Tennessee lawmakers weigh a dozen new Republican anti-LGBTQ+ bills

Tennessee lawmakers are taking up more than a dozen bills affecting LGBTQ+ people this week, a package advocates warn could dramatically reshape the legal landscape for queer and transgender residents. Hearings began Tuesday and continue through Wednesday at the Cordell Hull Building in Nashville.

The Tennessee Equality Project has called the moment a “legislative crisis,” noting that committees in the Tennessee General Assembly are set to hear at least 13 measures touching nearly every corner of LGBTQ+ life, from employment protections and health care access to marriage recognition, library books, and Pride celebrations.

Chris Sanders, executive director of the Tennessee Equality Project, said the clustering of hearings signals a pivotal moment in the legislative session. “The schedule is pretty ominous, and a lot of it hits this week,” Sanders said in an interview with The Advocate. “It’s really all over the board this week.”

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Among the most far-reaching proposals is a measure advocates have dubbed the “Banning Bostock” bill, scheduled for a Wednesday hearing before the House Judiciary Committee. The bill would bar Tennessee courts and agencies from interpreting sex discrimination protections to cover sexual orientation or gender identity, directly targeting the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2020 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, which extended federal workplace protections to gay and transgender employees.

Sanders called the proposal the most damaging bill under consideration, noting Tennessee lacks a statewide nondiscrimination law to replace those protections.

“If you take away the few employment protections we have or catch them up in court challenges that make things murky, you have really cut a lifeline for LGBTQ people,” Sanders said.

He added that the bill could also create confusion for businesses. “Businesses are then caught between, okay, there’s this state law that’s kind of trying to pretend Bostock didn’t happen,” he said. Sanders said he believes the proposal is currently unique nationally but warned that other states may follow. “Sometimes we innovate and export this kind of hate.”

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Several other measures target transgender people’s access to health care. One bill would bar TennCare, the state’s Medicaid program, from covering gender-affirming care. Another would prohibit health care providers from asking minors about gender identity or sexual orientation without parental permission. A third would expand state reporting requirements tied to gender-affirming treatment.

Sanders warned the reporting requirements could compromise privacy, particularly in smaller communities.

“There’s going to be enough data reported that, say it’s in a small county, someone might be able to determine who it is,” he said. “That puts health care providers and patients at risk.”

Legislation expanding legal liability for doctors who previously provided gender-affirming care to minors could also worsen an existing pediatrician shortage in Tennessee, he said.

“If you increase their liability, why would they come here? Why would they stay here?” Sanders said. “It makes you fearful to practice medicine in this state.”

On the family law front, lawmakers are considering a covenant marriage framework limited to a man and a woman. Advocates say the language conflicts with the Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. A separate proposal would make it easier for individuals and organizations to decline recognition of same-sex marriages.

Other measures aim to curb LGBTQ+ visibility in public life. One bill would ban government entities from displaying Pride flags or supporting Pride events. Another would allow educators and officials to use honorifics such as “Mr.” or “Ms.” that conflict with a person’s gender identity. A measure affecting library book reconsideration is also scheduled for debate.

Sanders said Tennessee’s political and religious demographics have helped fuel the legislation. According to Pew Research Center data, Tennessee is one of the few states where white evangelical Protestants make up more than half the population.

Related: Tennessee bill lets businesses and people refuse to recognize same-sex marriages

“That segment of the population, generally, not always, but generally, is less supportive of LGBTQ+ rights than other segments,” Sanders said. The state’s Republican supermajority, reinforced by heavily gerrymandered districts, also makes legislative victories difficult to envision, he said. “I don’t know when the supermajorities will change in Tennessee,” Sanders said. “Probably not in the next five years.”

In the past, advocates relied on federal policy to blunt state-level legislation, he said. That dynamic has shifted.

“When Obama was president, when Biden was president — no, they weren’t perfect on LGBTQ+ rights — but we could rely on favorable rules in federal agencies and say to the state, ‘You simply cannot do this,’” Sanders said. “We’re on our own for the time being.”

He said that some LGBTQ+ residents have left Tennessee, particularly families of transgender children seeking medical care. But Sanders said leaving is not an option for many and would not solve the underlying problem. “If we all left, there would still be LGBTQ kids born here every day,” Sanders said. “At some point, some of us have to stay and fight.”

Despite the legislative pressure, Sanders said he has been encouraged by the community’s response, including turnout at committee hearings and grassroots organizing across the state.

“What makes it bearable is you keep meeting the best people in the state who want to do something about it,” Sanders said. “Their bravery sees us through a lot of days.”