Why did Josh Shapiro appoint this anti-trans Republican to Pennsylvania's civil rights commission?

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, has appointed a former Republican lawmaker with a long record of opposing transgender rights and attempting to curtail civil rights enforcement to the state commission charged with protecting Pennsylvanians from discrimination.

Former State Rep. Seth Grove, who represented part of York County in the Pennsylvania House for 17 years, is among seven new members of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission. The agency investigates discrimination in employment, housing, education, and public accommodations and enforces the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.

Grove is scheduled to be sworn in on Monday.

Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office defends the appointment

His appointment places a former legislator who repeatedly supported restrictions on transgender people inside the institution responsible for considering discrimination complaints from them. Pennsylvania law requires partisan balance on the commission, and Shapiro’s office defended the appointment.

“The PA Human Relations Act legally requires that no more than six commissioners belong to the same political party,” Shapiro spokesperson Rosie Lapowsky said in a statement to The Advocate. “While candidates are nominated by the Governor, they must receive a majority vote in the Senate to be confirmed, and thus any appointments to the PHRC are a collaborative effort between the Governor’s office and the Senate. Governor Shapiro remains committed to protecting the rights and freedoms of every LGBTQ+ Pennsylvanian.”

The statement did not answer why Shapiro, who is considered a possible contender for the 2028 presidential race, selected Grove specifically, whether the governor’s office reviewed Grove’s record on transgender rights and civil rights enforcement, or whether Grove provided any assurances that he would uphold the commission’s existing protections for LGBTQ+ people.

The Shapiro administration cited the governor's participation in lawsuits challenging Trump administration restrictions on gender-affirming care, his support for efforts to limit federal subpoenas seeking transgender patients’ medical records, and his direction that Pennsylvania’s 988 crisis centers receive training to provide tailored support to LGBTQ+ callers.

The administration also noted that Shapiro has urged lawmakers to pass the Fairness Act, advocated for expanding Pennsylvania’s hate crime law and, as attorney general, challenged the first Trump administration’s ban on transgender military service and supported a transgender Virginia student who sued for access to the school bathroom corresponding with his gender. It also pointed to Shapiro’s support for marriage equality while serving as a Montgomery County commissioner.

The Advocate also contacted Grove for comment. An automatic response from his email account indicated that he was traveling and out of the office.

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Grove’s anti-trans record

Grove’s record includes an attempt to restrict health care for transgender Pennsylvanians.

In 2017, he cosponsored House Bill 1933, which would have prohibited Pennsylvania’s Medicaid program and Children’s Health Insurance Program from covering transition-related services, including surgery. The legislation did not become law.

In 2025, Grove cosponsored House Bill 581, the “Parental Rights in Education Act,” which would restrict classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity, require parental notification concerning certain student health services, and allow families to sue school districts over alleged violations.

LGBTQ+ advocates compared the proposal to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law and warned that its notification provisions could expose LGBTQ+ students to their families without their consent.

Grove also chaired the House State Government Committee, which had jurisdiction over the Fairness Act. The legislation would have explicitly added sexual orientation and gender identity to Pennsylvania’s statewide nondiscrimination law. Grove did not bring it up for a vote.

Grove also challenged the commission’s authority to protect LGBTQ+ people. In a May 2022 letter to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission, he urged regulators to reject a PHRC rule defining sex discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity. Grove argued that the agency was attempting to “expand the law through regulation” and circumvent the General Assembly. He will now help oversee the commission whose authority he sought to limit.

Pennsylvania’s Human Relations Act does not explicitly name sexual orientation or gender identity. The commission has instead interpreted the law’s prohibition on sex discrimination to include both categories.

That makes the composition of the commission particularly consequential for LGBTQ+ Pennsylvanians, since the agency is not merely an advisory body. It investigates complaints, sets policy, and helps determine whether discrimination occurred.

Jim Sheppard, a former member of Pittsburgh’s local Human Relations Commission, raised concerns about Grove’s appointment in a July 16 commentary for QBurgh, a local LGBTQ+ news outlet.

“Appointments to independent commissions should inspire confidence that commissioners will faithfully carry out the mission of the agencies they oversee,” Sheppard wrote. “In Grove’s case, however, his legislative record raises serious questions about whether he is the right person to help guide Pennsylvania’s premier civil rights agency.”

Sheppard also cited Grove’s opposition to local LGBTQ-inclusive nondiscrimination protections and gender-neutral language for parents on birth certificates.

An effort to weaken civil rights enforcement

Grove repeatedly introduced legislation that would have substantially changed the civil rights enforcement system he will now help oversee.

In 2023, Grove introduced House Bill 1435, which would have altered how discrimination complaints are handled, created a reimbursement process for certain claims, and repealed provisions authorizing local human relations commissions.

He reintroduced a similar proposal in 2025 as House Bill 245, which would have allowed reimbursement for respondents in cases labeled “wrongful claims” and prohibited local human relations commissions.

Grove promoted the 2025 proposal in a legislative memo titled “Improving our Business Climate — DOGE Style.”

Neither measure advanced.

Local human relations commissions can offer another avenue for people seeking protection from discrimination, particularly in municipalities with LGBTQ-inclusive ordinances that are more explicit than state law.

A civil rights commission being rebuilt

The PHRC announced Grove’s appointment July 14 as part of a larger slate of seven new commissioners.

The agency’s announcement identified Grove as the president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Aggregates and Concrete Association. It did not detail his legislative record or explain why Shapiro selected him.

The commission said the new members would bring expertise intended to promote “accountability, fairness, service to Pennsylvanians, and institutional improvement.”

“The PHRC’s work depends on strong, principled leadership committed to fairness and accountability,” interim commission Chair Curtis Jones Jr. said in the announcement. “I look forward to working with these new commissioners to strengthen the PHRC and ensure every Pennsylvanian receives the equitable treatment they deserve.”