State Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Mike Stuart said Monday that the Riley Gaines Act was meant to protect the privacy of girls and women. (Photo courtesy of WV Legislative Photography)

CHARLESTON — One of Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s legislative priorities to define “male” and “female” in state law and limit use of single-sex spaces by the transgender community received a thumbs up from the West Virginia Senate Monday.

The Senate passed Senate Bill 456, Defining “men” and “women,” in a 32-1 vote during its Monday morning floor session. The bill now heads to the House of Delegates where its version of the bill, House Bill 2006, was moved to the House’s inactive calendar.

SB 456, also named the Riley Gaines Act, defines the terms “sex,” “male,” and “female” in State Code, basing those definitions on biological sex at birth. The bills also aim to limit spaces to biological males and females, prohibiting transgender individuals from using facilities based on the gender they identify as.

“Currently, West Virginia code has no law specifically defining men and women,” said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Mike Stuart, R-Kanawha. “The legislation seeks to remedy that and defines men and women on the basis of biological differences. A primary goal of this bill is preserving privacy for women in certain spaces, including restrooms. The legislation applies to domestic violence shelters, public schools – including colleges and universities – and correctional institutions with very limited exceptions.”

The act is named for former University of Kentucky swim team Riley Gaines, an ambassador for Independent Women’s Voice, a conservative advocacy group. Gaines first made headlines in 2022 after competing against Lia Thomas, a transgender woman who was on the University of Pennsylvania’s swim team. Gaines is one of several college athletes suing the NCAA over its policies regarding transgender athletes.

State Sen. Joey Garcia said Monday that SB 456 would be harmful to the transgender community and certain services, such as domestic violence shelters. (Photo courtesy of WV Legislative Photography)

SB 456 is similar to a bill Gaines lobbied for in West Virginia during last year’s legislative session. House Bill 5243, the Women’s Bill of Rights, passed the House during the 2024 legislative session, but the bill was never taken up in the state Senate.

Morrisey first announced his intentions to have the Riley Gaines Act introduced on his behalf during his inaugural State of the State address on the first day of the 2025 session on Feb. 12. As the state’s attorney general previously, Morrisey defended a state law barring transgender student-athletes from participating in girl’s and women’s sports. During his Republican primary campaign for governor, Morrisey campaigned on these issues with Gaines.

State Sen. Joey Garcia, D-Marion, was the lone nay vote on the bill and the only member of the two-member Senate Democratic caucus to vote against the bill.

“The question is, does this bill hurt our neighbors? And I believe the answer is yes,” Garcia said. “So many of the people who have come to me, who’ve told me they’ve been affected, or they feel hurt by this bill, they may be facing a desert of a struggle…This legislation, I believe it hurts my neighbors. It does not love them.”

Both proponents and opponents on the bill cited Biblical scriptures for their arguments. But in closing debate in the bill, Stuart said the bill is meant to protect the privacy and rights of biological women.

“There’s been a lot of biblical interpretation,” Stuart said. “I can tell you of all the folks in this body, I’m the least perfect and the least knowledgeable when it comes to quoting books in the Bible. But I’ll say this…I believe this is a bill of compassion; compassion for our young women and women all across West Virginia.”

In a statement released after Monday’s Senate vote, LGBTQ rights organization Fairness West Virginia said the bill’s real target is the transgender community in the state.

“Our state is facing so many challenges, and yet our lawmakers spend hours debating bills to police where a transgender woman can use the bathroom,” said Andrew Schneider, executive director of Fairness West Virginia. “Transgender people have already been using the correct bathrooms for years, bathrooms that align with their gender identity. And guess what? There is no evidence that this makes anyone unsafe.”

Steven Allen Adams can be reached at sadams@newsandsentinel.com