KEY VOTE: Cosponsorship of the Defining Male and Female Act (H.R. 9218)

Until recently, no precise legal definition of sex—and especially the terms “male” and “female”—was needed because no one contested the inherent differences between men and women. Unfortunately, because of gender ideology’s growing influence on our laws and institutions, Congress no longer has this luxury. Gender activists are working to redefine sex in federal laws and regulations, such as the Biden-Harris administration’s attempt to rewrite and distort Title IX to include “gender identity.”

Redefining “sex” to include “gender identity” undermines equal treatment under the law and creates legal chaos. It poses a significant threat to women and girls, and deprives them of privacy and safety by prohibiting restrooms, locker and dorm rooms, prisons, and shelters for victims of sexual assault from being separated by sex. It also deprives women and girls of opportunities on and off the field by nullifying the legal right to sex-separate sports and scholarships.

H.R. 9218 will protect women and children by enshrining scientific and legally sound definitions of sex, male and female, in federal law, preventing future agencies and administrations from redefining this fundamental characteristic, and establishing “sex” as a stable legal category. Polling shows broad, bipartisan support for legislation fighting transgender activism. More than 65% of Americans oppose access to puberty-blocking medication for children, and almost 70% of Americans do not believe male athletes should be allowed to compete against girls and women.

The definition established in the Defining Male and Female Act is precise and captures the central concept of biological sex—the orientation of male and female bodies for reproduction. It also refers to what happens under normal development while accounting for disorders and accommodating for the fact that organisms have and do different things at different stages of development.

This legislation avoids the pitfalls of imprecise definitions such as simply defining humans as either male or female and having either XX or XY chromosomes—corresponding to females (XX) and males (XY). Instead, it rightly accounts for individuals with disorders of sexual development. While disorders of sexual development, often mislabeled “intersex” conditions, do occur, they do not prove that there are more than two sexes—or that the sexes are somehow fluid or mere endpoints on a spectrum. Such disorders occur in only 0.018 percent of the population, and those with atypical chromosomes or sex traits are still either male or female. The bill also rightly steers clear of attempts to distinguish “sex” from “gender.”

In the wake of the legal chaos created by the Biden-Harris administration, states have rightly begun to step up and establish clear definitions of male and female in their states laws. Congress must join them and establish clear definitions in federal law. The Defining Male and Female Act protects women and children from threats caused by radical gender ideology.