Nebraska Signs Off on Controversial Ban Keeping Trans Athletes Off the Field

Nebraska lawmakers passed a controversial bill Wednesday night banning transgender students from joining school sports teams that align with their gender identity.

The vote passed 33-16 in the state’s single-chamber Legislature, making Nebraska the 27th state to enforce such a restriction.

Republican Gov. Jim Pillen, who requested the bill, praised its passage, saying on Twitter, “It’s just common sense that girls shouldn’t have to compete against biological boys.”

The “Stand with Women Act,” introduced by Sen. Kathleen Kauth, was stripped of restroom restrictions earlier this month but kept its core ban on transgender participation in gender-aligned sports. Co-sponsor Sen. Loren Lippincott defended the bill, saying, “L.B. 89 is not about shutting doors. It’s about opening the right ones.”

Opposition was fierce from LGBTQ lawmakers and advocates. Sen. John Fredrickson countered, “We want to protect women. I think we also know this is not the way to do it.”

Sen. Megan Hunt, Nebraska’s first openly LGBTQ legislator, didn’t hold back: “We’re using our power to punch down…We’re not making sports fairer or schools safer. We’re singling out a tiny number of kids just trying to survive.”

The Nebraska School Activities Association has already aligned its policy with the federal directive from Trump’s 2025 executive order banning transgender athletes. The state joins a nationwide legal and cultural battle over gender identity in youth sports, with lawsuits in multiple states and growing federal scrutiny.