House Bill 500 would prevent student athletes from participating in sports according to their authentic gender identity, a departure from current guiding policies from the Idaho High School Activities Association. This bill aims to solve a problem that does not exist, while codifying discrimination against transgender athletes. This bill would violate basic privacy rights by requiring educators and coachs to identify and separate transgender youth, some of whom may not be “out” as transgender to their peers or teachers. Transgender youth are entitled to privacy, yet this bill would mandate DNA analysis, hormone level monitoring, or even an inspection of the youth’s “internal and external reproductive anatomy”. Schools would be put in the position of potentially outing a transgender child—to the coach, athletic association, teammates, and even their parents—which the school is not legally or ethically authorized to do under medical privacy laws, professionalism standards, and other regulations.
