LINCOLN- After passing a bill this year to prohibit certain health care for transgender youth, some Nebraska lawmakers may not have the appetite for a similar fight in 2024 over school bathrooms and sporting teams. State Sens. Merv Riepe, Jana Hughes, Teresa Ibach and Mike Jacobson are among those who voted for the health care restrictions but have said that their support for local control could provide a different avenue next year to address LB575, the Sports and Spaces Act.

LB 575 would define group bathrooms, locker rooms and sporting teams as either male or female, still allowing coed or mixed teams. It would also ditch the Nebraska School Activities Association’s Gender Participation Policy, which currently governs trans student-athletes. State Sen. Kathleen Kauth of Omaha, a freshman senator, introduced both bills and has argued both are necessary to protect children, women’s sports and safe spaces.

The group of lawmakers has set out to strike a new tone after the rancorous 2023 session largely defined by LB 575’s sister bill, LB 574. In a memo to senators, Riepe wrote “The greatest victory is that which requires no battle,” quoting Sun Tzu, a Chinese general. He followed this by stating, “It is my recommendation that we amend LB 575 to stipulate our expectations to the State Board of Education, and require the State Board of Education to address the issue, not the state Legislature."

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