency, or political subdivision collecting vital statistics for anti-discrimination, public-health, crime, or economic-data purposes to record each individual's sex as male or female at birth.

By fixing legal sex to reproductive biology and excluding gender identity from official recognition, SB180 removes the basis on which transgender Kansans could have their gender identity reflected in state records and determines their access to sex-segregated public facilities by birth sex. It was the leading edge of a national wave of "Women's Bill of Rights" statutes subsequently enacted in states including Oklahoma and Louisiana.

Updates

2023-07-01 — Law took effect and state moved to reverse transgender residents' records [4, 5]

When SB180 took effect on July 1, 2023, Attorney General Kris Kobach issued an opinion that its birth-sex recordkeeping provision required state agencies to stop recognizing transgender residents' gender identity on driver's licenses and birth certificates. Kobach then sued to compel state agencies to reverse existing records, opening litigation over the law's implementation.

2025-06-13 — Kansas Court of Appeals reversed injunction blocking driver's-license gender-marker changes [6, 7]

The Kansas Court of Appeals reversed the preliminary injunction that had barred transgender Kansans from changing the sex marker on their driver's licenses, ruling that Attorney General Kris Kobach had not shown a substantial likelihood of prevailing on his interpretation of SB180.

2025-10-02 — Kansas Supreme Court denied further review, ending litigation in Kobach's loss [8, 9]

The Kansas Supreme Court declined to review the Court of Appeals' reversal, letting it stand and ending the litigation. The Kansas Department of Revenue resumed processing driver's-license gender-marker changes on October 8, 2025.

Why we recorded this

Equal protection bars government from classifying people to their disadvantage based on a protected characteristic. Kansas SB180 writes a definition of sex fixed to reproductive biology at birth into state law, defines "male" and "female" on that basis, and directs that access to sex-segregated facilities — prisons, domestic-violence shelters, rape crisis centers, locker rooms, and restrooms — and the recording of sex in state vital statistics follow that birth-based classification rather than gender identity. By excluding gender identity from all governmental recognition of sex, the law categorically denies legal recognition to transgender Kansans across state records and public accommodations, regardless of individual circumstances.

Sources

  1. SB 180 (2023), enrolled bill text — Kansas Legislature primary accessed July 16, 2026
  2. SB 180 bill history/status — veto, Senate override 2023-04-26, House override 2023-04-27 — Kansas Legislature primary accessed July 16, 2026
  3. Kansas Senate attempts to override slew of vetoed transgender bills, but care ban fails — Kansas Reflector via KWCH secondary accessed July 16, 2026
  4. Kansas' new law requires state agencies undo official recognition of trans residents' driver's licenses, birth certificates, attorney general says — CNN investigative accessed July 16, 2026
  5. Kobach sues to strip transgender Kansans of identities in dispute over driver's licenses — Kansas Reflector investigative accessed July 16, 2026
  6. Kansas appeals court ruling restores ability to change gender markers on driver's licenses — Kansas Reflector investigative accessed July 17, 2026
  7. Trans Kansans win court ruling to change the gender on their IDs — KCUR (NPR) investigative accessed July 17, 2026
  8. Kansas Supreme Court Denies AG Kobach Review in Appeal over Gender Markers on Drivers Licenses — American Civil Liberties Union primary accessed July 17, 2026
  9. Kansas once again allows gender changes on driver's licenses after Kobach loses legal battle — KCUR (NPR) investigative accessed July 17, 2026

See also