Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey Signs Bills Protecting Women’s Sports, Unborn Babies

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) signed several bills into law on Monday designed to scale back advances in radical transgender activism, as well as a 15-week abortion ban.

One bill pertaining to transgenderism effectively bans biological males from competing in women’s sports, while another bill will restrict adults from transitioning minors into a member of the opposite sex.

“This legislation is common-sense and narrowly targeted to address these two specific issues – while ensuring that transgender individuals continue to receive the same dignity, respect, and kindness as every individual in our society,” Ducey wrote in a signing letter.

Ducey added that the bill restricting minors from transitioning corresponds with laws already on the books that protect children from making irreversible decisions, including buying certain products or participating in activities that can have lifelong health implications.”

“These decisions should be made when an individual reaches adulthood,” wrote Ducey. “Further, many doctors who perform these procedures on adults agree it is not within the standards of care to perform these procedures on children.”

“The irreversible nature of these procedures underscores why such a decision should be made as an adult, not as a child, and further supports the importance of this legislation,” he added.

As noted by the Hill, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health does not recommend gender reassignment surgery until adulthood but supports “other gender-affirming treatments, like puberty blockers or hormone therapies.”

Regarding transgenders in sports, the bill allows for transgender individuals to play on school teams so long as the team has not been designated as “female.”

“This bill strikes the right balance of respecting all students while still acknowledging that there are inherent biological distinctions that merit separate categories to ensure fairness for all,” Ducey wrote.

Another bill that Ducey signed on Wednesday will also outlaw abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

“In Arizona, we know there is immeasurable value in every life – including preborn life,” Ducey said. “I believe it is each state’s responsibility to protect them.”

“This very issue is pending before the United States Supreme Court now in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. It has been said that a society should be judged by the way they care for the vulnerable among us. In Arizona, we will continue to protect life to the greatest extent possible,” he added.

In early February, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem signed a bill restricting biological males from competing in women’s sports up through college. Speaking with Fox News, she said the law is about “leveling the playing field.”

“It is true that your girls will have a level playing field,” she said. “They will get the chance to compete only against other biological females, as reflected on their birth certificate because we want them to have a chance to be successful.”

This month, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signed a bill that will require athletes to compete on school, college, and university sports teams corresponding to their biological sex.