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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2023 - 2024
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | December 15, 2022 03:56 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Benjamin V. Sanchez and Rep. Joe Webster |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Remove Sex from Birth Certificates |
Someone’s gender identity is a personal journey. Many people struggle with the decision to come out about their gender identity in light of a society that has been slow to recognize transgender people as deserving of equal rights and respect. Unfortunately, bureaucratic roadblocks make this process even more complicated as transgender people face discrimination and multiple barriers when changing their sex on government documents, like birth certificates. Our legislation would fix this issue by removing sex from birth certificates altogether. As recommended by the American Medical Association (AMA), removing sex designations on birth certificates will prevent many problems transgender individuals face by having a different gender identity on this foundational document. Sex will still be reported on the U.S. Standard Certificate of Live Birth system, which is used for medical and statistical data collection. Precedent exists for amending what is required on birth certificates. Birth certificates used to include the race of an individual’s parents which had historically been used as a part of systemic discrimination. By removing sex from birth certificates, people who consider identifying with a gender separate from the sex organs they were born with will have one less bureaucratic hurdle to gender affirmation. We urge you to join us in co-sponsoring this bill to take a simple step to ensure Pennsylvania bureaucracy is not a barrier to transgender Pennsylvanians living their lives authentically. |
Introduced as HB609
Memo Updated: December 15, 2022 03:57 PM