THE POLICY LANDSCAPE
Rights, restrictions & the places between. Sources retrieved Sep 22, 2026
Trans Policy Atlas data: Transitics' CATPALM (built by Aleksandra Vaca, a member of the Trans Data Initiative team) and the team's own research.
Legal recognition
Defining sex by birth biology across state law 50 states + D.C. Statutes, executive orders and statewide rules that apply across state law or state government. A definition limited to one subject (sports, bathrooms, documents) is mapped in that area.
Alabama: Statute defines sex, male and female by birth sex and reproductive system across the Alabama Code Alaska: No statewide legal definition of sex found Arizona: No statewide definition; code-wide sex-definition bills were vetoed in 2024 and 2025 Arkansas: Governor's 2024 order makes biological, unchangeable sex state policy; its directives target education California: No biology-based definition; state law defines sex to include gender identity Colorado: No statewide legal definition of sex found; state law protects gender identity Connecticut: No statewide legal definition of sex found; failed leads were single-subject Delaware: No statewide legal definition of sex found District of Columbia: No District-wide legal definition of sex found; Human Rights Act protects gender identity Florida: No single code-wide definition; biology-based definitions of sex run through education, health, facilities and juvenile law Georgia: No statewide definition; SB 1 (2025) defines sex only for school and college sports and facilities Hawaii: No statewide legal definition of sex found Idaho: Code-wide statute defines sex, male and female by reproductive biology for Idaho laws, rules and policies Illinois: No statewide legal definition of sex found; all proposed definition bills failed Indiana: Governor's order makes all executive agencies read sex as an unchangeable biological male/female category Iowa: Statute defines sex, male and female by birth and reproductive biology for all Iowa statutes and rules Kansas: Women's Bill of Rights defines sex (and since 2026 gender) as biological sex at birth across state law Kentucky: No statewide legal definition of sex found; every 2024-2026 definition bill failed Louisiana: Statutes define sex as biological sex at birth and apply it to all state law and agency rules Maine: No statewide legal definition of sex found Maryland: No statewide legal definition of sex found Massachusetts: No statewide legal definition of sex found Michigan: No statewide legal definition of sex found; budget riders and constitutional proposal not enacted Minnesota: No statewide legal definition of sex found; Women's Bill of Rights bills not enacted Mississippi: Title 1 statute defines male, female and sex by reproductive biology observed at birth for state law Missouri: No statewide definition; only section-specific definitions for sports and minors' care Montana: Code-wide statute defines sex by reproductive biology, in force since Mar. 24, 2026; PI motion pending Nebraska: No statewide definition in force; LB 89 (2025) defines sex for sports only Nevada: No statewide legal definition of sex found New Hampshire: No statewide legal definition of sex; biological-sex bills vetoed and vetoes sustained New Jersey: No statewide legal definition of sex found New Mexico: No statewide legal definition of sex found New York: No statewide legal definition of sex found North Carolina: Statute defines sex by reproductive biology for all state and local rules, regulations and policies North Dakota: Century Code definitions tie sex, male and female to reproductive biology at birth across state law Ohio: Statute (R.C. 9.05) defines sex, male and female by biology for the whole Revised Code Oklahoma: Statute defines sex as biological sex at birth across the Oklahoma Statutes; also 2023 executive order Oregon: No statewide legal definition of sex found Pennsylvania: No statewide legal definition of sex found; bills to add one remain in committee Rhode Island: No statewide legal definition of sex found South Carolina: No statewide definition found; biological-sex definitions limited to school facilities South Dakota: Statute defines male, female and sex by reproductive biology across state code and government Tennessee: Statute defines sex by anatomy and genetics at birth across the Tennessee Code Texas: Code Construction Act defines sex, male/female and man/woman by reproductive biology code-wide Utah: Utah Code general definitions define sex as biological sex at birth, male/female by reproduction Vermont: No statewide legal definition of sex found Virginia: No statewide legal definition of sex found; related 2024 resolutions failed Washington: No statewide legal definition of sex found West Virginia: Statute defines sex, male/female, man/woman for the whole code and state rules Wisconsin: No statewide legal definition of sex found; related bills were single-subject and vetoed or failed Wyoming: Statute defines sex as biological sex at birth for any state law or rule (What is a Woman Act) AL AK AZ CO FL GA IN KS ME MN NC ND OK PA SD TX WY MO WV IL NM AR CA HI IA KY MI MS MT NH NY OH OR TN UT VA WA WI NE SC ID NV VT LA MA RI CT NJ DE MD DC Select a state to inspect its policy and sources.
No restriction reported 31
Restriction reported 20
No restriction reported
No statewide definition in force; LB 89 (2025) defines sex for sports only
No court challenge to EO 23-16 found.
Scope & additional markers Executive Order 23-16 (2023) set biology-based definitions for state agencies until a state law on sports and single-sex facilities took effect. LB 89 (2025) covers sports; the atlas treats the order as superseded by it.
Researched from primary sources Trans Data Initiative research, checked by a second researcherSep 22, 2026
A record is what a source reported on the date it was captured, not a legal effective date. An unobserved record is not a finding that no restrictions exist.