Alaska2026Passed Legislature
HB40
HB40: Rules for Sex Designation in School Sports
Last scannedSep 10, 2026, 12:32 AM
In one sentence
This law requires schools to label sports teams as male, female, or mixed and limits participation on female teams to students who are biologically female at birth.
What it does
- Requires public schools, private schools that compete against public schools, and postsecondary institutions to label every team as male/female/boys/girls/men/women, or coeducational/mixed.
- States that only students who are female based on their biological sex can join teams labeled for females, women, or girls.
- Allows schools to use a student's original birth certificate issued at or near the time of birth to determine if they are biologically female.
- Defines 'sex' as being male or female based on nonambiguous organs, chromosomes, and hormone levels present at birth.
- Protects schools from punishment by government groups, licensing organizations, athletic associations, or school districts for following these new team rules.
- Allows students who miss out on sports opportunities due to rule violations to sue the violating school in court.
Who it affects
- Public elementary, middle, and high schools
- Private schools whose teams play against public schools
- Postsecondary institutions like colleges or universities
- Students participating in school-sponsored athletic teams
Limits and unknowns
- The law does not change rights under federal laws regarding disabilities.
- Schools cannot be forced by outside groups to ignore these rules, but the text does not list specific penalties for schools that break them other than lawsuits.
- The effective date of when this law starts is not listed in the provided document.
Plain language
Terms to know
- Biological sex at birth
- The state of being male or female based on body parts, chromosomes, and hormones present when a person was born.
- Original birth certificate
- The official document issued near the time of birth that lists a person's sex before any changes are made to it.
- Private cause of action
- A legal right for an individual or school to file a lawsuit in court against another party.
Official record
Sources
Official summary
DESIGNATE SEX FOR SCHOOL-SPONSORED SPORTS An Act relating to school athletics, recreation, athletic teams, and sports.
Official activity
Bill history
- (H) COSPONSOR REMOVED: GALVIN2500
- (H) COSPONSOR(S): GALVIN2342
- (H) COSPONSOR(S): MCCABE1978
- (H) COSPONSOR(S): COSTELLO705
- (H) COSPONSOR(S): VANCE600
- (H) REFERRED TO JUDICIARY41
- (H) JUD, EDC41
- (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS41
- (H) PREFILE RELEASED 1/17/2541