NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach clarified this week the interpretation of the Women's Bill of Rights passed by the Kansas Legislature that will go into effect July 1.
"It is a bill that simply defines male and female in Kansas law," Kobach said. "It's kind of amazing that we even need to have a law like this, but that's where we are as a country. It simply states that, for all state recordkeeping and data that the state maintains, a man is someone who is a male at birth and a woman is a person who is a female at birth."
This will have an impact on some Kansas drivers licenses and birth certificates.
"Not for 99% of us, but for those who, individuals who are seeking to transition their sex, they will not be able to change their driver's license or their birth certificate. Those who have been able to under the Kelly Administration over the past few months, those data sets will be changed back to reflect the person's biological sex."
This is a bill that Gov. Kelly vetoed, but Republicans in the Legislature had the votes to override. This also resolves a previous court case.
"Back in 2018, four trans individuals sued the state before this law was in effect," Kobach said. "After the Kelly Administration took power, they came to a settlement with the plaintiffs and said, okay, we'll go ahead and start changing birth certificates. That settlement is now in conflict with state law. That's one of the things my office did on Friday is, filed a motion with the judge, asking that the settlement be modified to be consistent with state law now."
In addition, this law clarifies that the portion of the Topeka Correctional Facility that is set aside for women is confined to biological females.
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