Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has signed into law new restrictions regarding which restrooms transgender people can use in schools and government buildings.
The legislation includes hefty fines on institutions of up to $125,000 for violations – the most financially punitive bathroom bill in the country.
Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday signed a bill that would restrict which restrooms transgender people can use in government buildings and schools and fines institutions up to $125,000 for violations. https://t.co/I072vd7q6J
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) September 23, 2025
From the Texas Tribune:
Senate Bill 8, which goes into effect on Dec. 4, restricts bathroom use in government-owned buildings, public schools and universities based of sex assigned at birth and does not allow exceptions for transgender inmates’ housing in prisons and jails.
It also bars those assigned male at birth from accessing women’s domestic violence shelters, unless they are under 17 and the child of a woman also receiving services.
A last-minute amendment from Rep. Steve Toth, R-Conroe, raised the fines to $25,000 against institutions where violations occur, and $125,000 for any subsequent violations.
Supporters say the bill is necessary to ensure safety and comfort for women in intimate spaces like changing rooms and bathrooms.
Opponents of the bill called the restrictions unnecessary (there are already laws regarding assault), and said that the bill would incite harassment against trans people and cisgender people falsely accused of entering the wrong facility.
During floor discussion of the bill in August, Rep. Erin Zwiener asked, “Who do you think is more uncomfortable in the bathroom today? A cis woman, or a trans woman wondering if she’s about to be harassed?”
One Texas Republican suggested the law should be enforced simply based on how people look.
#Texas #BathroomBan #LGBTQhttps://t.co/gHkXXBH9BJ— LGBTQ Nation (@lgbtqnation) September 23, 2025
The law doesn’t specify how the law is to be enforced. During questioning, the bill’s House sponsor, Rep. Angelia Orr, said enforcement would be determined based on “how someone looked.”
So, cisgender women who might have a short haircut or may be wearing athletic clothing may be stopped at a ladies room and asked to prove they were identified female at birth.
Earlier this year, a cisgender woman in Boston said a security guard stormed into the ladies room at the high-end Liberty Hotel, demanded she exit a stall, prove her gender, and threw her out of the hotel.
TEXAS: “Would I be required to carry my birth certificate to the restroom because I have short hair? Is there anything in it to protect people like me?”@AngeliaOrrForTX: “No. It protects biological females.”@jessicafortexas: “That’s what I am.”
More: https://t.co/zo7iuOH9cw pic.twitter.com/amsDKlcAXj
— The Tennessee Holler (@TheTNHoller) August 29, 2025
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