Don't get it twisted this attack on trans people in Kansas (how did they identify the people they sent those letters to? They have a list, the monsters.) is a trial, a test. Let them get away with it they will move on to the next smallest group they feel they could target without public backlash.
That is how this works.
No, that's correct (I'm a KS resident)--the DMV records show which licenses previously had the gender info changed, same for the birth certificate data with another agency.
The KS Supreme Court had previously ruled that changing one's gender on gov records had to be allowed, and this new law apparently does what's required to legally ban it again. While several other states also ban this, KS is the first state to claw back previously issued DLs and birth certificates.
BTW They sent the letters out on the 23rd and the law took effect immediately on the 26th with no grace period to allow people to comply, so they now do not have a valid driver's license.
Driving without a valid license carries a fine and possible jail time. There is no doubt they deliberately wanted to punish trans people who had changed their DL, by making it impossible to drive legally until they get a new DL, which takes time to process.
(paywalled but can be bypassed by going into Reader view): https://www2.ljworld.com/news/state-region/2026/feb/23/thousands-of-kansas-drivers-licenses-birth-certificates-set-to-become-invalid-this-week-as-new-transgender-law-takes-effect/
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas is set to invalidate about 1,700 driver’s licenses held by transgender residents and roughly as many birth certificates under a new law that goes beyond Republican-imposed restrictions in other states on listing gender identities in government documents. The new law takes effect Thursday. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed the measure […]
@leadore @futurebird Lea do you think they also scooped up transfolk from other states who had valid ID and who had earlier move into KS? Or is this totally a matter of what can be seen in KS govt. records?
Really shitty thing to do. Serves only to endanger people.
Since they don't have authority over what other states do or what other state's licenses show, this should only be relevant to KS licenses and KS government records. At least I haven't heard or read anything indicating otherwise.
BUT another thing to be aware of is that this bill also bans anyone from using a bathroom marked as for other than one's gender assigned at birth. IMO this is just as bad if not worse. I expect bad things to happen because there are always those people out there who want to make bad things happen.
I was actually surprised to learn that the bill was going to invalidate documents because it was always called "the bathroom bill" and all I ever read or heard about it was about the bathroom aspect of it. I don't think I ever once heard anything about driver's licenses and birth certificates being invalidated.
It's all about taking away trans rights and women's rights and implementing christian nationalism.
myrmepropagandist
dana
Lea