Kansas AG Says Previously Modified Birth Certificates Must Be Changed Back to Reflect Biological Sex

In April, the Kansas legislature overrode Governor Kelly's veto of Senate Bill 180 which defines "sex" as biological sex for purposes of various state laws, rules and regulations. Yesterday, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach issued Attorney General Opinion 2023-2 (full text) which interprets the new law as requiring birth certificates that have previously been modified to now be changed back to reflect the individual's sex assigned at birth. Similarly, driver's license records that have been modified must be changed back and future licenses must be issued on the basis of biological sex. However, the individual may present themselves as the opposite sex in their driver's license photo. The Attorney General also concluded that the new law does not apply to housing decisions by state correctional facilities since those decisions are not mandated by state rules or regulations.

Oklahoma Bans Nonbinary Designations On Birth Certificates

 On Tuesday, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt signed SB 1100 (full text) which provides:

... [T]he biological sex designation on a certificate of birth issued under this section shall be either male or female and shall not be nonbinary or any symbol representing a nonbinary designation including but not limited to the letter “X”.

Fatherly reports on the new law.

Oklahoma Governor Condemns State's Issuance Of Non-Binary Birth Certificate

According to The Oklahoman, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has reacted sharply to a legal settlement by the state's former attorney general. Under the settlement, a state district court in August ordered the State Health Department to reissue a birth certificate with a non-binary sex designation. Last week, Gov. Stitt issued a statement saying:

I believe that people are created by God to be male or female. Period. There is no such thing as non-binary sex and I wholeheartedly condemn the purported OSDH court settlement that was entered into by rogue activists who acted without receiving proper approval or oversight.

Oklahoma House Speaker Charles McCall contended that the settlement is invalid because state law requires any settlement that "substantially impacts the operation or programs of a state agency" be reviewed first by legislative leaders and the governor's office. A member of the legislature has already pre-filed a bill to prevent non-binary designations on birth certificates in the future. Oklahoma House Minority Leader Emily Virgin says she is disgusted by the Governor's statement. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]

Montana Makes It More Difficult To Obtain Transgender Name Change On Birth Certificates

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte recently signed Senate Bill 280 (full text) which provides in part:

The sex of a person designated on a birth certificate may be amended only if the department receives a certified copy of an order from a court with appropriate jurisdiction indicating that the sex of the person born in Montana has been changed b y surgical procedure.

Metro Weekly reports on the new law.

Canadian Court Says Polyamorus Trio Can All Be Listed As Child's Parents

The Provincial Court of Newfoundland and Labrador, for the first time in Canadian history, has ruled that three adults living in a polyamorous relationship can all be listed as a child's parents on the child's birth certificate.  According to a July 6 report by the Log Cabin Democrat, Justice Robert Fowler wrote:

Society is continuously changing and family structures are changing along with it. This must be recognized as a reality and not as a detriment to the best interests of the child.

Supreme Court: Same-Sex Spouses Must Get Equal Treatment In Birth Certificates

In Pavan v. Smith, (Sup. Ct., June 26, 2017), the U.S. Supreme Court today granted certiorari and summarily (i.e. without further briefing or oral argument) reversed a decision of the Arkansas Supreme Court on the rights of same-sex married couples. The Supreme Court held that "Obergefell’s commitment to provide same-sex couples 'the constellation of benefits that the States have linked to marriage'" means that the state must apply the same rules to same-sex and opposite-sex married couples in the issuance of birth certificates. Under Arkansas law, the male spouse of a woman who gives birth appeared on a birth certificate, but the female spouse of a woman who gives birth did not.  The Supreme Court struck this differentiation down, saying that in Arkansas birth certificates are more than just a marker of biological parentage.

Justice Gorsuch, in an opinion joined by Justices Thomas and Alito, dissented saying that this is an inappropriate case for summary reversal.

Suit Says Florida Will Not Issue Correct Birth Certificates To Married Lesbian Couples

A lawsuit was filed in federal district court in Florida yesterday challenging the birth certificate policy of Florida's Bureau of Vital Statistics.  The complaint (full text) in Chin v. Armstrong, (ND FL, Aug. 13, 2015), alleges:

When a child is born to a woman who is married to another woman ... the Bureau ... will not issue accurate birth certificates listing both parents.... Instead, the Bureau will issue only a certificate that falsely indicates that the child has only one parent and that omits the mother’s spouse as the child’s second parent.

The suit contends that this infringes plaintiffs' fundamental right to marry as well as denying them equal protection of the laws. Equality Florida Action issued a press release on the filing of the lawsuit.