To amend the Education Amendments of 1972 to provide that for purposes of determining compliance with title IX of such Act in athletics, sex shall be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
Passed HouseMr. Steube (for himself, Mr. Walberg, Mr. Estes, Mrs. Houchin, …
Passed House (inferred from eh version)
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025 amends Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to prohibit any educational institution receiving federal financial assistance from allowing individuals whose sex is male (defined by reproductive biology and genetics at birth) to participate in women's or girls' athletic programs. The bill also directs the Government Accountability Office to conduct a comprehensive study documenting the psychological, developmental, and competitive impacts on female athletes when males are allowed to participate in women's sports.
Who Benefits and How
Female cisgender athletes stand to benefit by having guaranteed sex-segregated athletic competition without transgender women participants. The bill explicitly allows males to train or practice with women's teams, but only if no female loses a roster spot, scholarship, admission to an educational institution, or any other benefit. Advocates for sex-based athletic divisions gain legal backing for their position that biological sex at birth should determine athletic participation.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Transgender female athletes face the most significant burden, as they would be categorically prohibited from participating in women's sports at any federally-funded educational institution, effectively barring them from school athletic programs. Educational institutions receiving federal funds (K-12 schools, colleges, and universities) must enforce this prohibition or risk losing federal funding, creating new compliance obligations. The Government Accountability Office must conduct a mandated study examining benefits lost by allowing males in women's sports, adding to their workload. Athletic programs at these institutions face administrative burdens to verify sex based on reproductive biology and genetics at birth.
Key Provisions
- Adds a new subsection to Title IX making it a violation for federally-funded schools to permit anyone whose sex is male (based on reproductive biology and genetics at birth) to participate in women's or girls' athletic programs
- Allows males to train or practice with women's teams only if no female is deprived of roster spots, competition opportunities, scholarships, admissions, or other benefits
- Requires GAO to study and document adverse psychological, developmental, participatory, and sociological impacts on girls from allowing males in women's sports
- Mandates GAO report findings to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
- Defines sex based solely on reproductive biology and genetics at birth for purposes of Title IX athletic compliance
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Amends Title IX to prohibit individuals whose sex is male from participating in women's or girls' athletic programs at federally-funded educational institutions, defining sex based on reproductive biology and genetics at birth
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Codify sex-based athletic participation restrictions in Title IX by defining sex based on biology at birth, effectively prohibiting transgender women from women's sports at federally-funded institutions"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Advocates for sex-based athletic divisions
- Educational institutions seeking clear federal guidance on transgender athlete participation
- Female athletes concerned about competition from transgender women
Likely Burden Bearers
- Transgender female athletes who would be prohibited from women's sports
- Educational institutions that currently allow transgender participation (must change policies or risk federal funding)
- LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations
- Civil rights organizations opposing gender identity restrictions
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "recipient"
- → Any educational institution or organization receiving Federal financial assistance that operates athletic programs
- "the_comptroller_general"
- → Comptroller General of the United States (GAO)
Note: No scope conflicts - this is a simple bill with a single unified scope amending one section of Title IX
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Shall be recognized based solely on a person's reproductive biology and genetics at birth
Includes, but is not limited to, all programs or activities that are provided conditional upon participation with any athletic team
Benefits accompanying participating in athletics programs (to be further defined by GAO study)
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology