Likely helped
- No clear beneficiaries surfaced yet.
H.R. 28 (119th)Bill Overview
Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues|AthletesCivil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Sponsor
Cosponsors
Support
Republican
Introduced
Jan 3, 2025
Discussions
Bill Text
Current stageIntroduced
Received in the Senate.
Introduced
Committee
Floor
President
Law
01 · The brief
Plain-English summaryWhat this bill actually does
<p><strong>Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025</strong></p><p>This bill generally prohibits school athletic programs from allowing individuals whose biological sex at birth was male to participate in programs that are for women or girls.</p><p>Specifically, the bill provides that it is a violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for federally funded education programs or activities to operate, sponsor, or facilitate athletic programs or activities that allow individuals of the male sex to participate in programs or activities that are designated for women or girls. (Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs or activities, including in public elementary and secondary schools and in colleges and universities.) Under the bill,<em> sex</em> is based on an individual's reproductive biology and genetics at birth.</p><p>The bill does not prohibit male individuals from training or practicing with programs or activities for women or girls as long as such training or practice does not deprive any female of corresponding opportunities or benefits.</p><p>The Government Accountability Office must report on the benefits for women or girls in single-sex sports that would be lost as a result of male participation. In particular, the report must document the negative psychological, developmental, participatory, and sociological effects of male participation on girls.</p>
Why people may split
The main political fault lines are not fully surfaced yet, so coalition durability is still unclear.
Watch point
The next hurdle is reproducing that support in the other chamber.
<p><strong>Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025</strong></p><p>This bill generally prohibits school athletic programs from allowing individuals whose biological sex at birth was male to participate in programs that are for women or girls.</p><p>Specifically, the bill provides that it is a violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for federally funded education programs or activities to operate, sponsor, or facilitate athletic programs or activities that allow individuals of the male sex to participate in programs or activities that are designated for women or girls. (Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs or activities, including in public elementary and secondary schools and in colleges and universities.) Under the bill,<em> sex</em> is based on an individual's reproductive biology and genetics at birth.</p><p>The bill does not prohibit male individuals from training or practicing with programs or activities for women or girls as long as such training or practice does not deprive any female of corresponding opportunities or benefits.</p><p>The Government Accountability Office must report on the benefits for women or girls in single-sex sports that would be lost as a result of male participation.
In particular, the report must document the negative psychological, developmental, participatory, and sociological effects of male participation on girls.</p>
Passage65/100
This bill has already passed one chamber, which is a stronger signal than introduction alone but still leaves another major hurdle ahead.
CredibilityPartial
How solid the drafting looks.
Contention62/100
The main political fault lines are not fully surfaced yet, so coalition durability is still unclear.
02 · What it does
Who stands to gain, and who may push back.
Likely benefits vs burdens0% / 100%
Likely helpedLikely burdened
These are examples from the analysis, not a ranked list of the most-affected groups.
Likely burdened
- No clear downsides surfaced yet.
03 · Why people split
Why the argument around this bill splits.
The main political fault lines are not fully surfaced yet, so coalition durability is still unclear.
Progressive—
The main political fault lines are not fully surfaced yet, so coalition durability is still unclear.
Centrist—
The main political fault lines are not fully surfaced yet, so coalition durability is still unclear.
Conservative—
The main political fault lines are not fully surfaced yet, so coalition durability is still unclear.
04 · Can it pass?
The path through Congress.
Introduced
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Committee
Still ahead
Floor
Still ahead
President
Still ahead
Law
Still ahead
Passage likelihood65/100
This bill has already passed one chamber, which is a stronger signal than introduction alone but still leaves another major hurdle ahead.
Why this could stall
- The next hurdle is reproducing that support in the other chamber.
05 · Recent votes
Recent votes on the bill.
HOUSE · Jan 14, 2025
Final passage✓ PassedClose voteParty-line
The House passed this bill. It now goes to the other chamber, and eventually to the President for signature.
What is a final passage?Hide explanation
The final vote on whether the bill becomes law (pending the other chamber and the President).
Yes 51% No 48%
Against party line
Henry Cuellar (TX)DD · Yes
Vicente Gonzalez (TX)DD · Yes
Aaron Bean (FL)RR · Yes
Abraham J. Hamadeh (AZ)RR · Yes
Adam Gray (CA)DD · No
Adam Smith (WA)DD · No
Addison P. McDowell (NC)RR · Yes
Adrian Smith (NE)RR · Yes
Showing a quick cross-section of legislators, with followed members first when available.
HOUSE · Jan 14, 2025
Send back to committee✗ FailedClose voteParty-line
The attempt to send the bill back to committee failed. The bill continues moving forward.
What is a send back to committee?Hide explanation
A motion to recommit sends a bill back to committee, often as a last-ditch attempt to stop it.
Yes 49% No 51%
Against party line
Aaron Bean (FL)RR · No
Abraham J. Hamadeh (AZ)RR · No
Adam Gray (CA)DD · Yes
Adam Smith (WA)DD · Yes
Adrian Smith (NE)RR · No
Showing a quick cross-section of legislators, with followed members first when available.
06 · Go deeper
Go deeper than the headline read.
Included on this page
The main political fault lines are not fully surfaced yet, so coalition durability is still unclear.
This bill has already passed one chamber, which is a stronger signal than introduction alone but still leaves another major hurdle ahead.
Unlocked analysis
Pro readers get the full perspective split, passage barriers, legislative design review, stakeholder impact map, and lens-based policy tradeoff analysis for Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025.
Go beyond the headline summary with full stakeholder mapping, legislative design analysis, passage barriers, and lens-by-lens tradeoff breakdowns.
Perspective breakdownsPassage barriersLegislative design reviewStakeholder impact map
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