BREAKING: GOP South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard VETOES Anti-Transgender Student Restrooms Bill

He took the veto down to the literal last hour before it would become law. Dominic Holden reports at Buzzfeed:

South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard heeded to pressure from LGBT advocates and businesses on Tuesday, announcing he vetoed a bill that would have banned transgender students from using school restrooms that correspond with their gender identity.

South Dakota would have become the first state in the nation with such a policy, risking a legal clash with the Obama administration.

Republican backers of the bill — who control both chambers of the legislature — had said they were responding to the federal government’s recent advocacy for transgender students. They argued the bill was needed to protect student privacy and safety.

But LGBT advocacy groups, businesses, and activists pressed the Republican governor to block the measure over the past week, contending it would stigmatize transgender kids who are already ostracized and harassed.

Holden notes that the veto could be easily overridden in the state House where it passed 58-10. An override vote seems less likely in the state Senate, where at least three out of 15 Senators would have to reverse their votes.

UPDATE: The Transgender Law Center reacts.



Governor Daugaard made the right call in vetoing this dangerous legislation, sparing South Dakota the risky and costly experiment of becoming the first state to mandate discrimination against transgender youth in violation of federal law and student privacy and well-being.

Every child, including transgender children, should feel welcome in their state and in their school, and should have the opportunity to succeed and be treated fairly as they work to get an education. Using state law to force schools to perform gender checks on students who need to use the bathroom – and then separate out transgender students from their peers – is not only dangerous and wrong, it is a violation of federal law.

We are deeply appreciative of the Governor’s thoughtful decision and of the tireless work of local advocates to stop this harmful legislation from becoming law. HB 1008 would have put the state school systems’ funding and the lives of young people in jeopardy.

This veto sends an important message to South Dakotans and to legislators in other states considering laws targeting youth that discrimination is harmful for everyone.”