After a court order forced the state to allow trans residents to change their gender on their birth certificates, state health officials are pushing back.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare Board of Directors voted 3-2 Thursday to force anyone under 18 to get permission from a doctor or mental health professional to change their birth certificate.
The original proposal would’ve applied to adults, too, but board members changed it to only deal with minors.
The move seems to be in conflict with a federal court ruling.
In her order last March, Judge Candy Dale said any new rule for trans people to change their birth certificate can’t put any more “onerous burdens” on them than anyone else.
For example, someone can change the paternity information on an Idaho birth certificate without having to prove anything with a DNA test.
According to Idaho Public Television, the state says 15 minors have applied to change their gender marker since last April.
State lawmakers will have to sign off on the new rule to make it permanent when they reconvene next year.
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Copyright 2019 Boise State Public Radio
