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Montana House Judiciary hears contentious testimony on SB 437 to define 'biological sex' in code
Summary
Lawmakers heard hours of pro- and anti-testimony on Senate Bill 437, which would insert definitions for "male," "female," "man," "woman," parents and "biological sex" into Montana law; proponents argued it brings legal clarity, opponents warned it would erase protections for transgender, nonbinary and intersex people and is likely to face litigation.
Senators and witnesses from medical, legal and civil-rights organizations sparred for hours in House Judiciary over Senate Bill 437, which its sponsor, Senator Carl Glimm, said "is about defining terms." Glimm told the committee the measure would add definitions for male, female, man, woman, father and mother into Montana code to ensure those terms "mean the same thing" across statutes.
Proponents framed the bill as a clarity measure. Derek Astraicher of the Montana Family Foundation told the committee the bill "provides legal clarity based on objective science," arguing the legislature — not judges — should define terms used across law and policy. National and national-affiliated witnesses, including Jay Richards of the Heritage Foundation and Matt Sharp of Alliance Defending Freedom, said precise, biologically grounded definitions would protect privacy in prisons, locker rooms and women's sports and align state law with recent federal…
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