Text of UT SB 205 (2025)

01-31 10:42 S.B. 205 1 Student Privacy Amendments 2025 GENERAL SESSION STATE OF UTAH Chief Sponsor: Jen Plumb House Sponsor: 2 3 LONG TITLE 4 General Description: 5 This bill amends provisions related to student privacy in public schools. 6 Highlighted Provisions: 7 This bill: 8 ▸ defines "multiuser unisex restroom"; 9 ▸ makes technical changes; 10 ▸ allows the inclusion of a multiuser unisex restroom to satisfy a government entity's 11 obligations to certain classes of individuals; and 12 ▸ allows government entities to construct new multiuser unisex restrooms to preserve 13 individual privacy. 14 Money Appropriated in this Bill: 15 None 16 Other Special Clauses: 17 This bill provides a special effective date. 18 Utah Code Sections Affected: 19 AMENDS: 20 63G-31-101, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2024, Chapter 2 21 63G-31-301, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2024, Chapter 2 22 63G-31-303, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2024, Chapter 2 23 63G-31-304, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2024, Chapter 2 24 25 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah: 26 Section 1. Section 63G-31-101 is amended to read: 27 63G-31-101 . Definitions. 28 As used in this chapter: 29 (1)(a) "Changing room" means a space designated for multiple individuals to dress or 30 undress within the same space. S.B. 205 S.B. 205 01-31 10:42 31 (b) "Changing room" includes: 32 (i) a dressing room, fitting room, locker room, or shower room; and 33 (ii) a restroom when a changing room contains or is attached to the restroom. 34 (2)(a) "Facility" means a publicly owned or controlled building, structure, or other 35 improvement. 36 (b) "Facility" includes a subset of a publicly owned or controlled building, structure, or 37 other improvement, including a restroom or locker room. 38 (3) "Government entity" means: 39 (a) the state; or 40 (b) any county, municipality, special district, special service district, or other political 41 subdivision or administrative unit of the state, including: 42 (i) a state institution of higher education as defined in Section 53B-2-101; or 43 (ii) a local education agency as defined in Section 53G-7-401. 44 (4) "Intersex individual" means the same as that term is defined in Section 26B-8-101. 45 (5) "Men's restroom" means a restroom that is designated for the exclusive use of males and 46 not females. 47 (6) "Multiuser unisex restroom" means a restroom that: 48 (a)(i) is designated for the use of both sexes; or 49 (ii) is not sex-designated; and 50 (b) includes: 51 (i) individual, enclosed rooms containing one toilet, floor-to-ceiling walls and doors; 52 and 53 (ii) a shared handwashing area that is visible from the entrance of the restroom. 54 [(6)] (7)(a) "Open to the general public" means that a privacy space is: 55 (i) freely accessible to a member of the general public; 56 (ii) accessible to an individual who has purchased a ticket, paid an entry fee, paid a 57 membership fee, or otherwise paid to access the facility containing the relevant 58 privacy space; or 59 (iii) accessible to a student of an institution of higher education described in Section 60 52B-2-101, either freely or as described in Subsection [(6)(a)(ii)] (7)(a)(ii). 61 (b) "Open to the general public" does not include a privacy space that is: 62 (i) only accessible to employees of a government entity; or 63 (ii) any area that is not normally accessible to the public. 64 [(7)] (8) "Privacy space" means a restroom or changing room within a publicly owned or - 2 - 01-31 10:42 S.B. 205 65 controlled facility, where an individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy. 66 [(8)] (9) "Publicly owned or controlled" means that a government entity has at least a partial 67 ownership interest in or has control of a facility, program, or event. 68 [(9)] (10)(a) "Restroom" means any space that includes a toilet. 69 (b) "Restroom" includes: 70 (i) sex-designated men's restrooms; 71 (ii) sex-designated women's restrooms; 72 (iii) unisex restrooms; 73 (iv) multiuser unisex restrooms; and 74 [(iv)] (v) single-occupant restrooms. 75 [(10)] (11) "Sex-designated" means that a facility, program, or event is designated 76 specifically for males or females and not the opposite sex. 77 [(11)] (12) "Single-occupant" means, in relation to a single-occupant facility or privacy 78 space, that the facility or privacy space: 79 (a) has floor-to-ceiling walls; 80 (b) has an entirely encased and locking door; and 81 (c) is designated for single occupancy. 82 [(12)] (13) "Unisex" means, in relation to a unisex facility or privacy space, that the facility 83 or privacy space: 84 (a) is designated for the use of both sexes; or 85 (b) is not sex-designated. 86 [(13)] (14) "Women's restroom" means a restroom that is designated for the exclusive use of 87 females and not males. 88 Section 2. Section 63G-31-301 is amended to read: 89 63G-31-301 . Sex-designated privacy spaces in public schools. 