Erin Reed
1. An incredible bill is moving fast in Maryland protecting transgender students. It would apply to ANY "program or activity," and would even include private schools. This would include sports, bathrooms, and more. It even has a private right of action. Subscribe to support our journalism.

Maryland Advances Bill That Wo...
Maryland Advances Bill That Would Protect Trans Students In "Any Program Or Activity"

The bill will confer significant protections in sports, overnight accommodations, and bathrooms if it passes.

Erin In The Morning
Apr 2 at 3:10pmWeb
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
2. The bill, HB649, states that "an educational institution may not exclude an individual from participation in, deny a person the benefits of, or subject an individual to discrimination within, any program or activity of the educational institution on the basis of... gender identity,"

Maryland HB649 | 2026 | Regula...
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
3. The bill was brought at the request of Maryland's Commission on Civil Rights. In testimony, the Commission laid out the urgency in stark terms: the federal Office for Civil Rights, which has historically been the primary enforcement mechanism for students facing discrimination, has been gutted.
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
4. ACLU Maryland noted that when the current president took office, many OCR complaints were dismissed without investigation. "With the dismantling of USDE and OCR, Maryland must fill the gap to ensure that the civil rights of all Maryland students are protected and upheld."
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
5. The bill is notable first for its broad language: by protecting trans students in “any program or activity,” it goes beyond Maryland’s 2022 Inclusive Schools Act, which bans discrimination based on gender identity but does not explicitly guarantee access to all school programs.
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
6. Few states have closed this gap. California and Connecticut explicitly protect trans students’ access to school programs and activities. Maryland’s HB 649 would join them by using Title IX-style language barring exclusion from or discrimination in any program or activity.
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
7. Second, HB 649 gives trans students a private right of action. Instead of waiting on state agencies, students facing discrimination in bathrooms, sports, dorms or other school programs could sue schools directly when a school or college capitulates to Trump's demands.
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
8. The bill passed the House 100-35 on March 23 and has been referred to the Senate Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee, where it was heard yesterday. The Senate must act before the legislative session ends on April 13.
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
9. If passed, the bill is likely to be signed by Gov. Wes Moore, who has signed the Trans Shield Act, the Trans Health Equity Act expanding Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming care, and declared Maryland a sanctuary state for transgender people.
Show threadErin Reed2d ago
10. Lastly, EITM is an award-winning media outlet covering LGBTQ+ news every day. You can subscribe to support our journalism at www.erininthemorning.com/subscribe.

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News and discussion on trans legislation and life. Click to read Erin In The Morning, by Erin Reed, a Substack publication with hundreds of thousands of subscribers.