Transgender individuals will not be allowed to use single-sex bathrooms that align with their gender identities near the House Chamber, according to a policy reinstated Friday by Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. The policy, which has sparked controversy, was included in a list of rules for the 119th Congress and was officially noted in the Congressional Record, a daily account of legislative proceedings.
However, the policy was not part of the House rules package approved Friday during the House’s first session. The rules for the session primarily dealt with other matters of procedure but did not specifically address the bathroom policy.
According to the policy, all single-sex facilities—such as restrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms—will be designated for individuals based on their biological sex. The measure applies to areas of the Capitol under the Speaker’s control, including the House chamber, corridors, and other rooms assigned to the House, as detailed in the Congressional Record.
The policy will be enforced by the Capitol sergeant-at-arms, and it impacts a number of facilities within the House-controlled section of the Capitol. The Congressional Record also clarified that each Member office has its own private restroom, and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol, offering an alternative to the restricted facilities.
This ban has its roots in a proposal initially introduced by Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., in November, following the election of Rep. Sarah McBride, D-Del., the first openly transgender person elected to the U.S. Congress. Mace’s proposal was a direct response to McBride’s election, stating that she would fight any effort to allow transgender women into women’s restrooms and changing rooms.
Mace was vocal in her opposition to transgender people using facilities based on their gender identity. “I’m absolutely 100% gonna stand in the way of any man who wants to be in a women’s restroom, in our locker rooms, in our changing rooms,” she said at the time, despite McBride being a woman and a member of Congress. Mace also said she would work to introduce legislation that codifies this bathroom policy into law.
Speaker Johnson expressed his support for Mace’s effort when it was first introduced, emphasizing that women should have spaces that are exclusive to them. “Women deserve women’s only spaces,” Johnson said in November.
Rep. Mace reiterated her stance on Friday, confirming that she would push to introduce legislation to codify the bathroom policy in Congress. While the issue is not yet law, Mace contends that the policy has effectively been in place since Johnson expressed his support for it in the fall.
For McBride, the bathroom policy represents a distraction from more important issues, particularly those related to economic inequality and climate change. In a statement, McBride expressed disappointment that Republicans continue to focus on such issues, adding, “I always knew that there would be some members of the Republican caucus who would seek to use my service representing the greatest state in the Union in Congress as an opportunity for them to distract from the fact that they have absolutely no real policy solutions for the issues that actually plague this country.”
McBride, who represents Delaware in Congress, was not surprised by the policy but expressed disappointment in its timing. “I was not surprised that there was an effort to politicize an issue that no one truly cares about—what bathroom I use,” McBride said. “I did think that it might wait until January. It happened a little earlier than I anticipated.”
A spokesperson for McBride declined to provide further comment on Speaker Johnson’s policy.
In recent years, anti-transgender rhetoric has become more prevalent in some parts of the Republican Party, especially during election seasons. However, despite this focus, former President Donald Trump recently downplayed the issue, agreeing with McBride that lawmakers should focus on other matters.
“I do agree with that. On that—absolutely,” Trump said in a recent interview with Time magazine. “I don’t want to get into the bathroom issue. Because it’s a very small number of people we’re talking about, and it’s ripped apart our country, so they’ll have to settle whatever the law finally agrees.”
Despite McBride’s objections, it appears the policy will remain in place unless further changes are made in Congress. With partisan division still prevalent, this issue is likely to remain a point of contention in future legislative discussions.