Utah Gov. Cox signed HB404 letting landlords bar transgender renters from sex-designated housing

On March 23, 2026, Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed HB404, the "Sex-Designated Housing Amendments," into law after the measure cleared the Utah House on February 10 and the state Senate on March 23. Sponsored by Rep. David Shallenberger (R-Orem), the law creates a new exemption in the Utah Fair Housing Act permitting landlords to designate shared-occupancy housing — including dormitories, boarding houses, and rentals with shared bedrooms or bathrooms — as single-sex "based on biological sex" and to restrict occupancy accordingly.

The exemption allows landlords to exclude transgender renters from such housing according to birth sex rather than gender identity, carving an identity-based limitation into an existing anti-discrimination statute. The measure was part of a broader slate of legislation affecting transgender Utahns during the 2026 session. Advocates noted the exemption may conflict with protections under the federal Fair Housing Act.