21 states now limit transgender people’s bathroom use, with criminal penalties in two

Alabama

Alabama passed H.B. 322 in 2022. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools and some government-owned buildings. The bill also contains “don’t say gay" provisions limiting education regarding sexual orientation or gender identity.

Arkansas

Arkansas passed Act 542 in 2023. It bans trans people from using facilities consistent with their gender identity in public schools — state colleges and universities — and all other government-owned buildings.

The bill also requires trans students under 18 to receive written permission from their parents in order for all school employees to use proper names and pronouns. School employees are still allowed to refuse to honor their name and pronouns if they are inconsistent with the gender marker on the student’s birth certificate.

Florida

Florida passed H.B. 1521 in 2023. Using a restroom or changing facility that does not align with an individual’s sex assigned at birth is considered criminal trespass under the law. This applies to K-12 schools, public colleges, and all government-owned buildings.

Idaho

Idaho passed H.B. 264 in 2025. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools and some government-owned buildings. The bill also allows people to bring lawsuits against state-run facilities found to be in violation.

Iowa

Iowa passed Senate File 482 in 2023. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools. The bill was signed into law alongside the state's ban on gender-affirming care for youth.

Kansas

Kansas lawmakers have overridden Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto to enact a law that restricts where transgender people can use restrooms and how their sex is listed on state documents. The measure, Senate Bill 244, requires people to use restrooms and other single-sex facilities in government buildings based on sex assigned at birth, not gender identity.

It also orders the state to reissue driver’s licenses and birth certificates that reflect a transgender person’s gender identity, replacing those markers with sex assigned at birth, and bans multi-occupancy gender-neutral restrooms in government buildings.

The law includes penalties: individuals can be fined after repeated violations, and it allows private citizens to sue for at least $1,000 in damages. Government entities can face fines starting at $25,000. Supporters say the bill is about safety and clarity. Opponents, including Kelly and civil rights groups, warn it is vague, costly, and puts transgender Kansans at risk while inviting harassment and lawsuits.

Kentucky

Kentucky passed S.B. 150 in 2023 when the Republican legislature overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto.

The bill bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools, as well as gender-affirming care for youth. It also requires trans students under 18 to receive permission from their guardians in order for school employees to use their proper names and pronouns, while allowing employees to ignore them.

Louisiana

Louisiana passed H.B. 608 in 2024. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools and some government-owned buildings, such as domestic violence shelters and correctional facilities.

Mississippi

Mississippi passed S.B. 2753 in 2024. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools and some government-owned buildings, but mandates public buildings provide unisex spaces for individual use. The bill also allows people to bring legal charges against those found to be in violation.

Montana

Montana passed H.B. 121 in 2025. It bans trans people from using the facilities that align with their gender identity in K-12 schools and all other government-owned buildings. A Missoula district court judge issued a preliminary injunction in May, blocking enforcement of the law while a lawsuit against it moves forward.

North Dakota

North Dakota passed H.B. 1473 in 2025. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools and some government-owned buildings, and even forbids unisex spaces for individual use.

Ohio

Ohio passed S.B. 104 in 2024. It mandates that all public and private schools, including K-12 and colleges and universities, provide bathrooms, locker rooms, and overnight accommodations based upon a person’s sex assigned "at or near birth." The bill was originally designed to help high school students earn college credits, with the anti-trans provision added later.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma passed S.B. 615 in 2022. It bans trans people from using the facilities that align with their gender identity in K-12 schools and some government-owned buildings.

South Carolina

South Carolina passed Budget Proviso 1.120 in 2024. It bans trans people from using the facilities that align with their gender identity in K-12 schools, threatening to revoke a quarter of all state funding from schools that do not comply. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit blocked the law from being enforced in August after a trans high school student brought a lawsuit. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to overturn that ruling in September.

South Dakota

South Dakota passed H.B. 1259 in 2025. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools and all other government-owned buildings.

Tennessee

Tennessee passed H.B. 1182 in 2021. It bans trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools. The bill was signed into law during the same session as the state's trans sports ban and "Don't Say Gay" law.

Texas

Texas passed S.B. 8 in 2025. It bans trans people from using facilities that align with their gender identity in K-12 schools and all other government-owned buildings. Institutions found in violation can be fined $25,000 for the first instance and $125,000 per day for each subsequent instance.

Utah

Utah passed H.B. 257 in 2024. It bans trans people from using bathrooms or facilities that correspond with their gender identity in K-12 schools and all other government-owned buildings. Institutions in violation can be fined $10,000 per incident, and individuals could face criminal charges if they cause "affront or alarm."

Virginia

Under Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Virginia passed the state Department of Education Model Policies in 2023 that mandate K-12 schools ban trans students from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity. Five school districts refused to comply, prompting the Trump administration to threaten to revoke funding. The districts filed a lawsuit against the federal government in response.

After Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s win in November 2024, advocates in the state expect the policies attacking transgender people to be undone.

West Virginia

West Virginia passed S.B. 456 in 2025. It bars trans people from single-sex facilities that align with their gender identity at K-12 schools, domestic violence shelters, and prisons. It also redefined sex as "the state of being either male or female as observed or clinically verified at birth."

Wyoming

Wyoming passed H.B. 72 in 2025. It bans trans people from using bathrooms or facilities that correspond with their gender identity in K-12 schools and all other government-owned buildings. Agencies that do not comply could face civil liabilities.