By Sen. Stacey Guerin

You’ve probably heard about a referendum question that will appear on your November ballot aimed at protecting girls’ sports and spaces. What you may not know is that before this initiative was slated to appear on the ballot, the Legislature had the opportunity to adopt this commonsense policy itself.

Hello, this is Sen. Stacey Guerin. I represent all of Piscataquis County and 11 communities in Penobscot County. Thank you for tuning in to this week’s Republican Vision Series.

Earlier this year, LD 2239, “An Act to Designate School Sports Participation and Facilities by Sex,” was transmitted to the Legislature after the Secretary of State certified that it had received the required number of signatures. Dozens of young women, athletes and coaches came to Augusta to support the bill.

The Judiciary Committee could and should have sent this measure to the full Legislature for a vote. Instead, the Committee chose to disregard the Legislature’s Joint Rules and hold the bill until adjournment sine die, preventing lawmakers from taking a recorded vote.

Despite the Secretary of State’s dubious wording of the referendum question, legislation to protect girls’ sports and spaces should not be controversial.

According to the bill summary, “This initiated bill requires public schools and entities that govern interscholastic or competitive sports by public schools to designate athletic teams as for males, for females or coeducational. Athletic teams designated for females must be restricted to students whose sex is female and athletic teams designated for males must be restricted to students whose sex is male.”

Sex-segregated sports exist to ensure that female athletes have equal opportunity. The passage of federal Title IX legislation in 1972 dramatically increased female participation in athletics. Data from 2010-11 showed that 41% of high school athletes in the United States were female, compared with only 7% before Title IX was enacted.

In athletics, biological differences between males and females can create significant disparities in strength, speed and endurance. Allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports undermines opportunities for female athletes to reach their full potential and compete on a fair playing field.

The Legislature could have acted this year. It also could have acted last year when numerous proposals were before us, ranging from reforms to the Maine Human Rights Act to targeted policies prohibiting state funding for schools that allow biological males to participate in activities designated for females. Ultimately, the legislative majority chose not to join my Republican colleagues and me in supporting any of these proposals.

Now, the people of Maine will have the opportunity to make their voices heard. I hope Mainers see through the noise and stand up to protect girls’ sports and spaces. That is the Republican Vision: defending fairness, preserving opportunity and ensuring that the voices of Maine people are heard.

This has been Senator Stacey Guerin of Penobscot County. Thank you for tuning in to this week’s edition of the Republican Vision Series, and make sure to follow Maine Senate Republicans on Facebook, Instagram and X.

Sen. Stacey Guerin represents District 4, which includes all of Piscataquis County and 11 communities in Penobscot County. She is the Senate Republican Lead for the Legislature’s Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Committee and a member of the Government Oversight Committee.