90 (1) To preserve the individual privacy of male and female students in the public education 91 system, a student may only access an operational sex-designated privacy space within a 92 public school that is designated for student use if the student's sex corresponds with the 93 sex designation of the privacy space. 94 (2) For a student who makes a request to use a privacy space other than the sex-designated 95 privacy space that corresponds with the student's sex because of the student's gender 96 identity, as defined in Section 34A-5-102, or reasonable fear of bullying, the local 97 education agency, as defined in Section 53E-1-102, shall coordinate with the student's 98 parent or legal guardian to develop a privacy plan that provides the student with: - 3 - S.B. 205 01-31 10:42 99 (a)(i) reasonable access to a unisex or single-occupant facility;[ or] 100 (ii) reasonable access to a faculty or staff restroom; or 101 (iii) reasonable access to a multiuser unisex restroom for middle and high school 102 students; or 103 (b) if the access described in Subsection (2)(a) is unavailable, reasonable access to 104 private use of an otherwise sex-designated privacy space through staggered 105 scheduling or another policy provision that provides for temporary private access. 106 (3) An LEA satisfies the LEA's duties regarding student use of a privacy space under this 107 chapter if the LEA: 108 (a) gives notice to students of the provisions of this section; 109 (b) takes administrative action to address violations of and promote compliance with this 110 section; and 111 (c) develops a privacy plan in accordance with Subsection (2). 112 (4) An individual may use the following evidence as a defense to an allegation that the 113 student is not eligible to access and use a sex-designated privacy space under Subsection 114 (1): 115 (a) the student's unamended birth certificate that corresponds with the sex designation of 116 privacy space, which may be supported with a review of any amendment history 117 obtained under Section 26B-8-125; or 118 (b) documentation of a medical treatment or procedure that is consistent only with the 119 sex designation of the privacy space. 120 (5) Subsection (1) does not apply to: 121 (a) a unisex or single-occupant facility; or 122 (b) an intersex individual. 123 Section 3. Section 63G-31-303 is amended to read: 124 63G-31-303 . Unisex or single-occupant facilities. 125 The availability of a unisex facility, multiuser unisex restroom, or single-occupant 126 facility satisfies a government entity's obligations regarding an individual who, because of the 127 individual's gender identity, as defined in Section 34A-5-102, or reasonable fear of bullying, is 128 uncomfortable using: 129 (1) for a student, a privacy space in accordance with Section 63G-31-301; or 130 (2) a changing room in accordance with Section 63G-31-302. 131 Section 4. Section 63G-31-304 is amended to read: 132 63G-31-304 . Government entity facility compliance. - 4 - 01-31 10:42 S.B. 205 133 (1) Except as provided under Section 53G-8-211, a government entity shall contact law 134 enforcement if the entity receives a complaint or allegation regarding the following 135 within a privacy space in a facility that is open to the general public: 136 (a) an offense of lewdness under Section 76-9-702; 137 (b) an offense of lewdness involving a child under Section 76-9-702.5; 138 (c) voyeurism under Section 76-9-702.7; 139 (d) loitering in a privacy space under Section 76-9-702.8; or 140 (e) for a changing room described in Section 63G-31-302, an offense of criminal 141 trespass under Subsection 63G-31-302(2). 142 (2) To preserve the individual privacy of males and females in privacy spaces: 143 (a) a government entity shall adopt a privacy compliance plan to address compliance 144 with the government entity's duties under this chapter; 145 (b) for construction of a new facility, a government entity shall ensure that the new 146 construction includes: 147 (i) [ ]a single-occupant facility; or 148 (ii) [ ] a multiuser unisex restroom; and 149 (c) for existing privacy spaces, a government entity: 150 (i) shall consider the feasibility of retrofitting or remodeling to include: 151 (A) floor-to-ceiling walls and doors or similar privacy protections; 152 (B) curtains; or 153 (C) other methods of improving individual privacy within the facility that are 154 comparable to the methods described in [Subsections (2)(a)(i) and (ii)] this 155 Subsection (2)(c)(i); and 156 (ii) may reduce the number of fixtures that state law requires by up to 20% to provide 157 adequate space for the retrofitting or remodeling described in Subsection [(2)(a)] 158 (2)(c)(i). 159 (3) A government entity shall ensure sufficient sex-designated privacy spaces through 160 compliance with Sections 15A-3-112 and 15A-3-304 regarding unisex facilities. 161 Section 5. Effective Date. 162 This bill takes effect on July 1, 2025. - 5 -