Utah House approves transgender bathroom ban

The Utah state House on Friday approved a measure requiring people to use bathrooms in taxpayer-funded buildings that align with their sex, with limited exceptions.

The chamber voted 52-17 in favor of the measure with three Republicans opposing it, according to The Hill. Under the legislation, transgender individuals would not be eligible to use certain bathrooms in line with their gender identity without first legally changing their sex on their birth certificate and receiving a gender-related surgery.

To become law, the measure must first still clear the state Senate and receive the governor's signature. Should it do so, Utah would become the third state to adopt and retain a comparable bathroom law, following North Dakota and Florida.

North Carolina passed a bathroom bill in 2016, but repealed it the following year amid intense backlash.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.