Brian Heywood’s Trans Sports Ban is Far Worse Than Measures Considered Before the Supreme Court Today
While West Virginia and Idaho’s laws discriminate, neither law specifies sex verification for all students wishing to play girls’ sports
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, January 13, 2026
Today the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on West Virginia and Idaho’s laws that restrict trans girls’ ability to participate in school sports. While these states’ laws are both discriminatory and unnecessary, a far worse version might be on Washington’s ballot this November that could subject girls as young as 11 to invasive genital examinations and costly genetic testing.
Danni Askini, Co-Chair of Washington Families for Freedom, said, “In his quest for political power, Brian Heywood has put forth a measure that doesn’t just target trans girls, but could subject any girl in Washington who wants to participate in school sports to invasive examinations or genital testing. This is unlike bills we have seen in other states like Idaho and West Virginia, that are being argued before the Supreme Court today. While these measures are horrific and discriminatory, what is being proposed in Washington is far more extreme.”
After spending millions to attempt to buy his way onto the ballot, hedge fund mega-millionaire and major Trump inaugural committee donor Brian Heywood, submitted signatures for IL 26-638. This initiative not only discriminates against trans girls, but specifies that any student wishing to participate in girls’ sports must have their sex verified. The language from the initiative below:
A student who elects to participate in individual or team
competition activities intended for female students only governed
under subsection (1) of this section shall provide, as part of the
required routine sports physical examination, a health examination
and consent form or other statement signed by the student's personal
health care provider that verifies the student's biological sex,
relying only on one or more of the following: The student's
reproductive anatomy, genetic makeup, or normal endogenously
produced testosterone levels.
Notably, the state of Ohio amended its trans sports ban in 2022 to remove language around physician verification of sex and specify that eligibility would be determined by birth certificates.
Washington Families for Freedom is endorsed by many child advocacy, safety, education, and health providers including the Coalition Ending Gender-Based Violence, WA Youth Alliance, Team Child, Washington Education Association, League of Education Voters, Gender Justice League, Pro-Choice Washington, ACLU of Washington, GSBA, Washington’s LGBTQ+ and Allied Chamber of Commerce, and Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates.
For more information visit WAFamiliesforFreedom.org
Paid for by WA Families for Freedom
Top 5 Contributors: SEIU 775 Ballot Fund, ACLU of Washington, Washington Education Association, Gender Justice League, Pro-Choice Washington
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