Ky. General Assembly overrides veto of ‘anti-trans’ legislation

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Kentucky’s General Assembly has voted to override Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto of Senate Bill 150, a bill containing a ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth.

“This allows too much government interference in personal healthcare matters,” Rep. Chad Aull (D-Lexington) said. “We cannot say we are going to allow parents to make these decisions and then take the rights of parents away to make those decisions.”

The Senate voted to override the veto in a 29-8 vote, moving the override to the House on Tuesday afternoon.

In the House, the veto passed in a 76-23 vote, moving the bill to go into effect in June.

“I will tell you who is scared, trans kids, their parents and those who love them are about to have life-saving medical care ripped out from under them by an insanely out-of-touch legislature,” Rep. Josie Raymond (D-Louisville) said.

In addition to prohibiting sex change procedures and hormone treatments, the bill also prohibits school districts from using pronouns that do not conform to a student’s biological sex.

“There are no gender reassignment surgeries happening on minors in Kentucky,” Cassie Chambers Armstrong, (D-Louisville) said. “There is not a provider in the state that’s doing this or has ever done this, to my knowledge. We are creating stories to scare people, and I have to ask why?”

Protesters gathered in Frankfort to oppose the veto of Senate Bill 150, claiming the bill will hurt children and could possibly increase suicide rates.

The protests included hundreds of kids and adults, who started outside the Capitol before a group moved inside the statehouse during the vote.

WKYT/WYMT reporter Phil Pendleton tweeted protesters were being arrested by Kentucky State Police during the legislature.

WAVE photographer Marty Pearl captured footage of protesters being escorted out of the gallery in zip ties.

Captain Paul Blanton with Kentucky State Police confirmed 19 arrests were made in the Capital on Wednesday afternoon.

“The Sergeant of Arms requested that KSP assist in restoring order today in the House gallery chambers,” Blanton said in a statement. “KSP gave each individual the option to leave without any enforcement action or be placed under arrest. KSP arrested 19 individuals. They have been cited for criminal trespassing 3rd degree. The Franklin County District Court authorized that the individuals could be released on their own recognizance.”

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The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky called the veto a “shameful attack on the LGBTQ youth in Kentucky” in a statement.

“SB 150 was rushed through the legislature in a deliberately secretive process at the 11th hour,” the statement reads. “Trans Kentuckians, medical and mental health professionals, and accredited professional associations pleaded with lawmakers to listen to the experts, not harmful rhetoric based in fear and hate. Their pleas fell on deaf ears as the general assembly passed the bill in a matter of hours.”

Transgender youth will still be able to receive care until the bill takes effect, the ACLU said.

Planned Parenthood also released a statement on Wednesday afternoon, saying the group will not stop fighting for the rights of Kentucky’s transgender community.

“This law is a stain on Kentucky,” Tamarra Wieder, Kentucky State Director for Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates (PPAA-KY) said. “Every elected official who voted for SB 150 is on the wrong side of history. Let me be clear: Trans people will not be erased, not today, not ever. The youth spoke today and have promised to replace you tomorrow. Believe it.”

Fairness Campaign executive director Chris Hartman said the group will continue to do what they can to ensure access to medical care.

“While we lost the battle in the legislature, our defeat is temporary,” Hartman said. “We will not lose in court. And we are winning in so many other ways. Thousands of Kentucky kids came to the Capitol today to make their voices heard against the worst anti-trans bill in the nation. They are our hope for a Kentucky future that is more fair, more just, and more beautifully diverse and accepting than ever before.”

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