Alabama lawmakers pass measure to make felony of some transgenders-related procedures for minors

Alabama lawmakers have passed a bill that if enacted would make illegal some transgender-related medical procedures for minors including hormone treatment, puberty blockers and gender-reassignment surgery.

The bill passed Thursday would make a felony punishable with up to 10 years in prison out of providing the procedures, according to Reuters.

The legislation, passed 66-28 by the state's House of Representatives on the last day of the legislative session, is among the most recent measures in Republican-led states related to transgender minors. 

The American Civil Liberties Union says the bill is the first of its kind to make such procedures for minors a felony and that it will pose a legal challenge if GOP Gov. Kay Ivey signed it into law.

"We make decisions in this body all the time that are to protect children from making decisions that could permanently harm them," state GOP Rep. Wes Allen said about the measure and opposition from Democrat lawmakers. 

Ivey has not said whether she would sign the bill, and her office did not respond to a request by the wire service for comment.