People in public buildings across Texas will soon only be allowed to use restrooms and locker rooms matching the sex listed on their birth certificate.
Gov. Greg Abbott signed the so-called "bathroom bill" into law on Monday, a moment he shared in a video on X. In the clip, Abbott said the bill will keep men out of women's restrooms and that it "is just common sense."
The measure, Senate Bill 8, takes effect on Dec. 4, 2025.
Restrictions in SB 8 will apply to public schools, universities and prisons and jails, along with other government buildings in Texas. The only exceptions are for people accompanying children under 10, along with custodians, law enforcement, and medical workers.
If someone violates the law, the facility would be subject to a fine of $25,000 for the first offense and $125,000 for subsequent offenses. Complaints filed by private citizens could also be investigated by the state attorney general's office.
Those against the controversial new law call it a solution to a problem that doesn't exist — saying there's no proof transgender women in Texas are entering bathrooms and harming cisgender women or girls. That came up this summer while the proposal was being debated on the House Floor. When Democratic lawmakers asked the bill's sponsors to provide an example, the lawmakers could not.
Still, the legislation became a priority for Republican lawmakers during the special session after a similar measure failed earlier this year.
Lawmakers and organizations which backed the bill argued it protects the privacy and safety of women and girls. That included the Alliance Defending Freedom, a religious liberty legal group.
"Women and girls should not be forced to sacrifice their privacy and safety in the name of promoting gender ideology," Sara Beth Nolan, legal counsel for ADF, said in a statement on Monday. "Allowing men to invade girls' most intimate spaces — including locker rooms, sleeping areas, or restrooms — compromises their dignity."
Texas LGBTQIA+ advocates react to 'bathroom bill' being signed into law
Advocates and advocacy groups say this is the latest in Texas' ongoing attacks on the state's transgender community. During the regular session more than 100 bills were filed aimed at LGBTQ+ people, with several passing.
Elva Mendoza with the Texas Freedom Network, a nonpartisan social justice organization, called the bill "gross."
"It uses a definition [of biological sex] that is very black and white and doesn't reflect the actual biology of many people," Mendoza told The Texas Newsroom on Monday.
The result, she said, is unfair and also creates discrimination against intersex people, among others.
"Not all women have ovaries, not all women have a uterus," Mendoza said.
There are privacy concerns around the legislation as well. "It's going to require extreme invasions into the privacy of Texans who don't look like culturally accepted gender stereotypes," said Jonathan Gooch, communications director for Equality Texas, a statewide LGBTQIA+ organization.
Gooch also has questions about how the law would be implemented.
"They [Texas lawmakers] left enforcement very vague," Gooch said. "There's a wide range of possibilities open to cities and government agencies across the state, which could include cameras or security guards. Who knows what it will look like, but it's something that all Texans should be alarmed about."
What's next?
While the measure is set to go into effect on Dec. 4, there is a possibility it could end up delayed by legal challenges.
Nearly 20 other states have recently enacted some level of restrictions on restroom access for transgender people. Several of those are currently tied up in court, including a South Carolina law which links school funding to bathroom restrictions in schools. Officials there have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in.
Right now, the ACLU of Texas says a discrimination lawsuit isn't off the table.
"It's a discriminatory bill. It's designed to push transgender intersex and non-binary people out of public life," said Ash Hall, an ACLU of Texas policy and advocacy strategist.
Hall told The Texas Newsroom that the bill encourages, "gender policing, which is where basically a complete stranger takes a look at you and decides internally whether or not you belong in a sex segregated space and harasses you about it."
The Texas Newsroom's Lucio Vasquez contributed to this report.
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