Senate Democrats on Monday rejected a bill that would have banned individuals who identify as transgender from participating in school athletic programs designated for girls and women.
The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, sponsored by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), fell short of the 60 votes needed to advance as senators voted along party lines in a 51-45 vote.
The bill aimed to preserve Title IX protections for women, a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools and educational programs that receive federal funds.
It sought to bar federally-funded schools from operating, sponsoring, or facilitating athletic programs that allow athletes “whose biological sex at birth was male” to compete with women, according to the bill’s summary….