Governor’s proposed ‘Women’s Bill of Rights” failed to go up for a vote

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, with Independent Women’s Law Center Director May Mailman and Riley Gaines, announces the Women's Bill of Rights on a livestream on Monday, Jan. 29, 2024. (Independent Women's Voice photo)

Nearly down-to-wire budget negotiations on the last day of session meant the House of Delegates ran out of time to vote on the governor’s proposed “Women’s Bill of Rights.” The high profile bill was meant to codify the definitions of “man” and “woman” and protect single-sex spaces like restrooms and locker rooms.

Gov. Jim Justice, who is running for U.S. Senate, requested the legislation as one of only a handful of his priorities in final year as governor. A high school basketball coach, he said the bill was an effort “to protect women’s sports.”

Justice held a press conference in late January alongside Riley Gaines, a former collegiate athlete who has spoken out against trans women in sports.

On March 6, the House advanced the Senate’s version of the legislation, Senate Bill 601 .

By Saturday, the bill was parked at the bottom of the House’s bills list. Late-night budget negotiations, which included lengthy questioning from several Democrats, meant it never went up for a vote.

Democrats strongly opposed the bill, saying it “punched down” at the state’s LGBTQ+ population and did nothing for women — like guarantee equal pay issues or guaranteed paid family leave time.

Del. Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, and other Democrats filed 32 new amendments on the bill, which could have resulted in a lengthy consideration as the clock was running out on the session. The bill never made it to the full House for a vote.

“The so-called ‘Women’s Bill of Rights’ provided zero rights for the women of West Virginia,” Young said. “The bill hurt trans West Virginians. Unfortunately, we passed zero proactive bills for women in West Virginian, as well.”

As the bill hung in limbo, the Senate tried late in the final day to move the House’s version of the Women’s Bill of Rights, signing off on it in a last-minute Judiciary Committee meeting.

Sen. Mike Caputo, D-Marion, put forth his own 11 amendments on that legislation, and the bill never made it up for a vote in the full Senate before they adjourned Sine Die.

Other states have considered similar “Women’s Bill of Rights” measures that would create legal definitions for “man” and “woman” based on their reproductive system.

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