Elfreth Opposes Overreaching Child Surveillance Bill

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Sarah Elfreth (MD-03) voted against H.R. 28, the “Child Predator Empowerment Act.” Elfreth joined 205 Democrats in voting against the legislation.

“Instead of working on the real issues that our constituents face, Republicans are once again engaging in culture war politics. H.R. 28 does nothing to ensure safety or fairness in sports, but does threaten our youngest student athletes by exposing these children to invasive physical examinations and questions about their bodies and development,” said Congresswoman Elfreth. “We could be collaborating on sensible solutions on behalf of students on issues from gun violence to the mental health crisis that is sweeping our nation. I encourage my Republican colleagues to bring forward real proposals that would better the lives of all Americans.”

H.R. 28 threatens to revoke federal funding from schools that allow transgender girls and women to participate in girls’ and women’s athletic programs. The overreaching legislation would effectively ban all trans girls and trans women from participating on school sports teams. Enforcement of H.R. 28 would open the door to invasive surveillance, physical examination, and mistreatment of young female athletes. The legislation comes at a time when incidents of sexual abuse of athletes and students are on the rise. In 2021, nearly 20 percent of teenage girls reported being victims of violent sexual behavior.

Elfreth believes that athletic governing bodies are best positioned to address this issue in a nuanced, balanced manner to ensure that sports are fair and safe for everyone. This bill instead takes a one-size-fits-all approach and bans trans kids as young as kindergarten from participating on school sports teams with their friends. Even Republican Governors, like Governor Cox of Utah and Governor Holcomb of Indiana, have vetoed similar bills because of how unreasonable these blanket bans are.