Tennessee governor signs collegiate transgender athlete ban
By KIMBERLEE KRUESI
Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Republican Gov. Bill Lee has signed off on legislation banning transgender athletes from participating in female college sports. While Lee did not issue a comment explaining why he signed the legislation on Friday, the Republican has previously declared that allowing transgender athletes to participate in female sports would “destroy women’s sports.” The bill will go into effect July 1. According to the Human Rights Campaign, Tennessee is one of eight states that have passed anti-transgender sports bills. Those include Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Utah. Last year, no other state enacted more laws targeting transgender people than Tennessee.