Kentucky Governor Vetoes Bill to Protect Children – Legislature May Overturn

The Kentucky General Assembly passed legislation that protects parent’s rights in schools; safeguards student privacy in restrooms and locker rooms; and bans harmful puberty blockers, hormones, and surgeries for children with sexual identity confusion.

But Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear vetoed the legislation last Friday. SB 150 now goes back to the legislature, which will consider overturning the veto.

The Family Foundation (TFF), a Focus on the Family-allied pro-family group, is urging the legislature to overturn the veto when they return to the Kentucky Capitol March 29-30. The General Assembly reserved those two days, following a 10-day veto recess, to return and possibly override vetoed legislation.

David Walls, executive director of TFF, applauded the legislation when it passed, saying:

I am excited to share about a big victory – SB 150 amended with key protections for parental rights, student privacy in restrooms & locker rooms, and the Do No Harm Act to stop barbaric “gender transition” interventions on kids received final passage in both chambers before the midnight deadline last night! To God be the glory!

SB 150 is an omnibus bill that includes a number of efforts to protect children and parental rights. The bill:

Forbids schools from keeping “a student’s information from a student’s parents” and keeps school districts from developing mandatory “pronoun policies.”
Requires districts to notify parents of “the health services and mental health services related to human sexuality, contraception, or family planning available at the student’s school.”
Ensures that “children in grade five and below do not receive any instruction through curriculum or programs on human sexuality or sexually transmitted diseases.”
Prevents all grades from having “any instruction or presentation that has a goal or purpose of students studying or exploring gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation.”
Protects minors from medical interventions, such as giving drugs to stop puberty, offering opposite sex hormones, and performing irreversible surgeries that sterilize and mutilate healthy bodies.

With the protections vetoed, Walls is asking Kentucky citizens to contact their state legislators and advocate for an override. He said:

SB 150 simply allows Kentucky’s kids to be kids and ensures that their parents are empowered and aren’t kept in the dark. Kentuckians overwhelmingly support SB 150’s commonsense student privacy protections in restrooms and locker rooms, along with the right of parents to have a say in their child’s education. The off-label use of puberty blockers, along with cross-sex hormones and surgery, in experimental gender “transitions” has no place in children’s healthcare – the irreversible harms that detransitioners have suffered testify to that.

TFF urges constituents to make their voices heard, saying:

SB 150 will save the lives of Kentucky children by setting policy in alignment with the truth that every child is created as a biological male or female and deserves to be loved, treated with dignity, and accepted for who they really are.

The organization is holding a press conference and rally on Wednesday, March 29, at 11 a.m., at the Kentucky Capitol Rotunda, in Frankfort. Among those speaking is Walt Heyer, who advocates against “transitioning” children.

Heyer understands the damage done by medical interventions to “transition” people. He has an amazing story of attempting to live as a woman, before “detransitioning” and embracing his innate masculinity.

Related articles and resources:

Daily Citizen:

Focus on the Family