Minnesota Could Become a Trans Sanctuary State

The Minnesota House voted on Friday to pass the state’s proposed transgender refuge bill that would safeguard trans youth who live in states with gender-affirming care bans and need to travel to Minnesota to receive care.

If signed into law, HF146 would prevent other states from seizing children from their families because they’re receiving gender-affirming care. The bill also protects families, trans people, and healthcare workers from extradition orders and legal repercussions associated with travel to Minnesota for care.

“A court order for the removal of a child issued in another state because the

child's parent or guardian assisted the child in receiving gender-affirming care in this state must not be enforced in this state,” the bill says.

The house passed the bill with a vote of 68-62 on Trans Day of Visibility, and it now moves to the Senate. Democratic Gov. Tim Walz has committed to signing it into law if it lands on his desk.

“The urgency couldn’t be more real for my community,” Rep. Leigh Finke, the first out trans person in Minnesota’s state government and one of the bill’s authors, told STAT News. “We want to be the kind of state that says: If somebody needs help, we want to be a state that will help them.”

Minnesota would be the second state to pass transgender refuge legislation; last year, California became the first sanctuary state for trans people seeking care.

The bill was introduced against a backdrop of seemingly relentless anti-trans hate across the U.S.: Almost 500 anti-trans bills have been proposed in at least 47 states this year, many of which ban gender-affirming or even equate gender-affirming care for minors with child abuse. At least 10 gender-affirming care bans have already been passed, including in Arkansas, Florida, Tennessee, and Utah.

South Dakota, which borders Minnesota, recently passed a gender-affirming care ban that explicitly says doctors must de-transition their youth patients before the year is up. It’s left many families scrambling as they figure out how they’ll access critical healthcare for their trans youth. Some, including Elizabeth Broekemeier, are seeking gender-affirming care for their kids in Minnesota.

“It’s a matter of my son having to miss school or either myself or my ex-husband having to take time from work to travel,” Broekemeier told VICE News shortly after South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem signed the ban into law. “But honestly, if Minnesota doesn’t pan out it’s scary to think about because I don’t know what we would do other than my child being forcibly detransitioned.”

Broekemeier found two clinics in Minnesota covered by her insurance, and is trying to secure out-of-state care for her son. Minnesota’s bill would protect families like hers.

It might also ultimately protect many other families in the Midwest. Iowa passed a gender-affirming care ban earlier this month, while North Dakota has been trying to criminalize gender-affirming care for minors. In Nebraska, Democrats have tried to block anti-trans legislation, but a trans healthcare ban is nonetheless progressing through the state legislature.

Gender-affirming care, including name changes, puberty blockers, and hormone replacement therapy, is critical and life-saving, and correlated with significantly better mental health outcomes for trans people.

Studies show that trans people are more likely to experience mental health struggles, including anxiety, depression, PTSD, and thoughts of suicide, than cisgender people. Teens who are able to access gender-affirming therapy typically have better mental health outcomes than trans people who have to wait until adulthood to transition.

Are you living in a state that’s hostile towards LGBTQ people? If you want to share your experience, email [email protected], or DM on Twitter @anyazoledz for Signal.