A bill passed by North Dakota’s Senate Thursday took aim at transgender students and public workers in the state—allowing employees of government entities, including teachers, to ignore the preferred pronouns of their transgender colleagues and pupils. It would also further restrict transgender students from using their bathroom of choice and require teachers to out students to their parents if they identify as transgender. After no debate on the Senate floor, the chamber passed the bill on a 40-6 margin. Republican Rep. Cynthia Schreiber-Beck was one of the six dissenters, and only did so because she didn’t think it went far enough. “I have a real concern that this is only targeted at public schools,” she said, adding that she had hoped to include any private schools receiving government funding. The bill will now head to the governor’s desk where Republican Gov. Doug Burgum is expected to sign it into law—though it won’t matter if he doesn’t—the bill passed with a veto-proof majority in both the House and the Senate.
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