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House Republicans approved their measure to restrict transgender students from playing on women’s sports teams on a 219-203 vote Thursday morning. ... The bill has no chance of becoming law as it is likely to stall in the Democrat-controlled Senate, and President Joe Biden has already announced that he would veto the bill if it were to reach his desk. (Quilantan, 4/20)

North Dakota’s Republican Gov. Doug Burgum signed a bill Wednesday banning gender-affirming care for most minors with the possibility of a felony for health care professionals who provide it. House Bill 1254 prohibits health care providers from performing a variety of gender-affirming care and procedures on those under the age of 18. Mike Nowatzki, communications director for the governor, confirmed the bill’s signature in an email Thursday. (Watson and Forrest, 4/20)

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed four bills Thursday that would have regulated the lives of transgender Kansans, dictating what spaces they are welcome in and the health care they can access. The Democratic governor brought her veto count for the year to 10 in a resounding rejection of a string of legislation that has represented an aggressive effort by the GOP-controlled Legislature to limit the rights of transgender Kansans. (Bernard, 4/20)

Advocacy groups filed a lawsuit on Thursday seeking to strike down a new Tennessee law that bans doctors from providing gender-affirming medical treatment such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgery to transgender minors. The American Civil Liberties Union and LGBTQ group Lambda Legal in a lawsuit filed in Nashville, Tennessee federal court say the law, which takes effect July 1, unlawfully discriminates against transgender people based on their sex. (Wiessner, 4/20)

Florida lawmakers voted on Wednesday to further limit access to gender-affirming care, while state education officials expanded restrictions on gender identity instruction in schools. It’s the latest in a string of efforts some families of transgender youth say are forcing them to flee the state. One family recently made the painful choice to live more than 1,000 miles apart to protect their child’s well-being. “It’s just unbelievable how far the state has fallen,” said Josie, 16, of St. Johns County. We’re not using her family’s last name to protect their privacy. (Colombini, 4/20)

�������ýҕ�l Health News: Tension Builds In Transgender Policy Debate In Montana

On April 13, Democratic Rep. Zooey Zephyr was sitting in the basement of Montana’s Capitol building reflecting on her time as one of the state’s first two openly transgender legislators. She wondered whether she needed to display more anger over anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, or whether she should focus on promoting more of what she called “transgender joy.” “The thing that keeps me up at night is, am I doing a good job for my community?” Zephyr said. (Larson, 4/21)

Living in Minnesota has made a positive difference for Wes Samuelson and his 11-year-old child Liz. The two moved to Duluth from Wyoming in 2020 after they could not get access to gender-affirming care. “I was going to be worried if we stayed in Wyoming much longer,” Samuelson, who is transgender, said on a recent weeknight as he made dinner in his Duluth home for Liz and his partner, Beram Compo, who is also trans. “I am living a normal life and that feels nice.” (Moini, 4/21)

Defeated on same-sex marriage, the religious right went searching for an issue that would re-energize supporters and donors. The campaign that followed has stunned political leaders across the spectrum. (Nagourney and Peters, 4/16)